Focus on Metal Detecting: Metal Detecting Oregon - Barlow Trail Explorations

Metal detectorists over on an archaeology-hating blog are questioning whether it was hobbyist artefact hunters who dug holes all over a section of the Oregon Trail (see here and Cf here - my version here). The detectorists, wholly true to usual form, instead of expressing concern about destruction of the historical record suggest that they - collectively - are the victims of some dastardly anti-collecting conspiracy. So, in this context I was was interested to see another video on a similar topic from a little further west, where it is perfectly clear what is happening and who is involved ("Metal Detecting Oregon - Barlow Trail Explorations", posted on You Tube by "metaldetectingoregon" on 14 Nov 2011).

I really do not see how anyone normal could try to claim with a straight face that this sort of thing is not happening. More attempts to spread misinformation by artefact huntyers and collectors.

Note at the beginning of the film the littering of a grave site with neo-pagan-type "offerings" depicted here. More relevant to our topic is one of the more provocative admissions in the comments:

mikejohns777 10 months ago: I remember the old days when we would dig up shallow graves and would be able to take the skulls along with us for selling or collecting. I still have a half dozen skulls somewhere in the garage. ). 

Mr Johns has a slogan on his profile "I am better than you" which, whether or not his tale of hoiked human bodyparts stashed in his garage is true, I think well sums up the selfish attitudes behind the people that strip historical sites for loose artefacts (or anything else) to add to their private collections for personal entertainment and profit.

The Barlow Road runs through a National Forest. West of the Great Plains these are mostly lands reserved in the public domain by the U.S. government. In 1978, the entire Oregon Trail, including the Barlow Road, was named a National Historic Trail by the U.S. Congress. In 1992, the Barlow Road was placed on the National Register of Historic Places as a Historic District. So presumably, at the very least, ARPA applies here to any removal of historical material. Since the trail is a "leave no trace" area, I suppose hole-digging artefact hunters hoiking historical artefacts interpret that to mean "fill in your holes and stamp the divot down".

What kind of protection is the US National Forestry Service providing to the historical resources of the land they manage if they are issuing permits to do this kind of thing? This is like England's "DEFRA" and their laissez faire Countryside Stewardship schemes financed by EU money.