MA/VT/NH Panning

[dvdtharaldson]

Hi ,

This is the first time I have posted on this website. I live in Western MA and am planning a trip during the last few days of September to Vermont to try my luck panning. I was going to try Buffalo Brook and Five Corners in the Bridgewater area. Does anybody know how far down you ordinarily have to dig to hit black sands in those areas? Any comments on whether you have to dig deep or just stay on the surface? I was thinking Irene probably deposited alot of flood gold on the surface. Does anybody know if some of the small brooks high up in the mts. north of Bridgewater contain gold? All I ever hear is Buffalo Brook and Five Corners. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. As you probably could tell I am new to panning for gold.

Thanks,

David

 

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[Mass Hole No.59]

Hi Todogz,
Thanks for posting on my thread. Couch Brook has been a steady producer over the years. I have seen a few pickers come out but, like you say, mostly flour gold. Unfortunately there has been a couple of dredgers who have angered the local residents, and caused them to post their properties.

Happy Trails and Best Colors,
Mass Hole #59 aka David

 

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[Mass Hole No.59]

Hi Ben,

I would love to take credit for the clean up, but it wasn't mine. It was E.MassAuMan's. I think its the first good clean up he has had in over 60 years!!!!

 

[WesternMassGold]

Howdy again,
I just realized that i never posted the pic of my last 2 trips with David.
Both times David used his Bazooka and I just panned simply because we were digging in different spots about 40 feet apart.
I was only able to go late into October because after that i had to work 2 jobs.
Had all this gold sitting around the house and finally cleaned it up.

Both times we went out i was able to find a picker, so this pic is both clean outs combined

 

[RTD-Tech]

Hello all,
I've been trying to ID a substance that I've found gold panning and E.MassAuMan suggested I try posting it in this thread since I've found it in Western Mass.

The substance is heavy, a silvery metallic color and very fine.
I've found it in both the Connecticut and Green rivers near Greenfield.



Just wondering if anyone else has seen any of this stuff and if they know what it is.

 

[Ben Cartwright SASS]

Could it be pieces of lead?

 

[Mass Hole No.59]

RTD Tech,
I too have found something that looks similar to what you have pictured above. It is really hard to say if it is the same stuff, because light can play tricks on your eyes. I thought I found something like zinc. If you really want to know what it is, take it to a metal recycling place and ask them to shoot it with their mass spectrometer. Usually they will do it for free. The caviat is you will need about a tenth of a gram of the substance.

Good Luck,
David

 

[RTD-Tech]

The material appears brighter, more silvery than the lead that I have found.

 

[Mass Hole No.59]

WMG and I decided to take his brand spankin' new GGT sluice on its maiden voyage. We wanted to see what it did and how it did it. Unfortunately, there is still ice and snow in western Mass so our choices were rather limited. We ended up in a non productive stretch of the river and got a few pieces for our troubles.

The narrow design of the sluice made it easy to set up and it appeared to do a great job on material exchange. The pieces that we caught were all minus 100, so it did a good job of holding onto whatever extra small colors that were shoveled into it. Truth be told I am really looking forward to seeing how it does in a productive stretch of the river.

I noticed that you had to keep a heavy flow to keep the grizzlies clear of cobbles, similar to the comparable Bazooka. Maybe a steeper angle might of helped? Or maybe not. Like any new piece of equip't, you have to spend some time acquainting yourself with it, in order to get it dialed in. Truth be told I wasn't using the sluice I was watching it in between shoveling into my Zook. My initial impressions are its a winner.

May you have happy trails, tie productive flies, and experience the best colors,
MH#59

 

[Sluicedog]

Hello all,
I've been trying to ID a substance that I've found gold panning and E.MassAuMan suggested I try posting it in this thread since I've found it in Western Mass.

The substance is heavy, a silvery metallic color and very fine.
I've found it in both the Connecticut and Green rivers near Greenfield.
View attachment 1547933
View attachment 1547934

Just wondering if anyone else has seen any of this stuff and if they know what it is.

This might be Electrum an alloy of silver and gold. Heavy and hangs out in the bottom of the pan at the end

 

[Green Mountain]

You can check out the new Green Mountain Gold Trap.
The mini is about 6 pounds.. it has a removable trap, and really traps fine gold.
It is great for catching fine gold like we have here in New England.. it works great..
You can check it out at greenmountaingoldtrap.com

 

[Green Mountain]

Yah' I noticed that with the Green Mountain Gold Trap.. the water pressure makes a big difference in how the skid plate clears..
Once you get it set up though.. it is a breeze.. just shovel on and let the water work for you! In addition, this trap has a removable trap compartment, eliminating the need to remove the whole thing from the water to do a clean out.
Happy trails to you !

 

[Green Mountain]

They claim you can find platinum in New England.. It would be great for you if that is what you are finding..

 

[RTD-Tech]

Electrum or Platinum, either would be really cool. Unfortunately my wife tossed out my sample.

Hopefully I will find more...

 

[triple d]

I have been finding what looks the same. It looks like soldier to me.I have been crushing some rocks. And its in the cons.

 

[arizau]

I have been finding what looks the same. It looks like soldier to me.I have been crushing some rocks. And its in the cons.

Found this pic of native placer Tin for you. Tin Mineral Data. Sure looks like the pic earlier in this thread and you do have Tin deposits in New Hampshire. https://www.mindat.org/locentries.php?p=14502&m=52525. The specific gravity is a little more than black iron sand also seen in the pic so would concentrate with them and gold. There is a fair chance that the rocks you crushed were a Tin ore especially if found near Tin Mountain.

Good luck.

 

[triple d]

The area I have been getting the rocks. There are a couple lead mines in the area.Does not seem to be as heavy as gold. Also a lot of arsenal pyrite. Also some ancient volcanic activity. The history does not show any tin in the area. Do not have enought to have it tested. Very fine pieces.

 

[RTD-Tech]

Does anyone know of any state or national parks in Vermont that the fam and I could backpack into and do some panning? We wouldn't be looking to use a sluice.

I don't have one and I think I read someplace on this site that you cant sluice in Vermont anyways.

 

[Mass Hole No.59]

RTD Tech,
A great place to take the family is Buffalo Brook. People have been finding gold there for over 200 years. Not only that but it's one of the most scenic places to hike, and its all contained in a state park. Its on the back side of Echo Lake off of of Rte. 100.

 

[Mass Hole No.59]

Well, I finally got back in the water yesterday. First time in a long time. I was hell bent on driving up to Vermont and doing some light prospecting and hiking. I was hoping to find an out of the way place, to reduce the already substantial pressure on Couch Brook and its tribs. About half way up I noticed I had forgot my jacket so I decided to mess around the Couch Brook area. Found somewhere around 75 very small pieces and one slightly larger piece. The hand full of nuggets I found are just outside of the frame of the picture, sorry.

Happy Trails and Best Colors,
MH #59

 

[Mass Hole No.59]

I wanted to finish what I started a few days ago, which was to drive to Southern Vermont and do some hiking/prospecting. So I headed up to the Rock River area with my trusty pan. I had heard in the past that people have found colors in the river. I have tried it a couple of times in the past w/o any luck. It is a nice area with some exceptional places to hike.

I drove to the headwaters and did some light panning in and around the Dover area but didn't have any luck. I also tried some of the tribs but again couldn't locate any colors. I will definitely head back to the area someday and try to make my way farther up into areas where there isn't any conventional access.

The problem being I will be turning sixty and joints have mostly failed me. The other problem is the desire to hike up and into the ravines is the same as when I was six. Luckily for me I know when its time to stop, even if its only a couple hundred yards. What I find particularly strange is nobody I know no matter what age likes to go into those wild and untouched places. Its nice to sit in a spot and meditate where very few humans have been and no trace of them exists.

The end result of the trip is I only found one color, but I found a beautiful brook trout stream that has a seasonal and unmaintained road next to it, that withered away to a path. A rare find indeed.

Happy Trails and Best Colors,
David