Is this a good spot? (pics included)

[Huelten]

This spot seems to be similar to areas ive seen other people say are good areas. But i spent a good 4 hours digging around and testing with pans coming up empty. So since i was running out of time i grabbed 5 buckets real quick to throw into my BGT, ended up finding 4 pieces, small, but coarse and rounded, not flat. Is this spot worth continuing to work in the forums opinion? it just looks like such a perfect spot, but then again i could be wrong, thanks in advance

 

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[Hoser John]

Gold miners make the bedrock or perish-John

 

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[Goldwasher]

These guys will rib you any chance they get....Yes, the spot looks good, I've seen lots of good spots in the middle of non-gold areas though. You have found some color and havn't located any streaks of concentrations. You have sampled...and as pointed out you can sample "short" of discovering....the notion that all you have to do is sample a spot to find the pockets is just TOM FOOLERY. You say there is a claim owner there are certain things you should focus on... Who dug this claim previously when? where why If you can find out, why did they stop The war? or is it a 1980's Knee jerk I'm gonna be rich claim? That just gets poked at. If you are in a historically producing district. Find out info on the regional digs. Just because that material looks like its been in the water doesn't mean so. Especially in an area that gets and holds snow. If it is an old channel there is some bedrock somewhere. Do you know of any in the area that is exposed? Look for gravel near it if its easier to sample. I an area like tha,t with so much material I wouldn't consider anything under 20 buckets in one area a sample. Good Luck.....Stay put a little longer...but, keep that ear to the ground

 

[jog]

There may be no fine gold, maybe it's scattered chunky gold. Try a Metal detector that's designed for gold and see if you find anything. Could be bigger gold and more spread out type deposit.

 

[arizau]

I don't think it is "riverbed" per se but some of the material probably has been eroded from one. I think the indicators of an ancient riverbed consist of more closely compacted cobble and maybe with some natural cementation, especially of gravel and sands, having taken place. Have you looked up slope or even laterally from your site? There could be a ravine that cross cuts this hillside that may be more productive. It might even be worth your while to explore the opposite side of the canyon for the source especially if it is a narrow one.

 

[goldog]

I think you need to dig further into the sample hole in pict 3 I thought it was all the same sample, but looking close I see you've got a few different holes. Try to open up the holes with more natural river gravel and get a good look at what's under there. It does look like there are tailings and a rock pile to the right. To the left appears to be (maybe) where they were digging

 

[Prospector70]

Everyone always says that. ive tried digging down to bedrock before to no success. Would there be any way to tell how deep bedrock is, or is that a total crapshoot?

Drill!

Or sans drill, dig dig dig

Think like gold. Heavy. Lazy. Easiest path down.
Are you in the lowest possible point if water is / was flowing? any obvious old water drops?

 

[goldenmojo]

If you do move on, take a picture of the place so that you can be reminded of how good it was'nt. Or was?

 

[Huelten]

I dont own a metal detector right now and unfortunately dont have the funds to buy one for the foreseeable future, which really sucks. Ive yet to find any real river gravel or much in the way of sands in the soil just yet. Ive got no problem just dedicating a day to dig a hole as deep as possible to try and find gravels and bedrock, i just wanted to see if that was necessary or if there were tricks/sources to knowing the depth to bedrock. Sounds like its a total guessing game trying to figure that out.

Edit: Another piece of additional information is this area holds 3 hard rock mines, 1 active and two past producers. I dont know much at all about these types of mines. Would it cause the gold to be deposited in areas other than a stream bed/ancient stream bed?

 

[goldog]

Huelten,
Forget all that stuff. You have water and a sluice. (In fact a BGT) MOVE SOME MORE DIRT. Use your best guess where the granules from your first trip came from and find some more. I would love to find some "not flat" pieces.

It doesn't suck that you haven't got a MD. You're not in the desert. Use the tools you have.

I see some boulders in that bank. How'd they get there? If you can't tell it was moving water you may be in tailings. Who pulled out and cleaned all those rocks? When? The old buried tailings may have decent values. those recently cleaned rocks, not so much. Find some river deposited rocks the size of a watermelon or better in a pay layer.

 

[jog]

Are you still on the same claim & are you east of the road & to the West of the creek? If I am looking at the same spot it looks as though the river makes a slight bend to the East just past the area I am looking at. Have you looked for the same type of material on the other side of the river?

 

[Huelten]

Jog. This is the same claim and the material is similar on the opposite side just not as exposed, not a ton of river rock per se but a ton of rock in general. This area is really puzzling me

 

[Goldwasher]

Jog. This is the same claim and the material is similar on the opposite side just not as exposed, not a ton of river rock per se but a ton of rock in general. This area is really puzzling me

View attachment 995282

What about the area not in the circle? Where the trail ends or crosses what looks lkie creekbed? are those bushes that start in the circle and continue down and left willows or another water liking plant following the creekbed or edge of it? That could indicate shallow bedrock. Is that even a creekbed? Or just a gulch? either way its an eroded area? whats on the hillside above your circle any outcroppings?

 

[jog]

Here is a thought, was the material your looking at pushed down from a non gold bearing stream "A" and shoved up the bank on the far side of the gold bearing stream, does the rock and gravel that your testing end where the to draws come together "B" on the far side? if so it may have all washed out of "A" creek into "B" creek and may be non gold bearing gravel.

 

[Teenagegoldminer]

if your only getting 5 flakes in 25 gallons its just a not good enough spot

if bedrock there was only like 5 ft down i wold say dig but i'm assuming it is'nt

there's gold there but its just not enough to be worth your time

 

[DizzyDigger]

Huelten, I stopped on the way out from the the mountains
the other day and took a couple pics for ya. This is the type
of thing I look for when prospecting slide areas:





Notice all that rounded river rock?

 

[Huelten]

Jog: Ya know now that i think about it i guarantee that you are 100% right. Because according to the claim boundaries which the claim owner sent me that whole area which would be creek B is marked as private. I was also thinking those rocks could be piles brought out of those hard rock mines? I have no idea how they ran the old hard rock mines so thats total guess work on my part. I just know that the rocks are not smooth and gravely, there rough and almost look busted apart and broken.

Dizzy Digger: Thanks for the pic! Im not sure if you can tell from the pics or not but my rocks do not look much like that, their much more rough and jagged. Hopefully i come across something like your pic my next trip out.

 

[Lanny in AB]

Good luck with your project. I hope you find something that makes it all worth it. If not, try another spot.

All the best,

Lanny

http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/metal-detecting-gold/69-bedrock-gold-mysteries.html

 

[Huelten]

Thanks Lanny