What kind of shovel to you use in creeks?

[aplomado]

What kind of shovel do you prefer to scooping up gravel in creeks for sifting?

[Brett Breakin' Rocks]

I use a deep hand-sharpened round point. Plastic shaft/Handle .. my wooden ones snap too quickly ...

 

Cheers,

Brett

 

PS. And a 14" sand-flea rake for luck .. !  (wait .. or is that 16")

 

[cngodles]

I've long been a fan of the Fiskars Long-handled Steel Digging Shovel (57-1/2")

https://www.fiskars.com/en-us/gardening-and-yard-care/products/shovels-and-digging-tools/long-handled-steel-digging-shovel-57-12-96685935j

 

It's all metal, and heavy, which is useful when you need to get deeper into the rocks and sediment.

 

And their warranty, at least in the US, is good. I snapped the blade off mine after 5+ years of hard work trying to pry up a 200lb boulder. I emailed their customer support and they emailed me a new one once I sent them a photo of the old one. That was 5-6 years ago, but it's some of the best customer service I've had for a while.

[Bone Daddy]

It depends. I have three shovels and have used all three for different types of river digging, depending on how deep the water is.

 

The one I use currently is this Kobalt shovel. It's a good medium-length shovel. Long enough where I don't have to bend over, but short enough where the long handle doesn't get in the way while being transported in my kayak. It's also fairly light and well built - https://www.lowes.com/pd/Kobalt-30-in-Fiberglass-Short-handle-Digging-Shovel/50299433

 

When I really want to save space/weight, I have a smaller shovel like this one - https://www.lowes.com/pd/CRAFTSMAN-10-75-in-Wood-Compact-Digging-Shovel/1000752656

 

And for those rare occasions where I am digging in deeper water, I have a good old fashioned long-handled shovel like this - https://www.lowes.com/pd/CRAFTSMAN-55-in-Wood-Long-handle-Digging-Shovel/1000604755

 

More often than not, I use the Kobalt and my wife uses the shorter compact shovel because she's a lot shorter than me and it's a lot lighter.