Bedrock and Gold: The mysteries . . .

[Lanny in AB]

Do you love to chase the gold? Please join me--lots of gold hunting tips, stories of finds (successful and not), and prospecting poetry.

Nugget in the bedrock tip:

I had a visit with a mining buddy this past weekend, and he told me of an epic battle to get a nugget out of the bedrock, and of what he learned from the experience. I thought some of you might like to learn from his mistake.

While out detecting one day, he came across a large sheet of bare bedrock. The bedrock was exposed because the area had been blasted off with a water cannon (a monitor), by the old-timers! It was not fractured bedrock, in fact it was totally smooth.

He was not optimistic at all of the prospects of a nugget. But, for some reason (we've all been there) he decided to swing his detector over that bedrock. After a long time, just as he was about to give up on his crazy hunch, he got a signal, right out of that smooth bedrock.

There was no crevice, no sign of a crevice, nada! So, he had to go all the way back to camp to get a small sledge and a chisel. The signal in the rock intrigued him, but he still wasn't overly optimistic. For those of you that have chased signals in a similar situation, sometimes there's a patch of hot mineralization in the bedrock that sounds off, but this spot, according to him, was sharp and clear right in the middle of the signal, not just a general increase of the threshold like you get when you pass over a hot spot in the bedrock.

Anyway, he made it back to the spot and started to chisel his way into the bedrock. If any of you have tried this, it's an awful job, and you usually wind up with cut knuckles--at the least! Regardless, he kept fighting his way down, busting out chunks of bedrock. He kept checking the hole, and the signal remained very strong.

This only puzzled him all the more as he could clearly see that it was solid bedrock with no sign of any crevice. He finally quit at the end of the day, at a depth of about a foot, but still, nothing in the hole.

An experienced nugget shooting friend dropped by the next morning to see him, and asked him how the hunt was going. My buddy related his tale of the mysterious hole in the bedrock, and told the friend to go over and check it out, and see if he could solve the riddle.

Later in the day, the other nugget hunter returned. In his hand was a fine, fat, sassy nugget. It weighed in at about an ounce and a quarter! After my friend returned his eyeballs to their sockets and zapped his heart to start it again, he asked where the nugget had come from.

Imagine his surprise when he heard it came from the mystery hole!! He asked how deep the other guy had gone into the bedrock to get it. "Well, no deeper" was his reply.

So, here's the rest of the story as to what happened. When the successful nugget hunter got to the bedrock, he scanned the surface got the same strong signal as my buddy. He widened out the hole and scanned again. Still a solid tone. He widened the hole some more so he could get his coil in, and here's the key and the lesson in this story, he got a strong signal off the side of the hole, about six inches down, but set back another inch into the side of the bedrock!!

My unlucky friend, the true discoverer of the gorgeous nugget's resting place had gone deep past the signal while digging his hole!!

Now, of course, a good pinpointer would easily solve this problem. The problem was, my buddy didn't have one, so why would he widen the hole, right? Well, the other guy was the one with more experience, and that's why he did. It was a lot more work, but what a payoff!

So, my buddy's butt is still black and blue from where he kicked himself for the next week or so for having lost such an incredible prize.

Some nugget hunting lessons are harder than others to learn. . . .

All the best,

Lanny


P.S. When in gold country--check the bedrock, regardless of whether it looks likely or not! Mother Nature likes to play games sometimes.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Upgraded Night Vision Monocular Digital Infrared Monocular Telescope for 100% Darkness with 8X Zoom - Grab it through Amazon!

[Truffles_EOD]

Happy New Year Lanny, this is my favourite thread in Treasurenet and I hope very soon to contribute to it with findings here in the Balkans, I now have a Garrett AT Gold, Panning Set and have a Sluice Box on the way from Germany; I have researched the area and have been out on one quick recce to a river which is directly adjacent to the only documented commercial Gold Mine in the country, however I have also found out there are many locations where the Romans mined Gold from several rivers throughout the country.

Keep up the great inspirational posts, to us newbies they are a Godsend!

Thank You,

AL...

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Diving for Pleasure and Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[Cl1983]

I love the plug in hammer in that bottom pic

 

[GarretDiggingAz]

Lanny,
Funny about electric hammer. I thought I was seeing something. I was trying to see if it could be an actual tool. Could it be possible it could be a hammer/welder on impact. OR. Maybe it's Thor's hammer.
I've got a panning question. I have been going through my cons that I panned down and got the gold out of already. I'm "still" pulling out gold from it. So obviously I'm not getting it all. I'm pretty thorough and slow when it comes to panning, but I rushed the last run. I agitate the heck out of the dirt/cons and wash it. So why is it I'm still losing gold?
One other thing I was doing was to keep the pan just under the water and gently agitate the cons to lift the lighter material and run it off the pan. I did notice gold getting to second riffle, but not passed it. So I didn't think it was going out. Help. Any ideas?

Truffles
I've got an ATG as well. Love it, but still haven't found that elusive gold though. Still trying. Heading out tomorrow.

 

[Lanny in AB]

Happy New Year Lanny, this is my favourite thread in Treasurenet and I hope very soon to contribute to it with findings here in the Balkans, I now have a Garrett AT Gold, Panning Set and have a Sluice Box on the way from Germany; I have researched the area and have been out on one quick recce to a river which is directly adjacent to the only documented commercial Gold Mine in the country, however I have also found out there are many locations where the Romans mined Gold from several rivers throughout the country.

Keep up the great inspirational posts, to us newbies they are a Godsend!

Thank You,

AL...

Al, a very happy New Year to you as well.

If the Romans were working a gold deposit, I think you've got a good shot at it with our modern techniques and equipment.


They should have missed gold that you can find with a detector, either on the surface or under the water. Moreover, if you can get a dredge permit for a surface suction dredge, you may do quite well.

It's all an adventure regardless of what true amount of gold you find.

All the best, and many thanks for your compliment,

Lanny

 

[Lanny in AB]

Lanny,
Funny about electric hammer. I thought I was seeing something. I was trying to see if it could be an actual tool. Could it be possible it could be a hammer/welder on impact. OR. Maybe it's Thor's hammer.
I've got a panning question. I have been going through my cons that I panned down and got the gold out of already. I'm "still" pulling out gold from it. So obviously I'm not getting it all. I'm pretty thorough and slow when it comes to panning, but I rushed the last run. I agitate the heck out of the dirt/cons and wash it. So why is it I'm still losing gold?
One other thing I was doing was to keep the pan just under the water and gently agitate the cons to lift the lighter material and run it off the pan. I did notice gold getting to second riffle, but not passed it. So I didn't think it was going out. Help. Any ideas?

Truffles
I've got an ATG as well. Love it, but still haven't found that elusive gold though. Still trying. Heading out tomorrow.

The electric hammer does look comical. I'm not exactly sure what it was, but it is interesting (looks like a conversation starter to me).

With the cons you've still got left, are they full of black sand, or garnet, or galena, or hematite? If they are, that will make it harder to separate that fine gold.

I would imagine that you've already got rid of the super-heavies, but if you haven't, try that and it will be easier to separate the fine gold.

If you've already got rid of all of the super-heavies, try panning it a tablespoon at a time. Or, if you have the money, buy one of the inexpensive little separator devices for fine gold.

I saw a trick this past summer where a lady uses a small mason jar with a crowned bottom. She spins the concentrate (submersed under a small amount of water in the jar) gently in circles, and the gold separates from the sands. Then you just suck up the clean gold with your sucker/sniffer bottle! (The sands stay off by themselves.)

The "small mason jar" technique worked great. After a little practice I could do it quite easily.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Lanny in AB]

I love the plug in hammer in that bottom pic

That is cool isn't it.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[leenie]

hi Lanny being a retired carpenter I believe that hammer would belong to a electritian [a sparky]. they love anything with a cord. if it don't throw sparks they aren't interested. Lanny could you keep that arctic air a little further up north its messin up the global warming around here. thank you for any help you can render. dave

 

[EagleDown]

I've got a panning question. I have been going through my cons that I panned down and got the gold out of already. I'm "still" pulling out gold from it. So obviously I'm not getting it all. I'm pretty thorough and slow when it comes to panning, but I rushed the last run. I agitate the heck out of the dirt/cons and wash it. So why is it I'm still losing gold?
One other thing I was doing was to keep the pan just under the water and gently agitate the cons to lift the lighter material and run it off the pan. I did notice gold getting to second riffle, but not passed it. So I didn't think it was going out. Help. Any ideas?

GarretDiggingAz,

Since you're presumally panning in a tub, it's common to get "back surges" of water (waves) from the opposing side from your pan. These "surges" can take exposed fine gold out of the pan quickly, without you even noticing. Also, since you are panning in an inclosed container, you might want to put a squirt of liquid detergent in the container, to break the surface tension of the water. Over the years, I've witnessed fine gold floating on top of the water many times.

You might have to experiment with the amount of detergent you use. Start with a small amount, then add more if need be. Just don't add so much that the top of the water is covered with suds. (lol)

 

[Lanny in AB]

hi Lanny being a retired carpenter I believe that hammer would belong to a electritian [a sparky]. they love anything with a cord. if it don't throw sparks they aren't interested. Lanny could you keep that arctic air a little further up north its messin up the global warming around here. thank you for any help you can render. dave

I hadn't thought about the hammer used in that way--interesting.

As for the weather, you can have all of the cold air you want. I know you don't want any more, but what I'm saying is that you can have more.

As for global warming, this winter has debunked that myth, but I'm still sorry that our cold weather is messin' with your warmer air. I like the warmer air much better myself.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Lanny in AB]

GarretDiggingAz,

Since you're presumally panning in a tub, it's common to get "back surges" of water (waves) from the opposing side from your pan. These "surges" can take exposed fine gold out of the pan quickly, without you even noticing. Also, since you are panning in an inclosed container, you might want to put a squirt of liquid detergent in the container, to break the surface tension of the water. Over the years, I've witnessed fine gold floating on top of the water many times.

You might have to experiment with the amount of detergent you use. Start with a small amount, then add more if need be. Just don't add so much that the top of the water is covered with suds. (lol)

Good advice Eagle. As always, right on the money.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Lanny in AB]

I really like this little video for how it shows a person to "partition" off chunks from the lump that forms a find.

The instruction on using the various features of the GB Pro is interesting as well.



All the best,

Lanny

 

[Lanny in AB]

I posted this on another thread, but I'm posting it here on my thread as well. It's about what kind of mining category people thought they belonged to.

I love trying to solve the riddles and mysteries of Mother Nature's attempts to hide her sassy gold.



I love adventure and having those adventures in the majestic domain of the everlasting mountains.



I love the looks of wonder on the faces of the rookies that catch their first glimpse of gold in the pan, or while detecting, catch their first glimpse of gold as they uncover their first nugget.



I love the crystal clear waters, and I love the inquisitive fish that swim freely around me while I dredge.



I love to expose and then pull nuggets from the secret crevices of the bedrock while I’m deep in the water, especially when the sun is shining over my shoulder--that's a sight I'll never, ever forget.


I love exploring old cabins and mine sites to then connect myself with the lonely ghosts of lost labors and toils long since past.



I love the sight of sluice riffles loaded with gold.



What kind of gold miner does that make me or to which category do I truly belong?

It doesn't matter I guess, because whatever it is, I flat out love it.


All the best to all of you that love it as I do,

Lanny

http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/metal-detecting-gold/69-bedrock-gold-mysteries.html

 

[GarretDiggingAz]

Lanny and Eagle

Thanks for the advice. I think since I did in a tub and rushed it. I'm certain all that pushing and wave pressure kicked out a bit of gold. I couldn't believe it. Today I panned out the rest from the safety pan. I got a little flake and not the small granuals I was getting (as expected).
Here's a pic of rerun from Yarnell trip. Time to go back.

The second pic was from my outing in greaterville. Way too short a trip. That gold was mostly from a 2-1/2 gal bucket from a hole. Some other fly poop came from another. I should've stayed in my 2nd hole. I will go back there as well. Just hope for a couple days. Got a spot I need to detect slowly. Plus follow this quartz vein.

 

[leenie]

hi lanny would the young man pictured be your son? is that a tailing pile or natural gravel? the pictures of the cabin and mountians bogel my small little mind. i grew up and live on a farm. I grow about 25 acres of sweet corn. the land here is flat so I find your pictures wonderfull. I have a strong connection with the land as I believe you do. thank you for showing a different kind of nature than i'm use to. dave

 

[Lanny in AB]

Lanny and Eagle

Thanks for the advice. I think since I did in a tub and rushed it. I'm certain all that pushing and wave pressure kicked out a bit of gold. I couldn't believe it. Today I panned out the rest from the safety pan. I got a little flake and not the small granuals I was getting (as expected).
Here's a pic of rerun from Yarnell trip. Time to go back.

The second pic was from my outing in greaterville. Way too short a trip. That gold was mostly from a 2-1/2 gal bucket from a hole. Some other fly poop came from another. I should've stayed in my 2nd hole. I will go back there as well. Just hope for a couple days. Got a spot I need to detect slowly. Plus follow this quartz vein.

If you're lucky enough to be getting tips from Eagle, you can't do any better than that!

I'm glad you're still getting some gold too.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Lanny in AB]

hi lanny would the young man pictured be your son? is that a tailing pile or natural gravel? the pictures of the cabin and mountians bogel my small little mind. i grew up and live on a farm. I grow about 25 acres of sweet corn. the land here is flat so I find your pictures wonderfull. I have a strong connection with the land as I believe you do. thank you for showing a different kind of nature than i'm use to. dave

My parents spent some time in Indiana--they loved it. I have yet to visit your fine state.

In response to your questions, that's not my son, it's a protogé that loves to chase the gold. He's in university now getting a degree in geology so he can do what he loves while he collects a salary! Mighty smart.

That is not a tailings pile. It's a section of a stranded placer, left high and dry who knows how long ago. The present day river is several hundred feet below.

I too have a very strong connection to the land, and always will. I still have horses running around on land in the area where my Great-grandfather, and my Grandfather, broke the land with teams of horses. So, your guess on that connection to the land is right on. I can clearly see the mountains from where I live, and I have always loved being in them.

Now that I visit them to chase the gold, it's only an added bonus to how much I enjoy them.

All the best, and thanks for dropping in,

Lanny

 

[Lanny in AB]

Cold canyon gold.



I've done some crazy things over the years trying to mine or prospect when it was too cold.

I remember one year late in the fall, we (my partner and I) mounted an expedition to check out a spot deep in a canyon's gorge where the water had been much too high in the regular season to prospect such an unruly spot.

So, we packed up gear and headed to the gold field.

As it was late fall, the Tamaracks (The word tamarack is the Algonquin name for the species of tree [Larch] and means "wood used for snowshoes") were all done up in their golden majesty. (The Tamarack has green needles like the Pine, Spruce, Fir, and Cedar, but it loses its needles each fall.)



We saw many Elk--bulls and cows--among the trees on the flats as we worked our way up slope to get to the canyon.

The wild turkeys were very busy chasing each other as well, the young born early in the year now just getting their mature colors and feathers.

From time to time, we spotted Mule Deer, the bucks busily courting the females to ensure the survival of the species. The only problem was, when they are in that excited state, they often forget where they are and they'll step right out in front of the truck! And, it takes a moment or two to stop the Green Dragon, that heavily loaded Dodge diesel. Luckily, it's equipped with a heavy duty brush guard that can also double as a deer catcher, if necessary. Nonetheless, no deer were harmed in the making of our golden journey that day.



The road up the canyon is very narrow, so of course much of it hugs the alpine cliff faces as it follows the contours of the mountains on its way up. The other side of the road is not for anyone faint of heart. In places it plunges off straight down for hundreds of feet to the glacial thread of the stream far below. The river is visible in what's most like the shutter snaps of a camera, views that quickly disappear, then reappear as the road winds and twists on its upward journey.



Along the way, Mother Nature is always moving things like a mistress of chess. Sometimes the pieces of the game are large rocks or outright boulders that she's deposited directly on the road to see how we'll handle their sudden appearance. At other times, it's trees that block the entire road. In that case, the Green Dragon halts, the chainsaws come out, and the road is made safe for anyone that wishes to ascend or descend on that particular day. Sometimes it’s mobile obstacles, round and chubby ones with either black or brown coats. It depends on their mood and their species whether they'll quickly bolt, either upslope or downslope, off the trail. The Grizzly variety doesn't seem in near the hurry as their Black counterparts. Moose? Well, as the kings or queens of the chess pieces, they're pretty much big enough to dictate when they decide the trail is open or closed. As for cougars, they are indeed the shy knights of the game, and I've only ever had one that wanted the trail for but a few, brief moments. Pawns consist of an ever-changing variety of squirrels, grouse, and cottontail rabbits.



At last, we reached the summit of the climb and the trail began a brief downward descent to a sheltered meadow. A small creek emerged from the willows then quickly dove beneath the road through a culvert.

We had arrived.

We unloaded the day’s necessities from the Dragon, then gingerly made our way down a steeply sloped and cobbled foot trail that led to where the stream and the river met.

In the 1800's the old-timers had been very busy in this spot. They'd moved mountains of material to get to the gold as the entire area was underlain with bedrock that had been trapping gold for untold eons.





We were after scraps that day. The scraps the river continues to glean from the sides of those unscaleable slopes each and every spring.





Moreover, we were there at the right time of the year. The river was so low that bedrock was now visible on the far side, whereas earlier in the season, it was submerged under a foot or two of wild water.



However, as it was so late in the year, the timing was a blessing and a curse. As we hit the bottom Lanny and his load were suddenly airborne. Tools flew in every direction. Luckily they all landed in spots made for easy recovery. The shame I bore was much more of a problem. You see, my partner laughs too easily and too often. Especially when I'm flying through the air instead of treading solidly on terra firma. He thinks things like that are always funny.

Imagine that.

(More to come.)

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Lanny in AB]

This belongs with post #1514 on this thread. The credit goes to the miners cited there.

I somehow missed posting it with those potato nuggets.

It's 176 grams of gold that I sure hope you enjoy.



Just a reminder that the potato nuggets in the picture weigh in at 965 grams!!

All the best,

Lanny

 

[GarretDiggingAz]

Lanny, thanks for the journey. Been down several trails like that. I could totally picture the ride. The fall. Well, how did you get airborne? Where do we fall in that chess game of nature? Rooks? We see in straight lines. However, we crisscross our paths, like a bishop. I didn't want to say queens, because I'm sure the bear is there with the moose in royalty.
Well tomorrow's another day.
I went out with youngest son Thomas and went to hit a GPAA claim (outback #4). Rough road in and tested my bladder strength. Son loved the bouncing. Cheaper than Disneyland for sure, and definitely a long ride. Took around thirty minutes to get back there. Just hit the wash and figured I'd dig around a boulder. Not much from it, but a nice view and couple specs of fly poop. I bumped into others from GPAA as well. Nice groups of people. They didn't get much either.
Then I went to the gold and treasure show today (Saturday) and bumped into one of the guys. Now he wants to tag along. Great to find others that love to explore the hidden world of the sassy nuggets. So after next week I'm going to take him out for some color.
Son and I got some pics with Dakota Fred and Melany from Gold Rush. Then we got to meet both Tom and Kia Massie of corse through Gold Fever. Kia is definitely a spitting image of her mother. If I could get my middle boy to marry her, I'd be in Alaska each summer. I don't think that'll happen though.
Hopefully, I can get some nugs on next outing. Got to learn a little bit more on detecting and what to look for. Though I had an idea, but coming from a guy who finds gold continuously in spots I'd assume is detected out. It was educational. Makes me feel I need the 5000, but until I get that much in gold, I won't get that expensive a PI machine.
One valuable lesson I heard again was to listen to disturbances in the threshold. I heard it before, but I often ignored those dips because of the heavy iron content in soil. I don't detect a football field in an hour it's more like a day or two. Now it might take me a week to do that much. They say to dig it all and they confirmed it again. With that said, why do we have target ID numbers? Since the gold/silver can be almost anywhere on the spectrum. Even if it's reading iron, there could be fine gold hidden there.
Detecting surely isn't to just get a detector and go where it's been found before. You have to be willing to spend a lot of time on knees and dig, dig, dig. Then when you're finally too tired to dig that next tone. Stop for the day and start again tomorrow. Not easy for those who have bad backs or knees. Then again, it's not easy on the body to lay around doing nothing.
So for those who want to detect for gold/silver. Keep strong in the belief that you'll find what you're looking for, because persistence will be rewarded. Plus you get to see beautiful country and meet beautiful people.
Some of which are here. Lanny is just one. Many, many others (Steve, Eagle, Jim, for example) are willing to help share the knowledge. I'm great-full to get to talk to them and get needed information to make me a better detectorist.
Many thanks to you Lanny for contributing the knowledge and an occasional story.

 

[Lanny in AB]

Lanny, thanks for the journey. Been down several trails like that. I could totally picture the ride. The fall. Well, how did you get airborne? Where do we fall in that chess game of nature? Rooks? We see in straight lines. However, we crisscross our paths, like a bishop. I didn't want to say queens, because I'm sure the bear is there with the moose in royalty.
Well tomorrow's another day.
I went out with youngest son Thomas and went to hit a GPAA claim (outback #4). Rough road in and tested my bladder strength. Son loved the bouncing. Cheaper than Disneyland for sure, and definitely a long ride. Took around thirty minutes to get back there. Just hit the wash and figured I'd dig around a boulder. Not much from it, but a nice view and couple specs of fly poop. I bumped into others from GPAA as well. Nice groups of people. They didn't get much either.
Then I went to the gold and treasure show today (Saturday) and bumped into one of the guys. Now he wants to tag along. Great to find others that love to explore the hidden world of the sassy nuggets. So after next week I'm going to take him out for some color.
Son and I got some pics with Dakota Fred and Melany from Gold Rush. Then we got to meet both Tom and Kia Massie of corse through Gold Fever. Kia is definitely a spitting image of her mother. If I could get my middle boy to marry her, I'd be in Alaska each summer. I don't think that'll happen though.
Hopefully, I can get some nugs on next outing. Got to learn a little bit more on detecting and what to look for. Though I had an idea, but coming from a guy who finds gold continuously in spots I'd assume is detected out. It was educational. Makes me feel I need the 5000, but until I get that much in gold, I won't get that expensive a PI machine.
One valuable lesson I heard again was to listen to disturbances in the threshold. I heard it before, but I often ignored those dips because of the heavy iron content in soil. I don't detect a football field in an hour it's more like a day or two. Now it might take me a week to do that much. They say to dig it all and they confirmed it again. With that said, why do we have target ID numbers? Since the gold/silver can be almost anywhere on the spectrum. Even if it's reading iron, there could be fine gold hidden there.
Detecting surely isn't to just get a detector and go where it's been found before. You have to be willing to spend a lot of time on knees and dig, dig, dig. Then when you're finally too tired to dig that next tone. Stop for the day and start again tomorrow. Not easy for those who have bad backs or knees. Then again, it's not easy on the body to lay around doing nothing.
So for those who want to detect for gold/silver. Keep strong in the belief that you'll find what you're looking for, because persistence will be rewarded. Plus you get to see beautiful country and meet beautiful people.
Some of which are here. Lanny is just one. Many, many others (Steve, Eagle, Jim, for example) are willing to help share the knowledge. I'm great-full to get to talk to them and get needed information to make me a better detectorist.
Many thanks to you Lanny for contributing the knowledge and an occasional story.

Thanks for stopping by and for contributing to this thread.

On another thread Ray brought up something very important that I haven't really gone into depth with you, and the issue he says is critical when it comes to metal detecting for gold is research.

I do a lot of my research out in the field by talking to the local claim owners, or by finding names or former claim owners and then having a chat with them. I've found out many excellent tips on where to go that otherwise I'd have never known. I've also emailed former claim owners that can no longer get out in the field and had lengthy correspondence with them to learn many valuable secrets on the area. Moreover, I'll get telephone numbers of retired miners as well and talk for hours with those that are willing to do so.

Ray spends a lot of time researching by other methods, and I've used books and maps myself, but one of the problems with the area I'm in right now is that they kept terrible records. So, from the local miners I glean as much as I can about soil conditions, size of gold found, depth to the gold, etc. Furthermore, such information is invaluable when it comes to chasing the gold.

This past summer, I needed a place to take some friends to find gold. I called an old prospector in the area and had a long chat with him. At the end of the talk, he told me to go try his claim! So, we did. There was a young prospector (19) there that had permission to work the claim, but he wasn't getting very much gold. I knew from talking to the claim owner that there was good gold on the claim, and the rookie knew it too.

So, I looked the claim over for a while before I started any digging. As we were in a deep part of the canyon where there was a lot of bedrock, the chances of finding some nice placer were excellent because Mother Nature couldn't hide the gold very deeply. There was a pinch point where all of the water had to race through, but then the river suddenly widened out. I got to some high ground and started to factor in how gold behaves. I knew from reading many books (on prospecting and detecting), and from talking to active and former miners that gold behaves in predictable ways. So, I noticed (I've probably mentioned this somewhere else) that there were lines of large boulders running along the banks after the pinch point. As I'm not afraid to dig, I set out digging around those lines of boulders where the stream widened. The gold was there.

I had another prospector there that has panned in the area for years. I showed him how to find the gold using that method of specific gravity--if the water had enough force to carry those large rocks and boulders, then it had enough energy to carry the gold. He's now found more gold than he ever did by hit and miss methods before.

In the desert (I've detected for nuggets in Arizona before) the rules can be the same where there once was water action, and the rules can be very different. I spent time with the locals, and while with them (as they understood the area's conditions) they found some incredible solid gold nuggets and specimen gold. One of them only searched old drywasher tailing piles and he did well. The other used more knowledge gained from others and he found fantastic specimen pieces and solid gold nuggets by gleaning knowledge from his conversations with them, and from tips garnered from others.

If you can find someone that's worked the area you're detecting in to give you some ideas it will go a long, long way, as will book and claim research on size of gold recovery, patterns of deposition, geological reports, etc.

In the end however, you'll still have to do what you're currently doing, and when it comes to detecting for gold, digging trash is part of the game unless you're lucky enough to get some virgin ground. And, it's still out there, by the way.

All the best, and keep digging and detecting and you'll hit some big stuff one day,

Lanny