Short answer
Metal detecting is legal in Scotland with the landowner's permission, which Treasure Trove Scotland says "includes public parks", but almost every layer above that permission works differently from England. Scheduled monument consent comes from Historic Environment Scotland rather than Historic England and you check the mapped extent on PastMap; there is no permit for Crown foreshore, because Crown Estate Scotland states there is "a general right of access for the public to all beaches and foreshore"; and Forestry and Land Scotland states that hobby detecting "is not allowed on Scotland's national forests and land". Instead of the Treasure Act 1996 and its defined class of treasure, Scotland runs Treasure Trove, under which "all portable antiquities of archaeological, historical or cultural significance are subject to claim by the Crown" and must be reported, with no precious metal requirement.
Scotland is a genuinely separate legal regime for metal detecting, not the English regime on different letterheads. It has its own consent body for scheduled monuments, its own access position on beaches, its own policy for public forest land and its own law on what happens to what you find. If you have detected in England, the efficient way to learn it is not to start again from zero. It is to run a conversion, layer by layer.
Most pages on this query are written for somebody who has never held a detector. The person actually searching it usually knows the English rules and wants to know which of them stop being true at the border. This article answers that, with the source sentence quoted underneath every rule, and it says plainly where the popular version of the law could not be traced to any statute.
Permission is the first question on any Scottish site. The second is which ground is worth working at all. The UK Gold Prospector map plots 300+ gold panning and prospecting sites across the UK, Scotland included.
Open the live map →What actually changes when you cross the border?
Nearly every layer you check before you swing a coil in England has a Scottish equivalent, and in almost every case the authority, the tool, the permit position or the consequence is different. The table below is the whole conversion in one place, and every row is worked through with its source sentence further down the page. For the same treatment across all four UK jurisdictions, the companion guide to where you can legally metal detect across the UK assembles the full designation stack.
| Layer | England, what you already know | Scotland, what it becomes |
|---|---|---|
| Landowner's permission | Required everywhere | Required everywhere, and Treasure Trove Scotland states that this "includes public parks" |
| Scheduled monument consent | Written consent from Historic England under section 42, Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 | Written consent from Historic Environment Scotland, which HES says is needed "as well as by the owner" |
| Penalty for detector use in a protected place | Level 3 on the standard scale, £1,000 under Sentencing Act 2020 s.122(1) | Level 3 on the standard scale, £1,000 under Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 s.225(2) |
| The statutory "I did not know" defence | s.42(7): took all reasonable precautions and did not believe it was a protected place | Scottish version of s.42(7): took all reasonable steps, and did not know and had no reason to believe it was |
| Checking tool | Historic England's search and mapping services, plus MAGIC at magic.defra.gov.uk for SSSI and other layers | PastMap, named by Historic Environment Scotland as where to check the location and extent of scheduled monuments |
| Foreshore | A Crown Estate permissive right, "strictly subject to" Terms and Conditions dated 22/01/2024 | A general right of access to all beaches and foreshore, and Crown Estate Scotland does not require a permit |
| Ownership of objects found on the foreshore | Crown Estate Terms and Conditions clause 5 reserves the Crown Estate's "right to ownership of all or any objects found" | Governed by Treasure Trove, under which the Crown can claim any portable antiquity of archaeological, historical or cultural significance |
| Access rights and detectors | CRoW 2000 Schedule 2 paragraph 1(k): the right of access does not apply if you use or have with you a metal detector, and s.2(4) makes you a trespasser | Forestry and Land Scotland states the Access Code "was designed to make provision for people to pass over land, rather than to permit invasive searches" |
| Public forest land | Prohibited by byelaw 5(ix) of the Forestry Commission Byelaws 1982, "operate a metal detector", unless done with the written authority of the Commissioners under byelaw 3(3) | Prohibited by published policy: Forestry and Land Scotland states hobby detecting "is not allowed on Scotland's national forests and land", with a narrow archaeological project exception |
| Finds regime | Treasure Act 1996: a defined class of treasure, notified to the coroner within fourteen days under s.8 | Treasure Trove: all portable antiquities of archaeological, historical or cultural significance, subject to Crown claim, with reporting obliged by law |
| Non-treasure finds | Portable Antiquities Scheme Code of Practice: finds "will normally be the property of the landowner" | No precious metal requirement and no defined class to fall outside of; the Crown claim reaches any qualifying portable antiquity |
What stays the same, and it is exactly one thing
The landowner's permission. That is the single layer that survives the border unchanged, and Treasure Trove Scotland closes the loophole most detectorists probe first.
"If you are metal detecting, ensure you have landowner permission before going to the site. This includes public parks."
"It is a criminal offence to detect on scheduled sites without permission from Historic Environment Scotland and you must check the status of the land before detecting upon it."
That second sentence puts the checking duty on you rather than on the landowner. It is the Scottish version of the habit you already have of running a designation check before you accept a permission, and it is why the rest of this page is organised around designations rather than around goodwill.
Where can you metal detect in Scotland, land type by land type?
Two questions decide it on any given piece of ground, in this order: who owns it, and what designation sits on top of it. Applied one land type at a time, they produce the following.
| Land type | Who has to say yes | What the published source actually says |
|---|---|---|
| Crown foreshore and beaches | No permit needed for access from Crown Estate Scotland; landowner permission and the treasure trove duties still apply | "there is a general right of access for the public to all beaches and foreshore, so we don't require people to obtain a permit for access to Crown foreshore" (Crown Estate Scotland) |
| Scheduled monuments and Properties in Care | Historic Environment Scotland in writing, and the owner | "The only exception to the restriction on metal detecting is if you have been granted written consent by Historic Environment Scotland, as well as by the owner" (Historic Environment Scotland) |
| Scotland's national forests and land | Nobody, for hobby detecting; archaeological projects only, with a project design agreed in advance | "Metal detecting as an informal activity or hobby is not allowed on Scotland's national forests and land" (Forestry and Land Scotland) |
| Public parks | The landowner, explicitly | "ensure you have landowner permission before going to the site. This includes public parks" (Treasure Trove Scotland) |
| Other local authority land | The authority that owns the site; no Scottish council's published position was verified for this article | Treasure Trove Scotland's landowner rule applies; ask the authority in writing |
| Private farmland and estates | The landowner or occupier, plus a designation check you run yourself | "you must check the status of the land before detecting upon it" (Treasure Trove Scotland) |
| Your own garden | You, on the ownership question; the designation and reporting layers do not go away | Scheduled monuments can sit on privately owned land, and the Treasure Trove duty attaches to the object rather than to the land |
The row that catches people out is the local authority one. There is no national register of which councils allow metal detecting, and no Scottish council's published policy was verified for this article, so no council position is stated here in either direction. The reliable answer comes from the authority that owns the site: name the specific park or open space, ask in writing, and keep the reply.
Who grants scheduled monument consent in Scotland?
Historic Environment Scotland, not Historic England. Section 42 of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 applies in Scotland with the consenting authority changed, so the offence you already know is the same offence, applied for from a different body.
"Protected places include all scheduled monuments and monuments in the care of Scottish Ministers and managed by Historic Environment Scotland (we call the sites we manage 'Properties in Care')."
"Almost all scheduled monuments are likely to include below-ground archaeology. This often extends further than the visible features. You can check the location and extent of scheduled monuments on the PastMap website."
"The only exception to the restriction on metal detecting is if you have been granted written consent by Historic Environment Scotland, as well as by the owner."
Read that last sentence carefully, because it is the one an English detectorist is most likely to skim. Consent from Historic Environment Scotland is not a substitute for the owner's permission. It sits on top of it, exactly as a Historic England section 42 consent does.
Crown Estate Scotland words the same restriction from the other direction on its own coastal page.
"It is a criminal offence to use a metal detector on a scheduled monument without written permission from Scottish Ministers beforehand."
There is also a small drafting difference in the statutory defence that most guides miss entirely. In England, section 42(7) gives you a defence if you took all reasonable precautions to find out whether the place was a protected place and did not believe that it was. The Scottish version is worded differently: the accused must show they took all reasonable steps to find out whether the place was a protected place, and that they did not know and had no reason to believe that it was. That is a harder thing to stand behind if you never opened PastMap.
What is the £50,000 penalty, and can you be sent to prison?
This is the most quoted and least understood number in Scottish detecting, so here it is separated into its parts.
The £50,000 is real and it is traceable, but it belongs to a different offence from the one about using a detector. It comes from section 2(10)(a) of the 1979 Act as it applies in Scotland, which makes a person guilty of an offence under that section liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £50,000, or on conviction on indictment to a fine. Section 2 is the offence of executing works to a scheduled monument without scheduled monument consent. That is digging into the monument, not sweeping a coil across it.
The offence of using a detector in a protected place without written consent carries level 3 on the standard scale, which is £1,000 in Scotland under section 225(2) of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995. That is the same level 3 as in England, where section 122(1) of the Sentencing Act 2020 also puts it at £1,000. So the headline figure that differs between the two offences is not the fine for detecting. It is the fine for damaging.
Historic Environment Scotland puts both halves into one sentence on its own page.
"You must not metal detect on a scheduled monument or protected place - you could be fined £50,000 or more and sent to prison."
On the custodial half of that sentence: the words "and sent to prison" are Historic Environment Scotland's, quoted above and cited to their page. Imprisonment could not be traced to section 2 or section 42 of the 1979 Act, neither of which provides for it. Treat it as Historic Environment Scotland's statement of the risk they consider you to be running, and not as a statutory penalty under those sections.
| Provision | What it covers | The penalty as stated in the source |
|---|---|---|
| AMAA 1979 s.42 (Scotland) | Using a metal detector in a protected place without written consent from Historic Environment Scotland | Fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale, which is £1,000 under Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 s.225(2) |
| AMAA 1979 s.2(10)(a) (Scotland) | Executing works to a scheduled monument without scheduled monument consent | Summary conviction: a fine not exceeding £50,000. On indictment: a fine |
| Historic Environment Scotland's published wording | Metal detecting on a scheduled monument or protected place | "you could be fined £50,000 or more and sent to prison", quoted as their sentence, not as statute |
Is there a 20 metre rule around Scottish scheduled monuments?
You will see a "20 metre rule" repeated on forums, on Reddit and on at least one Scottish heritage page, usually as a ban on detecting on or within 20 metres of a scheduled monument. No 20 metre buffer appears in section 42 of the 1979 Act or in its definition of a protected place, which is framed by the site of the monument rather than by a radius. It could not be verified, so it is not stated here as law in either direction, and in particular 20 metres of clearance should not be treated as a safe margin.
The useful version of the caution is the one Historic Environment Scotland actually gives, and it is more demanding than a fixed distance.
"Almost all scheduled monuments are likely to include below-ground archaeology. This often extends further than the visible features. You can check the location and extent of scheduled monuments on the PastMap website."
The scheduled area is a mapped boundary, not the outline of what you can see. Standing 20 metres from a visible earthwork tells you nothing about whether you are inside the designation. Opening PastMap and reading the mapped extent does.
Do you need a permit for Scottish beaches?
No, and this is the layer that most surprises detectorists coming north, because it inverts the position elsewhere in the UK rather than merely adjusting it.
"In Scotland (in contrast to England, Wales and Northern Ireland), there is a general right of access for the public to all beaches and foreshore, so we don't require people to obtain a permit for access to Crown foreshore."
"Detectorists should abide by the statutory treasure trove procedures - and we also recommend abiding by best practice as suggested by the National Council for Metal Detecting."
Note exactly what that first sentence covers: the permit question, for access to Crown foreshore. It removes an administrative step that exists elsewhere in the UK. It is not a statement that any Scottish beach is open ground.
Compare it with the position south of the border. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland The Crown Estate grants a permissive right exercisable "without a formal consent from The Crown Estate", but "strictly subject to the Terms and Conditions", a document dated 22/01/2024 which then confines you to the surface and "not excavate into the hard pack sub-surface", bans mechanical excavation, requires every hole "(however small or shallow)" to be refilled, routes treasure to the Coroner's Court within fourteen days with evidence to The Crown Estate, routes items of value to The Crown Estate and the Police within fourteen days with monies "divided equally", and at clause 5 states that "The Crown Estate reserves their right to ownership of all or any objects found". The full anatomy of that document is in the companion piece on the Crown Estate foreshore terms and beach byelaws, which also covers the separate Port of London Authority permit for the Thames foreshore.
In Scotland none of that apparatus exists for beach access. What replaces it is the general right of access plus the two duties Crown Estate Scotland names in the same breath: the scheduled monument offence, and the statutory treasure trove procedures. A Scottish beach is not rule-free. It is permit-free with the finds law fully engaged, and scheduled monuments sit on the coast as readily as inland.
Crown Estate Scotland's page also carries a safety warning that is worth keeping in your head rather than in a bookmark. Watch for buried power cables, look for cable marker posts, avoid digging where a detector reads across a large length rather than at a point, and if a cable is exposed on the beach, do not go near it and report it on 105.
Does Scotland's right to roam let you metal detect?
No, and the clearest answer comes from a Scottish public land manager rather than from a hobby guide. Forestry and Land Scotland says this in its own published detecting policy, dated 02/03/2020.
"This guidance does not conflict with the Scottish Outdoor Access Code which was designed to make provision for people to pass over land, rather than to permit invasive searches."
Statutory access rights let the public walk across a great deal of open Scottish ground. On Forestry and Land Scotland's reading, that is provision for passage over land, not a permission to conduct an invasive search, and it does not stand in for the landowner's permission. This is the single most useful published sentence on the subject, because the right to roam is the assumption most detectorists arrive with.
The English mirror of this layer is CRoW access land. Schedule 2 paragraph 1(k) of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 means the right of access does not entitle you to be on the land if you use or have with you a metal detector, and section 2(1) makes the right to be there conditional on observing those restrictions, so carrying one makes you a trespasser, with section 2(4) barring re-entry for 72 hours. Two points: the restriction bites on carrying, not just on using, and the consequence is civil, because it removes your right of access rather than creating an offence in itself.
Public forest land: a flat ban in Scotland, a byelaw in England
Scotland's national forests and land are managed by Forestry and Land Scotland, one of the few UK public land managers to publish a detecting policy at all. On hobby use that policy is flat.
"Metal detecting as an informal activity or hobby is not allowed on Scotland's national forests and land."
"we cannot allow unauthorised or unsupervised metal detecting on the National Forest estate, even where ploughed and afforested."
That second sentence disposes of the most common argument for detecting somewhere you have not been invited, which is that ploughed ground has already been disturbed. Forestry and Land Scotland states that the position holds even where ploughed and afforested.
There is a route in, and it is not a hobby route. The policy states that metal detecting "may be permissible as part of an archaeological project (with a project design agreed in advance)", subject to agreed locations and standards, an agreement that "the finder waives any right to reward" in regard to any discoveries on the National Forest Estate, and an agreement on artefact conservation costs. Read that reward condition twice before applying.
England reaches the same answer through a different instrument, and the instrument is the part worth knowing. In England the prohibition is a byelaw, not a policy. Byelaw 5 of the Forestry Commission Byelaws 1982 (S.I. 1982 No. 648) reads: "No person shall in or on the lands of the Commissioners:- ... viii. disturb or remove archaeological or historical remains; ix. operate a metal detector". Byelaw 2 defines "lands of the Commissioners" as "lands which are under the management or control of the Commissioners and to which the public have, or may be permitted to have, access", and byelaw 3(1) applies byelaw 5 to all of it. The way in is byelaw 3(3): "Nothing in these byelaws shall make unlawful anything done with the written authority of the Commissioners." The byelaws as published carry no penalty clause of their own, but they do not need one. The byelaws are made under section 46(1) of the Forestry Act 1967, and section 46(5) of that Act makes breach of a byelaw a summary offence carrying a fine not exceeding level 2 on the standard scale, which is £500 under Sentencing Act 2020 s.122(1).
Both countries say no to hobby detecting on public forest land, and in both the route in, where there is one, is a written agreement obtained in advance rather than anything you can settle on the day.
What happens to what you find in Scotland?
This is the deepest change of all, and the one where an English habit will genuinely get you into trouble.
"Under Scottish law all portable antiquities of archaeological, historical or cultural significance are subject to claim by the Crown through the Treasure Trove system and must be reported."
"If you think you have found something of archaeological significance in Scotland, you are obliged by law to report it to Treasure Trove."
| England, Wales and Northern Ireland | Scotland | |
|---|---|---|
| Governing regime | Treasure Act 1996 | Treasure Trove |
| What is caught | A defined class of object that qualifies as treasure | "all portable antiquities of archaeological, historical or cultural significance" |
| Material requirement | The defined class is the gateway | None stated: significance is the test, not what the object is made of |
| Who you tell | The coroner for the district in which the object was found, under s.8 | The Treasure Trove Unit, at treasuretrove@nms.ac.uk |
| Deadline | Fourteen days beginning with the day after the find, or if later the day you first have reason to believe it is treasure, under s.8(2) | Reporting is stated as a legal obligation; report it |
| Failure to report | Summary conviction: "imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months", a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale, or both, under s.8(3), with a reasonable excuse defence in s.8(4) | Treasure Trove Scotland states that finders are "obliged by law" to report |
| Everything else you dig | Portable Antiquities Scheme Code of Practice: finds "will normally be the property of the landowner" | Subject to Crown claim if it is a portable antiquity of archaeological, historical or cultural significance |
The England, Wales and Northern Ireland side of that table sits in section 8 of the Treasure Act 1996 and in the Portable Antiquities Scheme Code of Practice. Two Scottish limits are worth knowing. Natural artefacts such as fossils or animal bones are not covered by Treasure Trove, and recovered wreck goes to the Receiver of Wreck at row@mcga.gov.uk rather than to the Treasure Trove Unit.
The mental shift is this. In England you ask "is this treasure?" and, if it is not, treat the find as normally belonging to the landowner. In Scotland the first question is not what the object is made of. It is whether it is a portable antiquity of archaeological, historical or cultural significance, and if it is, the Crown can claim it and you are obliged to report it.
The English layers that do not simply transfer
Two English layers have no Scottish equivalent in the sources used for this guide, and it is more useful to say so than to guess. The agri-environment layer is one: Historic England publishes the conditions that ride on Defra scheme agreements, including that under Countryside Stewardship detecting is "not allowed on Sites of Special Scientific Interest, nor on known archaeological sites on Agreement Land". Those are England schemes, so on a Scottish farm permission, ask the landowner what agreements sit on the ground you are being offered.
The National Trust is the other. The Trust's policy is that it does "not allow metal detecting on National Trust land unless it's part of a clearly defined archaeological project", and that "Other members of National Trust staff, tenants and farmers are not authorised to give permission to metal detect on Trust land". That is a National Trust statement about National Trust land, and it is not extended here to any Scottish body.
The border conversion, in seven moves
- Get the landowner's permission in every case, public parks included, per Treasure Trove Scotland, and get it in writing.
- Open PastMap and read the mapped extent of any scheduling before you commit, rather than pacing out a radius from the visible feature.
- On a scheduled monument or protected place you need written consent from Historic Environment Scotland as well as the owner's permission. Not one or the other.
- On the coast, stop looking for a permit. Crown Estate Scotland does not require one for access to Crown foreshore, and the treasure trove procedures and the scheduled monument offence still apply.
- On Scotland's national forests and land, treat hobby detecting as not allowed, and note that the Access Code does not change that.
- For local authority ground, ask the authority that owns it. There is no register, and no council position appears here that was not read from source.
- Assume every significant find is reportable, whatever it is made of: Treasure Trove Unit at treasuretrove@nms.ac.uk, wreck to the Receiver of Wreck at row@mcga.gov.uk.
If you are crossing the border for gold specifically rather than for archaeology, the permission questions are different again and are covered separately in the UK gold panning legality guide. For site locations, the UK Gold Prospector map plots 300+ gold panning and prospecting sites, and permission still applies to every one of them. If you are new to prospecting entirely, the free beginner's prospecting pack is the place to start.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I metal detect anywhere in Scotland?
No. You need the landowner's permission everywhere, and Treasure Trove Scotland states that this "includes public parks". On top of that, it is a criminal offence to use a detector on a scheduled monument or protected place without written consent from Historic Environment Scotland, and hobby detecting is not allowed on Scotland's national forests and land under Forestry and Land Scotland's published policy.
Where can I legally metal detect in Scotland?
On land where the owner has given you permission and no designation overrides it. Crown foreshore is open without a permit, because Crown Estate Scotland states there is "a general right of access for the public to all beaches and foreshore". Scheduled monuments and protected places are out without written consent from Historic Environment Scotland, and the national forests and land are out for hobby detecting.
Can I metal detect in my own garden in Scotland?
Owning the ground answers the landowner question, and if you rent, the permission you need is your landlord's. The other layers do not disappear. Treasure Trove Scotland states that "you must check the status of the land before detecting upon it", so check PastMap, and anything you find that is a portable antiquity of archaeological, historical or cultural significance is subject to Crown claim and must be reported.
Do I need a permit to metal detect on Scottish beaches?
No. Crown Estate Scotland states: "In Scotland (in contrast to England, Wales and Northern Ireland), there is a general right of access for the public to all beaches and foreshore, so we don't require people to obtain a permit for access to Crown foreshore." The same page still asks detectorists to abide by the statutory treasure trove procedures, and states that using a detector on a scheduled monument without written permission from Scottish Ministers beforehand is a criminal offence.
What happens if you get caught metal detecting without permission in Scotland?
It depends on which layer you crossed. Using a detector in a protected place without written consent carries level 3 on the standard scale, which is £1,000 in Scotland under section 225(2) of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995. Historic Environment Scotland's own page states "you could be fined £50,000 or more and sent to prison"; that £50,000 traces to section 2(10)(a) of the 1979 Act, the offence of executing works to a scheduled monument without consent.
Can you really be fined £50,000 or sent to prison for metal detecting in Scotland?
Historic Environment Scotland states: "You must not metal detect on a scheduled monument or protected place - you could be fined £50,000 or more and sent to prison." The £50,000 is traceable, but to a different offence: section 2(10)(a) of the 1979 Act, executing works to a scheduled monument without consent. Section 42, the detector offence, carries level 3. The custodial element could not be traced to either section, so it is reported here as their sentence, not as statute.
Is there a 20 metre rule around scheduled monuments in Scotland?
No 20 metre buffer appears in section 42 of the 1979 Act or in its definition of a protected place, which is framed by the site of the monument rather than by a radius, so it could not be verified. The point worth taking from the myth is the opposite of a safe distance. Historic Environment Scotland states that scheduling "often extends further than the visible features", so check the mapped extent on PastMap.
Can I metal detect in Scotland's forests?
Not as a hobby. Forestry and Land Scotland's policy states: "Metal detecting as an informal activity or hobby is not allowed on Scotland's national forests and land." It adds that unauthorised or unsupervised detecting cannot be allowed "even where ploughed and afforested". Detecting may be permissible as part of an archaeological project with a project design agreed in advance, on terms that include the finder waiving any right to reward.
Does the Scottish right to roam cover metal detecting?
No. Forestry and Land Scotland's policy addresses this directly, stating that its guidance "does not conflict with the Scottish Outdoor Access Code which was designed to make provision for people to pass over land, rather than to permit invasive searches". Access rights concern passage over land rather than searching it, and they do not replace the landowner's permission, which Treasure Trove Scotland says is needed even in public parks.
What is Treasure Trove law in Scotland, and how does it differ from the Treasure Act?
Treasure Trove Scotland states that "all portable antiquities of archaeological, historical or cultural significance are subject to claim by the Crown through the Treasure Trove system and must be reported". Unlike the Treasure Act 1996 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, there is no defined class of treasure and no precious metal requirement, and reporting is described as an obligation in law. Reports go to treasuretrove@nms.ac.uk.
Do Scottish councils allow metal detecting in their parks?
Treasure Trove Scotland is explicit that landowner permission is required and that this "includes public parks", so a park is never open by default. Beyond that, no individual Scottish local authority policy was verified for this article and there is no national register of which authorities permit detecting, so no council position is published here. Ask the authority that owns the site, in writing.
Is there a metal detecting laws Scotland PDF, or a metal detecting map for Scotland?
There is no single official PDF covering the whole subject. The nearest published document is Forestry and Land Scotland's detecting policy PDF, which covers the national forests and land. For designations, Historic Environment Scotland names PastMap as where to check the location and extent of scheduled monuments. The Crown Estate's Foreshore and Estuary Ownership Map covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland, where the permit question exists; in Scotland it does not.
Know the rules, then pick the ground. The interactive map plots 300+ gold panning and prospecting sites across the UK, with the Scottish burns among them. Permission still applies to every one.
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