corona virus crisis and detecting

On the contrary goldmuss, for there isn't a person on here who don't want to be out detecting & that includes me. Crown land/scrub is not even 5 minutes away from where I live, so I highly doubt I'm being supportive of stopping our detecting hobby by staying at home, but will & do support the laws placed down for us to follow by our governing authorities, in order to subdue or stop the corona virus from spreading.
Now for anyone wishing to break the laws set in place & risk non compliance of the law, go for it, I certainly ain't your judge, jury, nor executioner. Just keep in mind, if anything happens to you out there & things don't quite go as you planned, you'v got no one else to blame but yourselves.
Take care everyone.

Cheers Kon.

I dropped into Coiltek Gold Centre, Maryborough this morning. They are open for business as usual. Uptodate still trading 7 days a week. But they did say they may be planning to do shorter hours per day, depending on trade. Opening from 9am until at least lunch time each day, or later. This depends on the number of people turning up after lunch. They were saying if you are planning to come in after lunch, it would pay to ring first. 03-54604700. They are still open for online sales as normal.
wombat

I think we need to put this into perspective of what the Government are actually saying & what is law.
There is no law against detecting at this time.
There are now laws telling us to stay at home unless you're doing one of the 4 allowable activities - exercise being one. Is detecting not a hobby that provides essential exercise? Is it not best done in solitude?
They are strongly advising to not undertake any non-essential travel.

To me this suggests leaving your home (main place of residence) to go locally & detect/exercise is fine.
IMO the line is drawn at people thinking it's ok to travel 1,2,3 or more hours to go detecting &/or set up camp away from their main place of residence on the pretense of getting some exercise. They don't want people meandering about all over the place. This is very clearly non-essential travel! Numerous forms of exercise can be taken locally without travelling.
Locals in small areas don't want you there either regardless of how isolated or self sufficient you might be or think you are.

Due to my own personal circumstances I've decided to not go out to detect locally. We can walk around town etc. for exercise. But that's my personal decision & I don't begrudge anyone else heading out locally.
Those who insist on travelling extended distances & then staying away from home are a different matter altogether though (& it's not just prospectors doing it). Just stay home - this isn't about you, its about everyone else!

Saw this on facebook - Pretty black and white

Well, if that is really the case GemQ, then some of us here have got it made.

Cheers Kon.

Wombat Bill can you confirm this please, Cheers Bruce

Kon61gold wrote:Well, if that is really the case GemQ, then some of us here have got it made.

Cheers Kon.

But would this be the right thing to do on principle?

Grandfather Johnson wrote:Wombat Bill can you confirm this please, Cheers Bruce

Hi Bruce it seems to be correct, as long as you live within the Goldfields and you don't go too far to detect. And that you follow all other rules and regulations about social gatherings and health regulations. The PMAV are still waiting for a reply from DELWP.
wombat

The part where it says you can go out and exercise.

cheers moredeep

Hi all.

I have been following this thread quite intensely. The thing that has concerned me has been the "directives" issued by the government. I had planned on going detecting today but didn't. I even had the car packed. I have enough fuel to get there and back without having to stop to re-fuel or talk to anyone.

Today I was thinking what gives the government the right to force people to stay in their homes at their whim. As far as I knew there had been no "state of emergency" called. So I checked on the internet and indeed a "state of emergency" had been called and began on March 16th. I hope it isn't fake news.

The reason I hadn't heard of it was because I was stuck in Perth during that time after our cruise had been cancelled. Since returning on the 19th of March my wife and I have been staying at home except for grocery and other necessary shopping. This is something I hate because there is no way the social distancing can be adhered to unless there is only one person per aisle allowed in the shop. The decision to isolate for 2 weeks was a personal one because we had been put up at the Novotel in Perth whilst awaiting our return flights. Almost all of the people in the hotel with us were passengers from the Queen Mary 2. Even though I had no reason to believe any of them had been infected we took a safety first approach upon our return. Also we returned from Perth via a flight and I had no idea where these other passengers had been. Safety first.

So now there are no ifs or buts. The state of emergency was called and we as a community are required to adhere to it for the safety of everyone.

If you are lucky enough to live in the goldfields area and do go out prospecting locally then the law states that you may do so for approximately 1 hour. Enjoy it as much as you can. It may not be the responsible thing to do according to some members, but since you must live locally then you are entitled to. I don't think Planetcare understands much about detecting. When in the history of metal detecting were 2 prospectors able to detect next to each other WITHIN 1.5 metres.

Get your exercise and your sanity back.

Regards Axtyr.

Nicely said Axtyr, a good example of calm and mature response.
Be nice everyone

cheers moredeep

Axtyr wrote:Hi all.

If you are lucky enough to live in the goldfields area and do go out prospecting locally then the law states that you may do so for approximately 1 hour. Enjoy it as much as you can. It may not be the responsible thing to do according to some members, but since you must live locally then you are entitled to. I don't think Planetcare understands much about detecting. When in the history of metal detecting were 2 prospectors able to detect next to each other WITHIN 1.5 metres.

Get your exercise and your sanity back.

Regards Axtyr.

The 1.5 m rule is not the important issue in this. The risk is that a  person may have corona and be asymptomatic and then goes detecting locally and has an accident or medical episode or emergency requiring help from emergency  services or even a mate who they could then  infect. Now i know that folk will argue that the same thing could happen when people exercise outside or walk their dog etc. But I would argue that  old goldfields are a more hazardous environment with  old holes, open shafts increased risk of snakebite etc and that many detecting folk are  retired older people which may increase the risk of them having a medical episode.

I agree with you Axtyr, that Planetcare does not seem know much detecting and distances.
Maybe he only used beat-frequency-oscillator (BFO) when he used to prospect.
I heard these could be used close together.

straight wire wrote:I agree with you Axtyr, that Planetcare does not seem know much detecting and distances.
Maybe he only used beat-frequency-oscillator (BFO) when he used to prospect.
I heard these could be used close together.

Please read my post above! The key issue is not about how close  2 people can  detect!!!

Simply put people, we should not be left having to scratch our heads over this. Its either we are allowed to (by law) or we are not. The laws stated down should be clear, not left open in such a manner, for each to decide what's right for them or not.
If one is allowed (by law where circumstance permits) to go detecting in isolated bush, by following the strictest of guidelines/procedure, then that's all there is to it.
Lets not take it to new heights or go overboard with this. Each & everyone of us here knows where each stands health wise & or where or with whom they've been in contact with lately. So if government law so far allows for such an activity, (for the ones that fall into the category of location & being in a position to) then I can only presume it is safe to do so. Mind you, for the reasons I'v stated in past posts & even though I'm 5 minutes from my nearest gold field, I'v chosen to stay at home, just for the unpredictable, unknown circumstance that might occur out there, placing ones self or another in jeopardy.
straight wire, easy with the smart a**e replies, for they won't be tolerated much longer.

Cheers Kon.

[quote="Kon61gold" Mind you, for the reasons I'v stated in past posts & even though I'm 5 minutes from my nearest gold field, I'v chosen to stay at home, just for the unpredictable, unknown circumstance that might occur out there, placing ones self or another in jeopardy.
Cheers Kon.
[/quote]

Bravo Kon! Your responsible and caring decision is to applauded and respected!

If you live locally , the law states that you can go detecting for approximately one hour. What an absolute load of rubbish. Why not detect for 3 hours if you wish, or 4 or 7. Okay l get it now. lt is the first of April. You got me.

Keohg, you & I both know that if the law allows detecting, under these restricted circumstances, it won't much matter what time restraints they put on detectorists, for people will be putting in triple shifts (23hrs out 24) You know, so as to get maximum gold returns for their minimum time out.
I can see it all now, the ranger goes past sees a bloke fully dressed with cap on swinging a coil. No problem he says, I'll come back latter. 2/3 hrs latter he comes past the same area checking for the same detectorist, but sees a man with long beard, different jeans on, sunnies & akubra for a hat. Yep, he he says, it's another detectorist, doing the right thing. So he drives of once again, only to come back checking for law breakers a couple of hrs later. After driving past the same locality, half hr before the ranger finishing his shift, spots a third man, this time bold with no hair, clean shaven, in shorts & a tee shirt out there detecting, so he stops his vehicle, walks up to the bloke detecting with the words "gday, how ya going" He then asks the bloke you didn't happen to see 2 other blokes detecting near by or around here did ya? & the bald fella says "na m8, I must have just missed them, but if I do, you'll be the first to know. The ranger then drives off home, happy & content of having patrolled the area to the best of what he could have. Meanwhile the third detectorist (baldy) says to himself, I'd better go change my looks again, just in case that same ranger happens to come past for another check up

Cheers Kon.

Dave tonight on the TV news they were showing individual couples sitting on the grass in a park together. They were told that was illegal. But if they were walking together that was legal, as it was classified as doing exercise. You would be more a part from others while sitting in the park an you would be walking along a path with others.
Wombat

For some of us detecting is our source of income.I didn't receive a stimulus handout and don't wish to stand in line at centrelink asking the tax payer to help.I can't access my super as you need to be on a centrelink payment to apply.My wife has a disability that requires regular exercise and detecting is ideal for her.So individual circumstances vary and its easy for people to judge what we should be doing or not doing.
I agree with following the law as Kon stated and if it allows me to detect locally I think its reasonable.

I haven’t read or heard anywhere that
Prospecting is prohibited
Only unnecessary travel.

And It’s Good for our mental health & great exercise.

Ladies/gents although your thoughts/comments above are to be expected & of course there is more chance of being infected with COVID-19 by going to your local supermarket, post office, Chemist or quack, we must all stay positive, by doing the right thing or as required of us to do. Stay put, only going out for the bare necessities/essentials, spending the least amount of time to & fro localities, or mixing in with other people especially when all are found under the one roof, until we have clear positive confirmation/evidence, that we're on top of the corona virus situation.
Right now as things stand, flattening curve or not, less infections, deaths or not, the corona virus is still spreading amongst each state & the numbers of infected are growing, not decreasing. This is not a time for easing up on anything, but a time to be patient/vigilant, towards doing what we're all asked to do, till the threat of COVID-19 is well under control or over.

Cheers Kon.

Dan Andrews
@DanielAndrewsMP
"Under these measures, there will only be four reasons to leave your house:
For food and supplies. For exercise. For medical care. And for work and education – if necessary".
The problem i see is  what exactly constitutes  exercise? What exercises or exercise activities are permitted and what are not?

Hello again.

I was wondering why people have been saying they can go fishing and play golf. There were many ambiguous statements made by the police commissioner when he was asked about what could and could not be done, such as walk on a beach but not sit down. I understand this as they don't want crowds to congregate. One comment that astounded me was that if the beach was not closed by the council then you could go swimming, but not sit at the beach.

However, everything he said only applies to NEW SOUTH WALES as he is the commissioner there. If you want to know if you can go prospecting in New South Wales then someone in that state needs to contact the appropriate authority to clarify that. If the answer is no then I would be asking why playing golf is appropriate?

So, EVERY state has different rules and as we have seen Daniel Andrews has stated that prospecting is allowed if you live local to the area on the assumption that you are using it for exercise.

As I live in Victoria I DO NOT KNOW what the rules are for the other states.

As you read the posts on this forum you need to decipher whether the things that are being posted apply to you in your home state. Do not take the information offered as gospel or that it affects you because you may live in a different state to the member posting the information.

The one thing to ask is has a "state of emergency" been called in your home state? If so then you are bound by ever changing rules and you need to keep up with these changes DAILY. The restrictions are in place not to keep you from enjoying yourself or to make you angry and upset. They are there to try and stop the infection and keep our health system and hospitals from being inundated with infected people. You need to remember that these rules are only short term and no matter how much they affect us it is for the good of the community.

You are entitled to do what you want to do so long as you abide by the rules. They may be confusing and ambiguous so you will need to contact the appropriate authorities in your own state to clarify.

It has been very disappointing reading some of the posts where the comments have been getting very heated. You may not agree with someone going out detecting but they may be entitled to. Everyone has their opinion and unless you can positively state what is truth, like GemQ did with the post from PMAV in regard to prospecting, then it is just an opinion. It seems we are all angry that we cannot get out and go detecting, camping, fishing, etc especially at this time of year with Easter coming. Please keep the comments civil.

Regards Axtyr.

Obeying all the rules here, biding time until this blows over. Nothing and no one will convince me that this is does not have a political agenda that will see the world suffer for decades to come. Using this virus is a means. Take a look at influenza stats around the world in preceding years. Take a look at the country in focus presently, Italy!

moredeep, have sent you a PM, its in my outbox, how do I get it sent.

Peter

Nightjar wrote:Obeying all the rules here, biding time until this blows over. Nothing and no one will convince me that this is does not have a political agenda that will see the world suffer for decades to come. Using this virus is a means. Take a look at influenza stats around the world in preceding years. Take a look at the country in focus presently, Italy!

What do you see as the political agenda and who do you think is behind it? What is your point about the influenza stats around the world in preceding years?

WA now have regional border closures...if your from Perth, you can't drive up here to detect....simple.
I have seen in the last week or so, many many many prospecting rigs from QLD,VIC,NSW and WA coming through town. Perhaps there will be the odd tenement holder and in which case they have an exemption but my feeling is the vast majority are people wanting to keep their holiday schedule.
The argument seems to be that 'we will be out bush to self isolate'...but then I see the same people coming into Leonora for fuel/water/supplies. My point being that almost everyone of these selfish P***ks will have an impact on towns out here. There is even a camp out this way (locals now call it the corona camp) that is still operating.

Does it really matter what the law is? Does it really matter if there is a loophole that you can wiggle through and still get your holiday in?

How about using that rare commodity of common sense...the virus will pass....restrictions will pass....the gold will still be there. I dont know what the truth is behind the virus...I can only really go by what I see on the telly....but based on that, these whackers are potentially endangering peoples lives.

I guess it's a brutal display of peoples selfishness....yet another reason why I prefer dogs to people.

planetcare wrote:
What do you see as the political agenda and who do you think is behind it? What is your point about the influenza stats around the world in preceding years?

The political agenda is mine and mine only (will reveal when proven wrong) and if you can't fathom out my point about influenza stats you need to take up another agenda other than Planetcare.