Dredge Tailings

[hoagiem]

I live near an area that is covered with dredge tailngs. My question is, what would be the logical way to approach a site like this using a metal detector? There is a large area to cover and many piles. Are there any ideas or explanation as to the rhyme or reason the places to dredge were chosen? I haven't explored the area down stream of the tailings for black sand yet but was planning on doing that soon (next couple days or so). Most of the tailing piles are u shaped around lrage shallow holes and some are actually trenches cut through small hills with the piles on each side of the trench. The site was a placer mining project around the late 1800's up to the 1940's. would there be a possibility of nuggets in this area or most likely fine gold deposits? any help on this matter would be greatly appreciated. thanks.

[Jeffro]

Probably the best known detectorist for dredge tailings is Steve Herschbeck. Here's his site- http://www.akmining.com/mine/steve.htm

[Nitro 54]

From what I've heard, look for the bed rock on the piles. Them old dredges weren't very good at retaining bigger nuggets as the got grizzled off. Anything that wouldn't go thru their screens just got put back in the waste piles. Also look for some clay deposits in your pile. After all these years it will be weathered down and you might find some smaller gold their. Them old dredges didn't take care of clay very good either. Lucky dog No tailing piles in my area.
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[Hoser John]

Raceways and gullies where the water ran off are great too. In calif. ,and many other states,our division of mines and geology has many geological bulletins telling how much,where and even how the piles were formed. INCLUDING the size and kind of equipment used in some places. A 1" screen was used so all rock and gold over 1" was chucjked on the stacks.Educate and prosper!!Tons a au 2 u 2-John