Dec. 7/8 Photos

Apple Orchard - Kerrville, Texas | home

Dec. 7/8 Photos

The Night Before...

the first dig began at the Apple Orchard my belly was growling and aching. As is the case with every new unproven dig site my nerves were shot as I wondered what would or would not be found. Whether most diggers believe it or not, I am the one that most wants my fellow diggers to find artifacts. It is my number one concern. This is how I make my living and hopefully how most of you know me as a person (that I care), so number one on my mind is how well my diggers do!

So, I popped number four Immodium (tummy medicine) and went to bed the night before the dig in as much anticipation as any of the TAAA diggers on what the ground would give up the next morning.

Morning came, I made my calculation of where to dig. I crawled on to the backhoe know that soon the long awaited answer would be known.

I stuck the bucket in the ground and started to dig and then...

ARTIFACTS STARTED FALLING OUT OF MY BACKHOE BUCKET!!!

Dale Rainwater picked up the first one...

a gorgeous, highly patinated Kerrville fist ax

(how fitting - we were just a couple of mile from Kerrville!)

Then Robert Kincaid jumped across the ditch

and pulled this awesome Kinney out of the dirt

my backhoe was pushing to the side. At first I thought

it was a Plainview but closer examination

proved it to be a Kinney.

Then Jim Nichols scooped up this

thin, highly patinated Covington.

The party was about to begin...

Oh by the way... my stomach problems

disappeared just about this moment! HAHA

Enjoy the photos of a great dig!

One after another many super artifacts were to be found the next two days. I do not have enough

time to put captions by all the photos. I took over 200. These are some of the best.

Christine Template found the only one of two Montells that I remember. This would prove to be a super Perd camp.

Rita Smith came to her first TAAA dig with Mona Broussard. They had a great time!

Don and Ron Oatman with a couple of their first finds.

Amy Easterwood had a great day. She found many nice artifacts!

Early Triangular makes Pat Even a happy girl! HAHA

Dwight Howe found this huge Pedernales knife.

This is just the first of many for the weekend for Jim Nichols.

The Pedernales people broke this knife and reworked it to be used again!

5 1/2 inches long and the tip is gone! Great find Jerry Vincent!

Dale Rainwater found this Andice with just a little tip damage. Very very rare

to find one this whole! What a find!

Roger Herridge picked up his first point of the day.

A first time TAAA Digger!

Johnny Kuzenka found 9 whole points and 30 partials by lunch!

He is doing the arrowhead twist! Haha Actually, I took the photo just as he was getting off the ground.

Ron Meissner found this heat treated, translucent Marshall! This was Ron's first TAAA Dig!

Bebo Huffman found the first of two Kerrville fist axes! He told me Saturday morning that this was the

artifact type that was missing from his collection! This is a super fist axe!

This is a super translucent Nolan.

Johnny Kuzenka had a "memorable" day!

Look at Vince Thompson's Killer Perd!!!

Ken Spencer shows of "handfulls" of nice artifacts that the found!

Darren Lowe was stacking them up also!

Steve Moon pulled out one of the prettiest translucent Pedernales's!

It was Dale Rainwaters day, but then again, it usually is!

Mr. Lucky!

Robert and Pam Kincaid had great luck and a great time!

Pat Even was on a tear. Look at the patination on this super Kerrville fist axe!

Dale and his super Almagre.

Leroy Willard found this sweet Marshall!

This piece was heavily ground!

Alan Mitchell found his first Hell Gap!

Yes, we broke it. Dang it. This is a very

rare Bell/Andice Variant. This point type has not been

officially named as of yet. Sorry Leroy! This point came

out of the mound that was pushed up!

This camp also had some really super Uvaldes as Ed Rosenman shows his off!

Some of Ron Oatmans finds.

Gene Black found some beauty's. Look at that Kinney!!!

Walter Benson found a handful!

Butch Kleine kept his huntin' buddies hoppin' to keep up Saturday!!!

The Bat! Actually, this is a practice base tang piece, it was made on a flake.

Another reason to quit digging in time to have the photos made of your points... right Ed?

Here are two points coming out that were

stacked on top of each other. I am showing

both of them as they came out.

This was Jack Lam's first dig with us, all these

points came out within inches of each other!!!

Pam Kincaid found this awesome root beer Perd!

Wes and Paul Richardson started slow but found many points by the end of the weekend!

I want to take this time to thank Wes and Paul for helping me build the new screens that

our diggers enjoyed this weekend. They have both been a tremendous help to the TAAA

and all of its diggers! The only pay that Wes and Paul get for their super work and

their equipment is the points that they find. They do it for the love of artifact hunting and in

their own words, "We love to see everyone finding the artifacts!"

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO TIP THE GUYS FOR THEIR HARD WORK, WEAR AND TEAR ON THEIR

EQUIPMENT AND HELP WITH THE DIESEL AND OTHER EXPENSES PLEASE GIVE THE TIPS TO

ME (BOB) WHEN YOU SIGN UP AT THE DIG AND I WILL SEE THAT THEY GET IT.

YOU CAN EVEN CHARGE IT ON YOUR CREDIT CARD, I WILL PAY THE BANK CHARGE.

THANK YOU PAUL AND WES FOR A JOB WELL DONE! Bob McWilliams and the TAAA Diggers!

Buck Smith moved to Texas from Alaska just to hunt with the TAAA, well that was part of the reason! HAHA

Rita found this unusual base tang with the cortex of the stone still left on one side. Interesting to see an artifact not quite finished like this, it is a great

study piece!!!