What tools am I allowed to use when I collect on public land?
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On Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land and in national forests, plan on hand tools. Metal detectors are allowed on BLM land by name in the regulation [1], and the Forest Service treats panning and metal detecting as low-impact activities that generally need no plan of operations [2]. Anything motorized or mechanical is where the rules tighten. BLM bans explosive, motorized and mechanical collecting aids outright [1], the Forest Service may require a plan of operations for sluices and suction dredges and requires one for earth-moving machinery [2], wilderness is non-motorized hand tools only [3], and national parks ban even possessing a metal detector [4]. The table below sets each tool against each kind of ground.
Tool by tool, manager by manager
| Tool | BLM land | National forest | BLM wilderness | National park unit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rock hammer, chisel, pry bar, hand shovel | Allowed for reasonable amounts [1][5] | Allowed; hand collection is low-impact [2] | Allowed: "non-motorized hand tools" with "minimal surface disturbance" [3] | No collecting at all [4] |
| Gold pan | Allowed; BLM lists pans among hand tools [5] | Generally no plan of operations needed [2] | Hand tool; check the wilderness plan [3] | Prohibited, except limited panning at Whiskeytown [6] |
| Metal detector | Allowed: the one device the regulation exempts [1] | Generally no plan of operations needed; not on claims without the claimant's permission [2] | Not addressed by the FAQ; ask the field office [3] | Possession and use prohibited [4] |
| Small sluice or rocker box with a shovel | No mechanical aids under 8365.1-5(a)(3); ask the field office if prospecting under the mining laws [1][5] | "Plan of Operations may be required" [2] | Not hand tools in the plain sense; ask first [3] | Prohibited [4] |
| Suction dredge up to 4 inches, high-banker | Contact BLM before suction dredging with an intake over four inches [5] | "Plan of Operations may be required" [2] | Motorized; not allowed under the hand-tool limit [3] | Prohibited [4] |
| Power sluice or dredge with intake over 4 inches | Contact BLM first [5] | "Plan of Operations may be required" [2] | Not allowed [3] | Prohibited [4] |
| Power tools (rotary hammers, saws, generators) | Banned as collecting aids [1] | "No mechanical equipment may be used" for rockhounding [2] | Not allowed [3] | Prohibited [4] |
| Backhoe, bulldozer, other earth-moving equipment | Banned as collecting aids [1] | "Plan of Operations required" [2] | Not allowed [3] | Prohibited [4] |
| Explosives | Banned [1] | Do not use blasting materials or firearms in collecting areas [2] | Not allowed [3] | Prohibited [4] |
Sources were read October 22, 2026; the Forest Service guide is dated June 2017 and the BLM FAQ file February 28, 2024. Rules change, local closures add to them, and a field office or ranger district can tell you what applies at a specific site.
What the BLM regulation actually says
The BLM rule is 43 CFR 8365.1-5. Paragraph (a)(3) prohibits using, on the public lands, "explosive, motorized or mechanical devices, except metal detectors, to aid in the collection of specimens permitted under paragraph (b) or (c) of this paragraph" [1]. That is the whole tool rule for casual collecting on BLM land, and it is short for a reason: it lists one exception, the metal detector, and everything else that is explosive, motorized or mechanical is out.
The BLM's public brochure puts the same point in practical terms: "You may prospect for minerals such as gold, silver and gemstones with hand tools including pans and metal detectors," and "Power equipment and explosives may not be used except for woodcutting and certain dredging operations" [5]. It asks you to contact the BLM before using explosives or mechanized equipment, or before suction dredging with an intake over four inches [5]. Those uses are no longer casual collecting; they fall under the mining laws and need the BLM's review.
Petrified wood has its own equipment rule. Except for holders of museum-piece permits, "no person shall use explosives, power equipment, including, but not limited to, tractors, bulldozers, plows, power-shovels, semi-trailers or other heavy equipment for the excavation or removal of petrified wood" [7]. The limits that go with it are on petrified wood on public land.
The Forest Service's activity scale
The Forest Service guide (FS-1091, June 2017) gives two statements that need reading together. Its etiquette list says plainly: "No mechanical equipment may be used" [2]. Its table of activity levels, aimed at prospecting under the mining laws, then sorts equipment by impact [2]:
| Activity level, as FS-1091 words it | Requirement |
|---|---|
| "Low-impact activity with little surface disturbance (e.g., gold panning, hand collection of gems, minerals, and rocks. Metal Detecting." | "Plan of Operations generally not required" |
| "Use of small sluice box or rocker box with a shovel." | "Plan of Operations may be required" |
| "Use of suction dredge (up to 4 inches) and/or high-banker." | "Plan of Operations may be required" |
| "Use of power sluice or dredging operation with an intake nozzle over 4-inches in diameter." | "Plan of Operations may be required" |
| "Use of motorized earth-moving equipment." | "Plan of Operations required" |
The guide does not say how the "no mechanical equipment" line and the table fit together, and it does not mention a notice of intent [2]. A reasonable reading is that a rockhound collecting hobby specimens uses hand tools, and anyone who wants to run a sluice or dredge is prospecting and should talk to the ranger district about whether a plan of operations is needed before starting. Ask at the same time whether the state requires its own permit for dredging. The full Forest Service rules are on collecting in national forests.
Wilderness and other special areas
The BLM says collecting is generally allowed in reasonable amounts in its wilderness areas, but collection methods are limited to "non-motorized hand tools," may cause only minimal surface disturbance and must conform to the area's management plan [3]. Read the management plan for anything beyond a hand tool, including carts. The Forest Service says that in "national monuments, wilderness areas, and other special or protected areas, collecting may or may not be allowed" [2].
Metal detectors on claims, in parks and on state land
Three places catch detector users out:
- Mining claims. The Forest Service says precious metal prospecting "is not allowed on mining claims without the claimant's permission" [2], and the BLM says minerals on claims belong to the claim holder [5]. How to check for a claim is on mining claims: how to check and what they mean for you.
- National parks. 36 CFR 2.1(a)(7) prohibits "Possessing or using a mineral or metal detector" in park units, with narrow exceptions for authorized scientific, mining or administrative uses [4].
- State land. States set their own rules. In Arizona, the BLM state office's brochure says "Rockhounding and metal detecting are not allowed on Arizona State Trust Land" [8]. Other states differ; the state-by-state reference is on collecting on state land in all fifty states.
Artifacts found with a detector are a separate legal question from minerals. The Forest Service says "Prehistoric, historic, and archaeological resources may not be disturbed or removed from Federal lands" [2]; see arrowheads and other artifacts.
When a tool turns collecting into mining
The line the agencies draw is impact and purpose. Hand tools, small amounts and personal use are casual collecting. Machinery, larger volumes, or digging to recover minerals for sale move you toward the mining laws, which can require a notice or plan of operations and, on BLM land, a contract or permit for material collected for sale [1][2]. If your plans include a sluice, a dredge or a sale, call the office before the trip, not after. Commercial collecting permits are covered on permits to collect for sale.
Packing the right kit
Once you know which tools the ground allows, the next job is the packing list itself, with safety gear: what to bring on a first trip.
References
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 43 CFR 8365.1-5 Property and resources (as amended through 87 FR 47329, Aug. 2, 2022), read October 22, 2026. https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/43/8365.1-5
- USDA Forest Service, *Rockhounding Guide*, FS-1091, June 2017. https://www.fs.usda.gov/media/229394
- Bureau of Land Management, *Public Collection of Rocks, Mineral Specimens, and Semiprecious Gemstones on Public Lands for Noncommercial Purposes: FAQ*, file dated February 28, 2024. https://muleapi.blm.gov/sites/default/files/docs/2024-02/BLM-Rock-Collection-FAQs_2-28-24.pdf
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 36 CFR 2.1 Preservation of natural, cultural and archeological resources (as amended through 87 FR 47319, Aug. 2, 2022), read October 22, 2026. https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/36/2.1
- Bureau of Land Management, *Can I Keep This? A Guide to Collecting on Public Lands*, BLM/MT/GI-11/007, revised 2021. https://www.blm.gov/sites/default/files/docs/2021-10/Can%20I%20Keep%20This%202021%20-%20508%20Final%20Version.pdf
- National Park Service, Geologic Resources Division, *Recreational Collection of Rocks and Minerals: Legal Instruments*, current as of December 2023, updated January 2, 2024. https://www.nps.gov/articles/recreational-collection-of-rocks-and-minerals-legal-instruments.htm
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 43 CFR 3622.4 Collection rules, read October 22, 2026. https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/43/3622.4
- Bureau of Land Management, Arizona, *Rockhounding in Arizona*, BLM/AZ/GI-14/009 (no printed date; web file dated 2018). https://BLM.GOV/sites/default/files/documents/files/2014%20Rockhounding_14_web_2018.pdf
