As a retired Army veteran and a father to two adopted sons who love the outdoors, we have two hobbies we use available public lands near our home and all over New Mexico during the summer to enjoy. We are avid Metal Detectorists and gold prospectors!
We visit public lands all summer to also enjoy the great outdoors, see our state’s wildlife and enjoy the great weather as often as possible to not only indulge our hobbies but each other’s company. There are lots of treasures to be discovered underground left by our ancestors and left by visitors. After teaching my boys to respect the environment, fill their small holes they dig to recover their treasures detected with their own metal detectors and taught to leave with the trash they came in with, we head out on a new adventure.
We have always take any trash we find as we hunt for treasure because we know that trash destroys our state visually and harms the wildlife and we usually carry out more trash then treasure back to the truck. We love spending the days together outdoors in our great state and always leave the areas we visit in better shape then it was when we arrived. As gold prospectors, we find good places with black sand in dry river or creek beds and we spend the entire day panning for gold! I love teaching my boys the art of gold panning my ancestor used as a means to support themselves and their families!
We always come home with beautiful stones, antlers, or snake sheds that we display in our home the boys collect and sometimes a speck or two of color! Some stones or antlers we bring home have seen the inside of many classrooms during show and tell and after winter breaks when they tell of their great adventure with their dad to the class.
Thank you for keeping our public lands open for generations of kids to enjoy and for a father to be able to teach his kids TV and video games are not all there is to do in our great state!
(Retired) SFC Ivan L. Baros Sr.
“My Public Land Story” is an ongoing feature. Submit your own and you could see it featured on our website or in the Outdoor Reporter.
Always check rules and regulations about taking artifacts off public lands before you go. Some guidelines are available on the BLM website.
