New Articles for 2009

Dowser Degrees: Insights From a Water Dowser

I’ll bet you didn’t know that there are multiple levels, or ‘degrees,’ of water finding competence. One usually thinks of a water dowser, or water witch, as a person who wanders around a field with a forked stick or an L-rod looking for a response, a sign that there is water down there. That is true as far as it goes, but I have discovered, as a professional water dowser, that there are actually three levels of dowsing ability, which I have labeled, “Dowser Degrees.”

The basic level is where the dowser is in the field. He, or she, has a forked stick or a plastic device called a Y-rod. He might also have a pendulum, a bobber or the above mentioned, L-rod. All of these types of dowsing tools will signal to the dowser that he has found a water source. However, at this level, he must physically be on top of the underground water source to get a movement or indication from his tool.

For the second level, he might use a pendulum. Some dowsers use the tools that work best for them. At the second level, the dowser can determine the presence of water using “line of sight.”  This means he can stand in one place and determine if there is water at any location within his line of vision. Therefore, if the client wants to know if water is available on the top of “that mountain,” or at the other end of his property, and the dowser can see it, he can determine if there is water there. At some point he will still need to walk over the site with a tool to pinpoint the drilling location for the water drillers. Since underground water in the West may be 900 feet down, pinpoint accuracy is important so that the drillers can actually “hit” the water source on the first try.

The third level of dowsing is called “map dowsing.” A third degree dowser can look at a map of a property and determine where the water is located, as well as the depth, direction of flow and the overall water flow year round. Many use this technique when a client’s property is larger than five acres. When we arrive at the property, we can be driven directly to the water source and pinpoint the exact location. Map dowsing can also be used to find oil, precious metals, lost or kidnapped children and missing pets.

I have been a Professional Water Dowser in Northern California since 2006 and an Initiated Shaman since 1993. I love working with water, and I can easily find underground water as well as determine the depth, direction of flow and the amount of flow to the surface year round. If you have a need for a water well, using a dowser can save you tens of thousands of dollars. If a well driller says he can find water, drills a hole and it is dry, you still have to pay him for that drilling. My fee is less than two percent of what a driller charges, so please think of my work as ‘inexpensive insurance’. I have dowsed 238 wells with a success rate of 92 percent. If you are interested in hiring a dowser, my advice would be to always ask for references from satisfied clients.

“What makes the desert beautiful is that somewhere it hides a well.”     
                             Antoine de Saint-Exupery

James Gamble
Water Well-ness
510-697-3076
tanro@astound.net