SGR East Fork Pan Out + Unknown Metal?

[CT8620]

One of the better pan outs I've had from about 5 hours of work with my partner at the East Fork from last week. First pic is the gold (some really fine stuff in here, had to use plenty of Jet Dry to keep half of it from floating away out of the pan...). Second pic are the larger pieces of some kind of metal that was left in the pan down. It's definitely metal, easily bendable ... I'm guessing lead? I've found plenty of fishing weights and the like but nothing quite like this before. There are some smaller pieces in the gold pic too that I'm gonna have to pick out by hand one by one. Lead, right?

Also, a big shout of thanks goes out to Rawdog and Goldpaw for the training. It's easy to go through all the posts (as I did) and gain the general knowledge that's there to be had, but when it comes to individual river specifics, there's no substitute for hands on experience and shoulder to shoulder work with those that have been up and down every inch of the river and its banks and know specific tips and info that others don't. Working hard is good, working smart is better.

CT



 

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[Lanny in AB]

Nicely done on the gold! If the grey stuff is heavy, and it bends easily, it's most likely lead.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[goldog]

That's what happens to lead when it splatters against the rocks. Looks like a pretty nice haul there. Use your sniffer bottle to blow all the gold one direction and all the lead the other. Or use two bottles. There has been so much target shooting in the San Gabriels in the past that lead is everywhere.

 

[CT8620]

Lanny .... Thanks!

goldog ... yeah, I was thinking bullet shrapnel too. I've heard some pretty disturbing stories of what goes on upriver. Unfortunately, this probably fits right in.

 

[Aurabbit79er]

Oh yea very good gold and good amount of lead. Above Heaton Flats I would guess. For the gold , not the lead. The lead is everywhere. There's been shooting in the canyon since guns arrived in the 1840s.
Back in 2007 I was camped at the Flats with my Daughter and some of her friends. Some Bozo started shooting an Uzi. And the jerk was shooting at night!, and towards the river. I got everyone in our camp behind big trees or rocks. Luckily a mounted sheriff patrol was near by that night and herd the shooting. When they came by our camp I pointed to the camp the shots came from. 3 Patrol cars showed up before they entered the camp. They also got busted for having an open pit fire.
They took some one away. I don't agree with their current harassment policy, the miners aren't the problem, but I was glad they were doing their job that night.
I have been coming to East Fork for 20 years. Since Follows Camp closed there has been a camping vacuum. The Miners and Fisherman aren't the problem. It's
weekend war-parties. This last week I found a dirty diaper just past Heaton flats. That is over a mile from the parking lot upstream. But only 50 yards from a trash can in the campground.
I'll post my trip. Mid-Week mining.