Treasure hunting means different things to different treasure hunters. But the bottom line of all the various types is the search for something of value that is hidden from the general public. Here are four of the more unusual secrets of successful treasure hunting.

Snow Dump Treasures

Many shopping malls in the north have an area where they dump all of the snow that is removed from the parking lot. When the snow is removed, so is all the things dropped in it, ranging from coins to rings and sometimes currency. This is then all concentrated into a small area once the snow dump melts in the spring.

Treasure hunters have known about this for a while. I first discovered the idea when I walked past a melting snow pile in a Walmart parking lot and saw a necklace and five coins on the pavement at the edge of the snow. City snow dumps are another possible place to look into.

Estate Auctions

Some of the people at an estate auction may not be bidding for the items you see, but for what is inside them. It was common in the past for people to stash currency in their books (it is still done by some today). When the person dies, most likely nobody is aware that there is money in those books. A relative of mine found thousands of dollars in the books of a departed family member.

If a treasure hunter gets to peruse the auction items beforehand, he can check a few books, and possibly other items that might contain hidden money or valuables. If he discovers a few bills or valuables, he can then bid on the lots that contain these items, like the book collection - which is often sold as a whole. Who knows how many more bills will be discovered once he goes through all the books he bought.

Storage Unit Auctions

When the fee isn't paid, the contents of storage units are auctioned. Sometimes individual items are auctioned, but it is more common to auction off the entire contents of a unit at once, or split it into several "lots" and auction each group of items. You are generally allowed to check out the items before the auction.

One man I met did just that and found that an old milk can in one lot was full of change. He bought the lot that included the milk can for $10, and found a few salable items, as well as $75 in change! He told me that he regularly found "treasure" in this way.

Treasure Hunting In Hotel Rooms

If you stay in a lot of hotel rooms, it may interest you to know that treasure hunters, as well as hotel owners and room cleaners, report that money is sometimes stashed in the bibles in the rooms. The money is presumably then forgotten by the customer. Check out those bibles and any other books that are in the hotel rooms you stay in.

Hotel owners also report finding men's wedding rings hidden in the rooms, particularly in hotels that cater to business travelers. Perhaps the men who are taking off and hiding their rings before going out for the evening deserve to lose them. In any case, this is another interesting way to go treasure hunting. Just look in anyplace a ring might be hidden.