Shallow Water Hunting In Lakes 

By L.W. Steve

 
HOW TO FIND THE OLD SECLUDED LAKE BEACHES 
  WITHOUT DOING RESEARCH! 
We all like to travel around and look for new sites without doing research. It is fun and challenging. Any park that is located next to a lake is an automatic winner. You know at some time in the past they had swam out there. But sometimes the park will be many acres in size, and you will have to find the old swim area on your own. City, county or state owned property next to a lake can also have old swim areas, and this property doesn't necessarily have to be a park for it to have a productive swim area. 

A few things to look for:

1. Well worn trails thru the brush leading to the lake
2. Huge old trees next to the lake (shade for the swimmers)
3. Lots of trash under the surface (on land next to the lake)
4. Old rotten pilings protruding from the shallows (where ever there was a dock they swam) 
5. A sandy bottom. (swimmers don't care for slippery rocks covered with algae)

You think that you found a secluded old beach? Look to find nickels, dimes, quarters and keys 
out in the water. If you start finding stuff like this, then you know you have found a swimming hole.
If you see skunk cabbage off to the side, then hunt this stuff also, it grows pretty fast.

Here are four photos of areas that I have hunted:

This was a swim beach that my hunting partner and I found in 1993. Notice that log? That was the dead giveaway. Can you picture the swimmers sitting on that in the 1920's? This was a virgin site when we hunted it, and it produced many silver coins and rings.

This site with those old trees next to the lake produced some silver and gold rings.

This site actually dates back to the 1880's. It produced several coins from the 1800's along with some jewelry. Can you picture the coins rolling off the docks and into the water back then?

This was a virgin 1950's swim hole that I found. Unfortunately it was a kids swimming hole.
It produced many silver coins and silver rings but no gold.
As you can see, a public beach with lifeguard stands are not the only places there are on a lake to hunt. With some imagination you too can find the old secluded swim holes. Good Luck!-----LW