Why I find gold only very shallow on the ground?

[antony]

Hi everybody! The weather was great today, though a bit cold, but I went to my favourite river to sample and prospect for a few hours.

The thing is that I can find gold ONLY a few inches deep. When I dig for 3-4 feet, I find no gold. This is really strange and I thought that I should find more gold and bigger in deeper depth. I really don't understand how is this possible.

I sampled a big area and it's the same thing again and again. I already dug three deep wholes and also I sampled 20-25 shallow areas. It's the same story. No gold if I go deeper than 5-10 inches...

What this "surface" gold means? Does this mean that the gold is new and the river is moving new gold because of the rains in this season?

Thank you for your help and suggestions as always!

Here are some pics. I also found some nice peaces in some shallow crevices:

 

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[winners58]

Might check old maps, streams change paths. look 100 or more years back and see whats changed.

 

[KevinInColorado]

Gold deposits can be hard to explain. The key is to takes samples and pay attention as you are doing. Great work! Makes me want to go to Greece again on holiday/vacation!

PS show us your gold!

 

[arizau]

I think winners58 has a good and logical point. There may be an old or ancient river channel to the side/s of where you are digging and where you are digging now may have originally been an overflow flood deposit. As a suggestion, dig some test holes laterally and you may run across the ancient channel. There also may be elevated benches on the hillsides where the channel may have run historically. Test pan some of the hillside drainages for gold as, if gold is present, that could be an indicator of an elevated bench deposit.

Good luck.

 

[antony]

Gold deposits can be hard to explain. The key is to takes samples and pay attention as you are doing. Great work! Makes me want to go to Greece again on holiday/vacation!

PS show us your gold!

Hi Kevin! I'm taking a lot of samples and even though I don't find much, it's so much fun working on the river and spending my weekends in there

It is just a mystery how can I find gold so close to the surface.

If you come to Greece it will be pleasure to meet you an help you find a great place for your vacations!

Here are my today's embarrassing findings Not much of course and most of them are very fine gold. I've used my loupe on my iphone to take the picture. You can see how small they are compered to the pen's nose. Also you can see some quartz and black sand particles in there, and some dust

 

[KevinInColorado]

Looks great...keep sampling and you may find a real hot spot!

I bet it's out there...try just downstream of a clump of grass. Gold that's traveling along the surface in occasional flooding likes to gather just downstream of clumps of vegetation.

 

[Goldwasher]

I would say flood gold, but that gold isn't all that flakey...I notice you said you found some nice pieces in shallow crevices.....well, that tells you there is gold collecting in low spots and traps..find more of those if you can. If your finding it near the surface other than in crevices are you noticing any change in layers..color? size of gravel. if your finding gold near the surface look for spots where larger rocks are gathered that's a spot where heavy stuff was moving yet still concentrating. If I found color like that near the edge of the waterway and in a top layer I would be investigating the bank and hillside.

 

[Goldwasher]

Also since its pretty certain that we aren't gonna dig your spot...how about a wider perspective shot incluing background and general terrain. and if you want give us a more specific region you may be surprised what info some of us can dredge up...understand if you want to keep it private. just let us know how else we can help.

 

[winners58]

any where close to the Skouries mine "estimated reserves of 5.3 million oz of gold" that's a large Ore deposit.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skouries_mine

 

[antony]

Also since its pretty certain that we aren't gonna dig your spot...how about a wider perspective shot incluing background and general terrain. and if you want give us a more specific region you may be surprised what info some of us can dredge up...understand if you want to keep it private. just let us know how else we can help.

Not a big secret at all! I will share the location and some photos later today! Maybe you can see something I don't see. I will try to share as much as possible.

 

[antony]

any where close to the Skouries mine "estimated reserves of 5.3 million oz of gold" that's a large Ore deposit.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skouries_mine

No it's not near to the Skouries mine. Skouries is about 250 miles from my location. I don't know if I can get closer to the Skouries mine and also I cannot buy a claim in there and mine it. The law here in Greece is very different than in US.

I prospect the Gallikos river. Here are some articles and links about the gold that Alexander the Great and his father Filippos II of Macedonia was getting from the river and from the mines in the area:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_II_of_Macedon
https://books.google.gr/books?id=_T...esc=y#v=onepage&q=gallikos river gold&f=false

 

[kevin1]

First time I ever heard anyone complain about not having to dig deep for their gold.

 

[Goldwasher]

Ok...so, they dredged on that river http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Photo-of-Gold-mine-North-Greece-at-Gallikos-River-/251501181126...If looks like late 30's to me makes sense. I would try to find where they dredged. There is writing on the back of the photo maybe there are clues..

here is some minedat info it has info on a book written about the alps...and local names in Greek Gallikos River, Thessaloníki Prefecture (Salonica), Macedonia Department, Greece

Sometimes boring Government papers have good info http://www.ypeka.gr/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=MAmwtVxaohA=&tabid=475

Science paper aliakmon river greece: Topics by WorldWideScience.org basin greece case: Topics by WorldWideScience.org mention mining
Like I said I would try to find out where they were dredging or any large bench(riverside) mines were....Their tailings are going to be a source of gold plus what they were digging...I would also try to make friends with some one who works at or knows some one who works at a aggregate( gravel) plant....They source their material from old channels and will have an Idea on gold in the area.....Hope some of this helps

 

[goldenIrishman]

You really need to research the area from a geological view point. Over the millennia, rivers change their course, land gets pushed up and eroded away. What was a river channel a hundred thousand years ago may now be a bench halfway up a hill.

Looking at what you've found so far, some of the pieces look to have made quite a trip over the years while some of them are still pretty rough. Looks to me as if some is "local" and other has been worn down by traveling down a stream.

I'm kind of curious about the Greek Mining laws as well as the laws in other countries. Any chance of giving us a quick run down on the basics?

 

[dave wiseman]

The original deposit of gold which was deeper was worked out and your recovering what has been deposited since then,plus the gold that was missed.

 

[goldog]

There are no embarrassing finds. Going out in the wild and getting gold out of the ground is something to be proud of.

 

[Bonaro]

Hi everybody! The weather was great today, though a bit cold, but I went to my favourite river to sample and prospect for a few hours.

The thing is that I can find gold ONLY a few inches deep. When I dig for 3-4 feet, I find no gold. This is really strange and I thought that I should find more gold and bigger in deeper depth. I really don't understand how is this possible.

I sampled a big area and it's the same thing again and again. I already dug three deep wholes and also I sampled 20-25 shallow areas. It's the same story. No gold if I go deeper than 5-10 inches...

What this "surface" gold means? Does this mean that the gold is new and the river is moving new gold because of the rains in this season?

Thank you for your help and suggestions as always!

Here are some pics. I also found some nice peaces in some shallow crevices:

View attachment 1229757 View attachment 1229759 View attachment 1229760

Congratulations! you have successfully prospected and located the pay streak. You are even more fortunate that it is on the surface and you don't have to strip overburden to mine it.

Gold is where you find it...

 

[BIGSCOTT]

yes that river was dredged clean and you are getting its replenishment '' flood gold ''

 

[Hoser John]

Tailing can go on for miles and with regrowth you'd never know that's what your running. Massive ancient landslides will produce a close situation. I'd be celebrating as shallow sure beats diggn' to china-John

 

[nh.nugget]

Some of the places I dig we only take the top 12'' it's flood gold. But who cares less digging is a good thing when you're on the gold!