We live in christmas valley and find whole , broken and unfinished arrowheads all the time. Mostly broken ones though because I feel we live in an area where a lot of hunting took place. Today I found the broken tip of an arrowhead that was pure white. Very unusual for around here...we found what is called a "multi tool" and lots of scrapers. When ever we find the unbroken ones, it seems like they are always just underneath the sage brush, laying there waiting for us. Does anyone know why they aren't laying out in the open like the pieces are? Also a lot of the GOOD ones are stuck sideways in the ground...just seems strange to me.

Welcome to Arrowheads Cindi,
There are a few from Oregon here and they will surely add their input as to conditions etc., in your neck of the woods. Why whole ones under the sage brush? Dumb luck and not spotted by those who walked the area before you most likely, can't pick em up if you don't see em. All the better for you. Hope to see some of your collection on the forums.

Welcome aboard Cindi. One thing I have learned in seven+ years of walking the terrain of NE Ohio, is you just never know where one will pop up. This year I have found next to nothing compared to 30+ points last year. The one point I did find was a lanceolate blade 2-1/2" long and was inside the boot print of an earlier seeker. I just call them destiny, meant to be found by you.-Bill

Hi Cindi,

I live in southern Colorado and I found a lot of cool artifacts laying next to sage brush and broken pieces laying out in the open too. I think if you want to find complete and unbroken artifacts laying out in the open you have to go deeper into the country far beyond the dirt roads. The artifacts that are just barely poking out of the ground are very exciting to find!!

Erik

I agree with your analogy. My son and I were out looking for petrified wood and he came upon the tiniest perfect white point laying there like it was waiting for him. It will fit on a dime. Very Cool for him.

Hello Cindi, and welcome to the board, would love to see some of your collection sometime.

When looking for points, I always preach that nature is often just one collation machine. What I mean is, things will always tend to sort themselves out according to a few factors. Have you ever put rocks and sand in a jar and shook them up to see what happens? The sand falls through and collects at the bottom, that's collation. This is important to remember when looking for artifacts.

If there is a lot of motion (waterways) then things will (for the most part) sort themselves out according to shape, size, motion and obstruction. We find patches of smaller gravel and tend to call it "bird point gravel", because that's often what is collected there. Larger items are often found deposited in larger holes, or caught up with items of a similar size that receive a similar force of movement. It's not always like this, there are exceptions. I've found that applying physics like this can help you find more.

Is there a lot of wind in your area? The brush could be obstructing the wind and movement, or have a factor on erosion. I don't know..just some considerations.