Lonesome nugget

[spillercanyon]

I have been working a bench this winter, been out probably 15 times from January through early April, I have been finding about .5 to 1 gram a day of flake and fines when on day 10 or so, I am breaking up some clay when this falls on to the skid of my BGT, it just sat there. I picked it up in disbelief, dropped it on the skid again and it didn't move. I was working alone but you never know who might be around, I shoved it in my pocket and worked like hell. This is my biggest nugget to date, 10.9 grams and has a few small pieces of quartz embedded in it. Found a .4 gram piece with is and the usual fines and flakes. I've been back 4 or 5 times and it's back to the fines and flakes. I am off to another deposit now but will be back next winter hoping there is something big still hidden in that bench.

 

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[kcm]

VERY nice! Looks like it has seen some amount of river action. Might try looking upstream a bit and trying to find the source.

Can also look up mining history for the area to see if there were any mines upstream of your location that are no longer there.

If you find no record of a mine, look high on the sides for possible locations that the nugget might have come from.

 

[goldhog]

Awesome... truly amazing..... find....

People always ask why I say stop classifying so much.
They say... but I only find small fine gold....
I tell them if you only work 1/8" minus... that's all you'll find.
Stuff that's smaller than 1/8th.
One of my largest nuggets ever found in GA came from a tailings pile.
Doc

 

[Hoser John]

Beautiful find all nice and rough and gnarly-kudos for the tenacity-John

 

[wildminer]

Congrats and it's nice to know a nug like that will sit on the skid plate. (just in case I should be so lucky to dig one)

 

[Jim in Idaho]

Really nice! I'd take that.
Jim

 

[rockbar]

Did you metal detect your area when you were finished? You don't want to leave an easy nugget for the guy who shows up with a detector.
Borrow or rent one if you have to. Just an idea.

Very Nice!

 

[G-bone]

So cool!!
Congratulations!!

 

[H-2 CHARLIE]

Very nice .

 

[bug]

Nice nugget! If you have some exposed bedrock with assorted cracks and crevices, you need to get someone with a minelab on that spot quick!
You can bet there are probably more you cant see.

 

[spillercanyon]

Beautiful find all nice and rough and gnarly-kudos for the tenacity-John

Thanks Hoser. I found the deposit in December, I thought wet bedrock was slick, nothing like when it is caked in ice, I walked like a baby first learning to walk, hands out ready to fall at any time and doing a dance or two to regain my balance every 100'. I would wear full thermals, sweat shirt and stocking hat and had to keep moving to stay warm, though my hands ached in the water when sluicing regardless. Fell in the water once working the sluice, about 40 degrees outside and the wind a blowing, immediately packed up the gear and hiked out. I got chilled to the bone but was back out the next day to beat the next series of storms coming in. I found the deposit by following a trail of cobbles on the hill. It's an odd deposit, looks like there was a landslide over the bench, I dig through 3' of large rock, dirt and smaller angular rock that contains little to no gold and then hit a layer of packed cobble. Not much water left on this drainage but I will be back next year with a high banker so I can process the material at the deposit rather than moving my material down to the creek, it's all about moving as much material as possible.

 

[spillercanyon]

VERY nice! Looks like it has seen some amount of river action. Might try looking upstream a bit and trying to find the source.

Can also look up mining history for the area to see if there were any mines upstream of your location that are no longer there.

If you find no record of a mine, look high on the sides for possible locations that the nugget might have come from.

Hey kcm, I'm working (and living) in the middle of the Motherlode here in California, not to brag but there is gold everywhere here. If you are a miner and know what to look for, it is absolutely amazing what has been mined around here. If there is the slightest indentation on a hillside you can see the mounds of tailings going down the side of that indentation. We have lode mines, modern placers and ancient placers. I am truely blessed to be in the heart of gold country. This particular deposit is in a well worked area but is a virgin deposit regardless, there are numerous lode mines within a half mile upstream.

 

[spillercanyon]

Did you metal detect your area when you were finished? You don't want to leave an easy nugget for the guy who shows up with a detector.
Borrow or rent one if you have to. Just an idea.

Nice nugget! If you have some exposed bedrock with assorted cracks and crevices, you need to get someone with a minelab on that spot quick!
You can bet there are probably more you cant see.

I took a Tessoro LST out but I have very little experience with a detector and for whatever reason I have a real hard time sticking with it, not sure if it is the beeping all the time in my ear or the feel to move some material to find gold. It may be different if I found a nugget but when I am running a dredge, high banker, dry washer or sluice, I am in total bliss that I just don't get with a detector. Not to take anything away from those that detect, it just doesn't doesn't do it for me. My detector is the only piece of mining equipment I own that has not paid for itself. I believe the deposit is safe, I will be visiting a number of times as it is not too far from my house and I have become good friends with the neighboring claim owner who watches all the claims in the area almost daily. As far as what may be left in the bench, I will find out all in good time as I plan on processing the entire bench, probably a good two to four year winter project, perfect!

 

[SchoolOfHardRocks]

Wow... Great find! - the nugget & the virgin deposit

 

[TAKODA]

Nice piece .

 

[kcm]

Takoda, nice pieces! Were they found in Alabama?

 

[OwenT]

I'm wondering how you find a deposit like this, especially when it's covered by slides?

 

[spillercanyon]

I'm wondering how you find a deposit like this, especially when it's covered by slides?

I found rounded cobbles on the side of the hill that had eroded out and moved down the hill. I followed the few cobbles I could find up until they stopped. Because it was December, there was very little growth on the hill and I could see a cobble embedded in the hillside. Started scratching around at that point and found the stream material. I was able to undercut the overburden and sample the deposit. Winter is my favorite time to prospect, the growth has dropped it's leafs, the creeks have scoured down all the growth in the creek and you can see the make up of the dirt on the side of the hill and the deposits in the creeks. Once the grass starts to grow, it's difficult to see the deposits, it's amazing how different the area looks with tall grass growing everywhere. I also find a lot of garden drip systems for this same very reason.

 

[mytimetoshine]

Absolutely beautiful. Nice and round!

 

[Jeffrey Harris]

'Lonesome Nugget' great title for a country & western song.