Featherdfishead
Full Member
- Apr 4, 2014
- 230
- 378
- Detector(s) used
-
Primarily Minelab SDC 2300
and Gold Bug Pro with NEL Sharpshooter, Grey Ghost Phones, an EzSluice, a good Pan, various Diggn Tools, and a Good'Ol Dog or Two
- Primary Interest:
- Prospecting
It's been awhile
This summer has been so busy i've got in very little detecting time. The last three times out were spread over the last month and a half and all were extended scouting trips with hopes to find a new patch.
I didn’t find a new patch but did hit into a hot spot in a stream that I have rarely visited. Having little time I decided to hit a stream close to home that I have been wanting to poke around. I have avoided the stream so far this year because the local tweak miners have been mining the lower reaches. Knowing each other they know I find a good amount of gold and would definitely follow me around if they saw me. Sick of this I hit the stream early and hiked a ways above there spot.
As I rock hopped up the river I noticed a gully that had a trickle of water flowing through its gut and into the stream on river right. Upon closer investigation I determined that it was a wash gully from a ditch above that the old-timers had flushed while chasing the gold up the hill side. Good spot to turn on the SDC. From experience I know that these are usually loaded with iron that’s pooled in the depositional gradient near the mouth of the gully so I raked the area with my magnet and moved some existing cobble to open up a kitchen table sized area of exposed bedrock. The bedrock looked great, very hard and crisscrossed with crevasses that angled up stream – a perfect natural sluice look. Slowly and surely I worked the area and soon pulled out two very small lead shots and then the first peace of the day – a little beauty about 3 in down a crevasse. Funny but this peace sounded off with the lead warble that the very old lead gives off but the little shots sounded pure. With a big smile I swang away and pulled some wire from a nearby crevasse and then a small piece. Then a very good load signal, Hmm – Dig Dig Dig – Damn some old lead - got me that time. Soon after another good signal that I now thought was likely to be lead since it was near the old bullet. But I was wrong – another nice peace – twins. After this I got no more hits and called it quits. A few days back I returned to the spot with a few hours of light to spare and moved some boulders and cobble that rested along the edge of the area I had worked. I only cleared a 2 ft swath along the down river side but was exited and decided to scan and go - 3 or 4 square nails and a small peace of tin later I had no good hits then as I scanned the very edge against the exciting substrate that I hadn’t moved- a mellow signal that just hummed the gold vibe – moved the rock and pulled the biggest nugget out from behind a small bedrock ear mid crevasse that I had to bust out to get at – Sweet! Triplets - And another small piece nearby that I see when retrieving this one – Right On!
The two small BB pieces of gold gave me a chuckle as there nearly the same size as the little shot. The take was 3.6 dwt with the big nug at .9, the next .7 and the small .5 the others the rest. Also the lead that fooled me
Just what the doctor ordered. Off this morning to work the area some more. Invited my buddy so we can hammer the place. Buddy with old MXT and me and my SDC. This gold was trending into the main stem and getting bigger as it goes. I hope to pop up the gully and find at least a small peace because if the gold came from the gully its unlikely anyone but myself has every detected it. The trib itself has been dredged in the 80's but left much alone since then due to tough access.
Hit the spot again yesterday morning and worked slow and on 4 Sens and found .5 dwt.
Go get some Gold!
AjR
This summer has been so busy i've got in very little detecting time. The last three times out were spread over the last month and a half and all were extended scouting trips with hopes to find a new patch.
I didn’t find a new patch but did hit into a hot spot in a stream that I have rarely visited. Having little time I decided to hit a stream close to home that I have been wanting to poke around. I have avoided the stream so far this year because the local tweak miners have been mining the lower reaches. Knowing each other they know I find a good amount of gold and would definitely follow me around if they saw me. Sick of this I hit the stream early and hiked a ways above there spot.
As I rock hopped up the river I noticed a gully that had a trickle of water flowing through its gut and into the stream on river right. Upon closer investigation I determined that it was a wash gully from a ditch above that the old-timers had flushed while chasing the gold up the hill side. Good spot to turn on the SDC. From experience I know that these are usually loaded with iron that’s pooled in the depositional gradient near the mouth of the gully so I raked the area with my magnet and moved some existing cobble to open up a kitchen table sized area of exposed bedrock. The bedrock looked great, very hard and crisscrossed with crevasses that angled up stream – a perfect natural sluice look. Slowly and surely I worked the area and soon pulled out two very small lead shots and then the first peace of the day – a little beauty about 3 in down a crevasse. Funny but this peace sounded off with the lead warble that the very old lead gives off but the little shots sounded pure. With a big smile I swang away and pulled some wire from a nearby crevasse and then a small piece. Then a very good load signal, Hmm – Dig Dig Dig – Damn some old lead - got me that time. Soon after another good signal that I now thought was likely to be lead since it was near the old bullet. But I was wrong – another nice peace – twins. After this I got no more hits and called it quits. A few days back I returned to the spot with a few hours of light to spare and moved some boulders and cobble that rested along the edge of the area I had worked. I only cleared a 2 ft swath along the down river side but was exited and decided to scan and go - 3 or 4 square nails and a small peace of tin later I had no good hits then as I scanned the very edge against the exciting substrate that I hadn’t moved- a mellow signal that just hummed the gold vibe – moved the rock and pulled the biggest nugget out from behind a small bedrock ear mid crevasse that I had to bust out to get at – Sweet! Triplets - And another small piece nearby that I see when retrieving this one – Right On!
The two small BB pieces of gold gave me a chuckle as there nearly the same size as the little shot. The take was 3.6 dwt with the big nug at .9, the next .7 and the small .5 the others the rest. Also the lead that fooled me
Just what the doctor ordered. Off this morning to work the area some more. Invited my buddy so we can hammer the place. Buddy with old MXT and me and my SDC. This gold was trending into the main stem and getting bigger as it goes. I hope to pop up the gully and find at least a small peace because if the gold came from the gully its unlikely anyone but myself has every detected it. The trib itself has been dredged in the 80's but left much alone since then due to tough access.
Hit the spot again yesterday morning and worked slow and on 4 Sens and found .5 dwt.
Go get some Gold!
AjR
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