Digging in the muck...

[ChrisP1]

Does anyone have any advice as to how to find and get to bottles that may be sitting under a couple to several feet of wetland muck and peat that is walkable/hard on the surface? I have a site that I am sure will be a treasure trove given the 18th century homesites adjacent, but I'm not really sure how to tackle it. This was an open mill pond at one time but is now choked with reeds and entirely filled with peat except for a narrow ditch that runs down the center. I'm thinking of digging down as far as I can get along one bank (where I have permission) and then probing from there. However, when I do feel a bottle at depth, how the hell do you get to it without drowning? I really don't know how consolidated this will be at depth. I do know however that there will be standing water within a foot of the surface...

Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks,Chris

 

[digger dun]

Resign yourself to getting very very dirty with stinking swamp muck. Full length waders will help, and good gloves are a must to prevent getting sliced on unseen shards in the muck. You can also keep a deeper section of your working hole for water collection, and bring a 12V trash pump with a car battery if the rate at which water collects in your hole is too much for bucket bailing.

 

[2find4me]

I wouldn't suggest using a vacuum cleaner to suck up the mucky water. []

 

[MichaelFla]

If it's anything like digging the swamps in Florida, you either have to use a pump and try to stay ahead of the water as it fills back in, or dig blind using a potato rake and posthole digger.I've only seen people get to about the 3 foot level with a pump. Below that it was filling in too fast for the pump to keep up with.Many a day I lay on the ground up to my shoulders in muck, faces scant centimeters from the mucky water, with a potato rake at arm's length under water as black as night. Digging about 6 - 7 feet deep trying to hear the sound of metal against glass under water. Found hundreds of bottles that way, and each one is a surprise when it breaks the surface. Unfortunately, you miss a lot of the tiny stuff this way, though I have found pennies, bus tokens, marbles, pen nibs, etc., that come up in the muck.

 

[Macaco]

Hi Chris,Wear a wetsuit. Dive suits are ok, surfing suits are better because the thinner neoprene is more comfortable. Wear some heavy boots like combat boots to protect your feet. Wetsuit boots are not sufficient to protect against broken glass. Wear puncture resistant gloves. Get in there and muck around. Good luck. Steve

 

[RIBottleguy]

I would suggest using a probe to get an idea of where is the good spots are, and how far down stuff is. I have never dug more than 3 feet down in marshes, but perhaps I should! I usually stop when I don't find anything, but I always have that sneaking suspicion that there is more stuff deeper down. Be sure not to mess with the marsh grass, and the DEM won't bother you.

 

[ChrisP1]

Some really good ideas guys! I think I'm more prepared to tackle this...now all I need to do is to find the time. As far as the vegetation I won't/don't have to mess with it. If and when I find something I will be sure to report back.

Chris

 

[cacarpetbagger]

Years ago when folks were digging the Benecia mud flats they would use apple bins. These were 4x4x4 wooden boxes, or close to that size. They would take the bottoms out and then sink them down in the hole as they dug to keep out the goo using the sides as shoring. Then it was just a matter of mucking out the goo and water. Many great bottles were found this way. I never saw it but heard this is how they did it. Good luck.

 

[blobbottlebob]

Hey Chris. Some great advice above. I notice on your tag line that you are a diver. As long as you don't mind your stuff getting major league dirty, your scuba gear can help a lot. If you know that you are in a good spot and just need to get down further I would start with by digging out a hole that you can get into feet first. That will take awhile. Then press your feet down as far as possible into that hole so that you are firmly set in place. Now gradually work outward and expand your search clawing down as deep as you can. Make sure that you can stand up to breathe at any time in case your regulator clogs with sediment. This method is slow but great. It only works though if you're right on the spot because searching is very slow going. On a tank you might cover only a ten foot area. But if there's stuff to find, it's very effective.

 

[ChrisP1]

Again, you guys have come up with some really good ideas. I had been thinking about the cofferdam concept and Steve described a very workable alternative. Another idea might be a poly or fiberglass circular tank with the bottom cut out. We might have one laying around that I can use. If I was really small a plastic olive barrel work work, but unfortunately, or maybe fortunately...I'm not that small. Bob's suggestion for the use of dive gear is even more interesting and could come into play eventually, but I just don't know how loose it's gonna be. Again, I'll keep everyone informed once I start. I just know there are some good bottles down there. I have found fragments of puce Boardman's in my area and I my dream is to unearth a few of those babies! and some black glass would be nice... Chris