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.

 

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[Lanny in AB]

I check this thread about every day. It seems that something got screwed up. The thread went from 88 pages to 117 overnight.

If you go to page 88, it has posts from a year ago. Yesterday, page 88 had current posts.

It's not the first time. As I read through the thread a few months ago, there were sections that were a repeat of things I had already read. Many pages worth.

It seems like some pointer got screwed up in the forum software.

It's still worth the time to read it all though......I've learned a lot.

I'm not sure what happened either, but I'm certainly glad that you've been able to learn a few things as you've read through the pages in their various stages of morphing or changing or whatever cyber mischief is going on!

All the best, and thanks for dropping in,

Lanny

 

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[Lanny in AB]

Hello Jim,
Good of you to respond! I can appreciate your position with general commenting vs specific detailed conversations/inputs.

I've been in Texas 3 entire months and I've learned it is flat, there are a LOT of snakes here and all it takes to prove that statement is one good Hurricane blow with a push of water inland and they come out in droves and that the people here a truly friendly and I am enjoying my job and the company.

However, I've had several dreams as well as open day dreams about two particular locations in "MY Canyon" in Cali and I'm certain I need to go back to them at least once. Just when is a mystery though from looking at the USGS Water Flow Data for that area it looks like this would be a fine year to take a two week trip into the hills. I would guess that my current employer would not approve of that venture as I do not even have a week's vacation stored up let alone two weeks in the hills plus travel time back and forth and visiting and such. But yes, I do plan to go back in one of these days. I doubt I would drive unless I was moving to another state and I expect to do that one of these days but not to Cali unless the government there goes back into the hands of wise folk who will run the place with honesty & integrity and hopefully that would overflow into the Federal government as well.

Lanny has commented about going to California for some prospecting and of course he would be invited as well as yourself and maybe a few others would like to come along BUT it will be a tough haul in as well as out and anyone attempting said hike needs to be in very good physical condition. I mean like very good.

In three days I turn 70 years of age and I am attempting to keep my physical abilities in good shape so that 70 still does not look like 70 with abilities more like 25 to 35 but with more knowledge, smarts and general sense. I was seriously lacking in smarts and wisdom in those days.

Thank you again for the comments and question and the best of continued success to you.

What a lovely hunk of silver! What would be the rough dimensions of that zest item?
63bkpkr/Herb

Herb,

One day I do hope to make it to California to do some nugget shooting or mining. It looks like the days of dredging in California might indeed be dead as that was always on my bucket list as well.

It's great to know that you're doing well, and congratulations on reaching your milestone while you're yet on another adventure in life on the road of your employment journey.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[GarretDiggingAz]

Well I'd like to say a happy belated bday to Herb as well. I've truly enjoyed his pics and stories of his journeys in the sierras. I just wish I had as much endurance as he's got. I'm hoping to get myself back to at least to half of what it used to be. More would be better. I just want to get out in the hills like I used to and not limit myself. Lol. But safety first and know my limits.

 

[Lanny in AB]

Well I'd like to say a happy belated bday to Herb as well. I've truly enjoyed his pics and stories of his journeys in the sierras. I just wish I had as much endurance as he's got. I'm hoping to get myself back to at least to half of what it used to be. More would be better. I just want to get out in the hills like I used to and not limit myself. Lol. But safety first and know my limits.

I have yet to make it out to the goldfields this season. Still too much rain and the occasional sulky blast of snow!

All the best to you as you get out there again,

Lanny

 

[Jim Hemmingway]

Jim,

I see you've been extra busy in my absence keeping things moving along on this thread. Thanks for your input and as always, I see that you're dispensing solid gold advice as well.

I'm sure you've forgotten more about detecting than I'll ever know, and I take my hat off to you as a true dedicated and earnest devotee of all that makes up all things related to metal detecting,

Lanny

Hello Lanny... oh yes, somehow things just developed into conversations that I very much enjoyed. As you may have read, Dave very kindly forwarded a couple of hotrocks from his area to me recently. One thing leads to another, and before you know it... you've made a new friend. When the dust settles… that's the important thing to me.

Now as to detectors... oh well... I pull my units and manuals out each spring too. I doubt we're much different in that regard. Otherwise it seems likely in my case that some technical details would seep away and be lost for good. I think there's plenty I could learn from you in the field Lance, and I hope it would be a mutually beneficial experience.

In closing, I'd wondered why you had not engaged in the earlier discussions, and guessed at the possibility that you were away from home doing some exploration. Glad you're back... all the very best moving forward into a new season.

Jim.

​

 

[63bkpkr]

70 and still going

Many thanks to all you friendly Happy Birthday wishers! Yes I have chugged up and down a few hills in my 70 years of being on the face of this planet and I plan on doing more and hopefully much more. My ability to crawl around in the hills comes from first off wanting to be out there, gold or not. Second I do what I can to keep myself physically fit and in shape, that means fewer Rainbow Chocolate Chip Deluxe Cookies. They taste best when frozen so that's in the city as I am not quite as, shall we say engaged, as Steve H. is with his Alaska mining days. In the summers down in a hot Calif river canyon they taste might good!

I've been in Texas now for three months and as I could see the weight beginning to add up I started with what was easiest for me and would give my shoulder less trouble, crunches. When I first began I could not do many but I worked up to 300 typical crunches, 100 each for the left and right sides and 100 while laying on my stomach. They were beginning to take up a bit of time doing them morning and night so I changed them some, instead of up/down I started doing them up/hold/down. It is now obvious when I reach thirty that the abdomen muscles start to say hello and at 50 they are on fire, so fifty it is for each of the four positions. I will soon add overall body exercise and stretches to the crunches but I personally use the crunches as a starting point to first strength the abdomen as well as my back. I noted this morning that I am now down to 177 lbs or about 3 lbs less. A little here and a little there is the best way for me to loose weight and put on muscle. Once all of this really gets going I will add in the bicycle either on a stationary platform or commuting to work. A small bar bell set will also be purchased, ~ 120 lbs, and I will be pleased with it. I do not plan on a Charles Atlas look just good muscles every where and no I will not post a picture of me now.

I will eventually follow up on my Texas Gold comment but now is still not the time.

Again thank you all for the birthday wishes and for posting your finds as for the most part I must live vicariously off of you adventures so please keep them coming............................63bkpkr/Herb

Note - this is my compliment to Jims pictures of Lovely Chuncks of Silver

 

[delnorter]

Herb, I too would like to wish you a happy birthday (late though it is). That's great you are on an exercise routine. I too know the difficulties of not only staying in shape but of getting back in shape after illness or injury, especially as we get older. I hope working in Texas is good for you and allows you time to completely heal. The mountains will wait for you.

I am curious though, in all sincerity, how do you do crunches on your stomach.

If you ever get up this way to the very northwest corner of California give me a shout.

Take care Herb,
Mike

 

[The_Spider_Man]

I've been in Texas now for three months and as I could see the weight beginning to add up I started with what was easiest for me and would give my shoulder less trouble, crunches. When I first began I could not do many but I worked up to 300 typical crunches, 100 each for the left and right sides and 100 while laying on my stomach. They were beginning to take up a bit of time doing them morning and night so I changed them some, instead of up/down I started doing them up/hold/down.

Hey guys Loving the read as usual

Thought i'd throw in there ( as a Physio of sorts - too long a story to go into ) That for a lot of you guys "back problems" are or can be a big problem. If i can give you all one bit of advise.. Your hamstrings are your best friend.. For when these become too tight.. They proceed to slowly wrench your pelvis backward, causing strain throughout our entire back. Some of these issues include: Sciatica, bulging disks, bulging vertebra, scoliosis, stretched tendons and unsupportive musculature in the lower thoracic and lumbar area, most of these issues come with a nasty serve of mind numbing headaches and inability to have proper movement in your entire back and legs due to almost unrelenting sever pain during movement.. ( I speak from experience on several of these conditions )

My advise: Join a Yoga group or teach yourself the basic 26 Yoga positions, These give you a well rounded stretch throughout your body while strengthening your core muscles and for those of you who have done Yoga before.. You know how strong / flexible and energetic you are after each session.

My partner and i attend a special type of class called Bikram Yoga, this is where they heat the room to 35-40 Celsius while doing a 26 pose class and when i started i was barely able to walk and had a history of sever back pain for the previous 10 years with Dr's telling me there is nothing they can do besides surgery.. after 1 class - all back pain reduced from 10/10 to a 1-2/10.. after 3 classes.. no more back pain.. and i can tell you.. going from 10 years of Extreme pain to nothing.. in the course of 5 days.. was like i'd died and gone to heaven..

To give you some idea of the benefits, I know a gentleman in one of our classes who is 66 and has the body of a 30 yearold gym-junky.. Yoga has often been seen by the public as " that weird thing hippies do"
But in reality.. it's the system used to maintain peak physical condition throughout your life.

If this all seams too much. Just do the following:
Hamstring stretches ( you can google these )
Core strength exercises ( specifically include your side abdominals and your lower/mid and upper back.

Feel free to ask anything further if you have questions, but i just wanted to offer this as it is an area I am knowledgeable in and i would love to see you guys still out there in the canyons for many years to come.

And no excuses my 83 Y/O grandmother does core work AND Yoga.. and she'd do laps around most 50 yearolds

PS: Crunches are Great! But make sure you always work the apposing muscle group! or all you'll end up with is a Chronic hunch, rolled forward shoulders, stretched-unsupportive tendons and musculature in your back as well as poor flexibility.

Peace!

Jace.

 

[63bkpkr]

Jace, very interesting and helpful. Yes there are many types of exercises that are good for us and as you point out working the opposite muscles is required. That is why I do crunches on my stomach.

Backward Stomach crunches: lay flat on the floor on your stomach and at the same time raise your torso and your legs. That is my backwards stomach crunch.

I like calisthenics as they do not require a Gym just some space to work in like just outside the tent as at least my tent floor will not take all the wiggling around or anywhere at home that you find acceptable.

For tied up muscle knots I use a tennis ball between myself and a wall (this is at home) or between myself and a rock though it is tough to keep the ball in place on a rock. One can lay down on the floor and place the tennis ball under the sore muscle but this is the most severe type of tennis ball/deep tissue massage and it can hurt a lot if the muscle is really inflamed. Like I'm out detecting all day long walking among boulders all day long and muscles every where can bet strained so I carry my T balls with me 'out there'. Yoga may look funny but it is a work out!...................63bkpkr

BEWARE!! Any exercise routine should match your current physical condition OR ELSE you will only injure yourself!!

 

[nuggy]

Hi Lanny and all, just to let you know I am still out here, and I do drop in from time to time to catch up on all the goings on! Don't have anything much to contribute. Just finished the trommel part of my wash plant, might put in a photo when I figure out how to get the two ton monster out of my garage, if anyone interested.
Thanks for keeping the thread going guys. Nuggy

Yep - the yoga is good I do the tiger stretches every morning or my lower back won't function at all.

 

[Lanny in AB]

Hi Lanny and all, just to let you know I am still out here, and I do drop in from time to time to catch up on all the goings on! Don't have anything much to contribute. Just finished the trommel part of my wash plant, might put in a photo when I figure out how to get the two ton monster out of my garage, if anyone interested.
Thanks for keeping the thread going guys. Nuggy

Yep - the yoga is good I do the tiger stretches every morning or my lower back won't function at all.

Holy jumpin' dynamite! It's a Nuggy post!!

So great to hear from you again. I thought maybe they'd outlawed the Internet way down yonder in the land of Kiwis or something.

It's great to hear from you again, and it's great to know that you're still dedicated to building machines to chase the gold. Everyone knows you can't be a real gold miner unless you've got some equipment kicking around somewhere.

Please do post the pictures of your two-ton beauty when you get a chance.

I hope you're still getting a chance to chase some gold from time to time as well.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Jim Hemmingway]

We're interested nuggy, so please post away when you're ready!!!

Jim.

 

[Aupanner]

Hi Lanny, I write this to thank you for your starting this thread. My first post hope I am doing this correctly, not a lurker anymore. I found this thread while searching Treasurenet for gold prospecting info. I have been out prospecting about 12 to 15 times over the last 5 years, usually a day or two at a time, half of that is usually travel. Found a few pickers (one I call a nugget because I was so excited to have one that I could pick up with my fingers) and some flakes. It took me about 3 or 4 weeks to read the 87 page of this thread. Then I went to Calif for two weeks to be with family and grandkiddos. What a surprise when I returned and the thread was now 118 pages. Now I have to go back and get caught up. I’ll be moving to Calif by the end of this year and look forward to putting some of your teaching to use. Joined the Calif East Bay prospectors and have attended a couple of meetings and a Bear River outing. Had a good time and learned a lot and found some gold. We are having a family outing this summer near Lake Tahoe and want to take all 5 Grandkiddos ages 5 to 10 years old) Panning and Sniping somewhere near there. More research to do. Thanks again for sharing your years of experience, logic and sense of humor. Howard.

 

[EagleDown]

Halito Brother Lanny,

Hey, whenever you have a few minutes, slip over to my thread; http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/t...t-treasures-mariposa-ca-photos-added-150.html And see what you think of my new find. Who knows, you might make a trip down to CA one of these days, just to take a tour through the "Eagle's Roost Mine". (lol)

 

[Lanny in AB]

Hi Lanny, I write this to thank you for your starting this thread. My first post hope I am doing this correctly, not a lurker anymore. I found this thread while searching Treasurenet for gold prospecting info. I have been out prospecting about 12 to 15 times over the last 5 years, usually a day or two at a time, half of that is usually travel. Found a few pickers (one I call a nugget because I was so excited to have one that I could pick up with my fingers) and some flakes. It took me about 3 or 4 weeks to read the 87 page of this thread. Then I went to Calif for two weeks to be with family and grandkiddos. What a surprise when I returned and the thread was now 118 pages. Now I have to go back and get caught up. I’ll be moving to Calif by the end of this year and look forward to putting some of your teaching to use. Joined the Calif East Bay prospectors and have attended a couple of meetings and a Bear River outing. Had a good time and learned a lot and found some gold. We are having a family outing this summer near Lake Tahoe and want to take all 5 Grandkiddos ages 5 to 10 years old) Panning and Sniping somewhere near there. More research to do. Thanks again for sharing your years of experience, logic and sense of humor. Howard.

Thanks for your kind words of appreciation! I really appreciate them.

I'm glad you finally found one you could pick up. That's always fun.

All the best to you as you chase the gold in Cali,

Lanny

 

[Lanny in AB]

Just for something different, this is a fun little video on working bedrock for gold, all while toiling underground!

The first part (almost half) is placering deep in the earth with a Bobcat, and there's some interesting shots of actual work.

At close to eight minutes they start detecting a bedrock pocket. Things get very interesting right around the ten minute mark.

Hope you enjoy it; it is fun, and the miners enjoyed themselves too.



All the best,

Lanny

 

[Jim Hemmingway]

Thanks Lanny... that was quite an insightful, fun to watch video. I recollect reading about the Liberty Mine, Washington State some 30 odd years ago in one of the jointly authored prospecting books by Charles Garrett / Roy Lagal. Not sure now which one... but it might have been the original "Electronic Prospecting" that initially got me interested in the hobby. With that in mind, watching this video held some extra interest for me... many thanks.

Jim.

​

 

[Jim Hemmingway]

Hi Lanny… been organizing my silver and related mineral photos off and on over the winter, and running a few benchtests on some samples. Could possibly make for an interesting diversion here to briefly describe a recently acquired crystalline arsenopyrite specimen illustrated below with regard to its response to a prospecting-capable metal detector.

The sample below produces a solid metal detector response in either discrimination or true motion all-metal modes (ensuring that any ground tracking feature is turned off). As with most sulfides, the response is not nearly as strong as a similar size and shape gold or silver sample would produce, but this particular sample does produce an unusually strong benchtest signal. Of course, the response varies according to structure or solidity, and quantity within a given rock, but in-situ one would expect the sample’s signal strength to be significantly reduced to a few inches or less.

For example, I also have a penny diameter "stringer" sample of arsenopyrite that doesn't produce any response even in a highly sensitive VLF detector benchtest... a fairly typical sulfide in that respect. It should be mentioned that neither of my PI units will respond to it even with a TDI Pro equipped with a small round 5” mono coil and with the GB control turned off.

That’s about it… a fun little benchtest I felt like doing since it's raining outside and I couldn't get out for some jogging. Not really looking for any comments… the photo below is a quick indoor snapshot

Jim.

​

 

[Lanny in AB]

Hi Lanny… been organizing my silver and related mineral photos off and on over the winter, and running a few benchtests on some samples. Could possibly make for an interesting diversion here to briefly describe a recently acquired crystalline arsenopyrite specimen illustrated below with regard to its response to a prospecting-capable metal detector.

The sample below produces a solid metal detector response in either discrimination or true motion all-metal modes (ensuring that any ground tracking feature is turned off). As with most sulfides, the response is not nearly as strong as a similar size and shape gold or silver sample would produce, but this particular sample does produce an unusually strong benchtest signal. Of course, the response varies according to structure or solidity, and quantity within a given rock, but in-situ one would expect the sample’s signal strength to be significantly reduced to a few inches or less.

For example, I also have a penny diameter "stringer" sample of arsenopyrite that doesn't produce any response even in a highly sensitive VLF detector benchtest... a fairly typical sulfide in that respect. It should be mentioned that neither of my PI units will respond to it even with a TDI Pro equipped with a small round 5” mono coil and with the GB control turned off.

That’s about it… a fun little benchtest I felt like doing since it's raining outside and I couldn't get out for some jogging. Not really looking for any comments… the photo below is a quick indoor snapshot

Jim.

View attachment 994941​

Thanks Jim!

Nice informative post.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Lanny in AB]

I can certainly relate to all of that pyrite when working bedrock. I'd usually find the gold just below the main concentration of pyrite.





These guys are rolling boulders and working bedrock.

They found some. . . .

They finished off with about 12,000 worth of gold.

All the best,

Lanny