Below is my dealings with BLM in Colorado.
I sent.
Dear Field Office Manager,
I'm looking to plan a few trips with my daughter this summer to CO to do some gold prospecting. We plan on panning and using a small sluice box. I'm just a bit confused with Colorado BLM regulations as each field office seems different.
In Little Snake Field Office jurisdiction.
What are your regulations with gold panning and using a small sluice box?
I have small sluice box that is 12" wide by 36" long with an area that captures material at 12"x24" it is not motorized or otherwise mechanical.
I also have a small machine like a "gold cube" which helps with panning. It is much smaller than a gold cube but is in fact mechanical. I do not use it in the river water at all and it doesn't dump tailings into river waters. It is a small self contained unit that runs using an electric pump and I plug it into my truck trailer plug or a 12v battery pack for power. My machine also recirculates its own water. It also makes no noise and wouldn't disturb animals like gas engines do. My equipment is not like the big loud machines people use. Using it all together we really only look for fine gold, garnets and other neat gems my daughter and I collect.
My plan is to collect and look for placers in dirt gravels around the little snake river on BLM public land. We do not intend to disturb or otherwise disrupt or damage any natural environment we explore together. If we dig small holes we will surely fill them up as if we weren't there. We really don't have an idea where we want to go just yet and we're hoping your office could help us find a place in your district that is both very pretty, where we can roam around and just spend time together and enjoy nature. I know to also stay off people's claims.
Do I need a permit for this type of activity? I compared Little Snake to Grand Junction field office which seems to require a permit because I have a sluice box.
We are not interested in doing mining claims or other activities like that. We just like rocks and geology and finding neat stuff together.
Would this be considered recreational prospecting in your jurisdiction and not require a permit?
Also is a permit even needed should I keep my other equipment like the sluice or electric classifier out of the water? They are self contained and can stay in the back of my truck or at a camp site.
Here in Utah BLM and NFS don't mind if you use mechanical means so long as it's not disturbing nature or people and stay out of the water.
Just wondering what the rules are as I teach them to my daughter too!
Thanks!
Dallas Brown
I sent.
Dear Field Office Manager,
I'm looking to plan a few trips with my daughter this summer to CO to do some gold prospecting. We plan on panning and using a small sluice box. I'm just a bit confused with Colorado BLM regulations as each field office seems different.
In Little Snake Field Office jurisdiction.
What are your regulations with gold panning and using a small sluice box?
I have small sluice box that is 12" wide by 36" long with an area that captures material at 12"x24" it is not motorized or otherwise mechanical.
I also have a small machine like a "gold cube" which helps with panning. It is much smaller than a gold cube but is in fact mechanical. I do not use it in the river water at all and it doesn't dump tailings into river waters. It is a small self contained unit that runs using an electric pump and I plug it into my truck trailer plug or a 12v battery pack for power. My machine also recirculates its own water. It also makes no noise and wouldn't disturb animals like gas engines do. My equipment is not like the big loud machines people use. Using it all together we really only look for fine gold, garnets and other neat gems my daughter and I collect.
My plan is to collect and look for placers in dirt gravels around the little snake river on BLM public land. We do not intend to disturb or otherwise disrupt or damage any natural environment we explore together. If we dig small holes we will surely fill them up as if we weren't there. We really don't have an idea where we want to go just yet and we're hoping your office could help us find a place in your district that is both very pretty, where we can roam around and just spend time together and enjoy nature. I know to also stay off people's claims.
Do I need a permit for this type of activity? I compared Little Snake to Grand Junction field office which seems to require a permit because I have a sluice box.
We are not interested in doing mining claims or other activities like that. We just like rocks and geology and finding neat stuff together.
Would this be considered recreational prospecting in your jurisdiction and not require a permit?
Also is a permit even needed should I keep my other equipment like the sluice or electric classifier out of the water? They are self contained and can stay in the back of my truck or at a camp site.
Here in Utah BLM and NFS don't mind if you use mechanical means so long as it's not disturbing nature or people and stay out of the water.
Just wondering what the rules are as I teach them to my daughter too!
Thanks!
Dallas Brown
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