The Gilded Couple (The Gilded Lens) - A golden journey.

[Goldwasher]

Did you sample any of the area around and downstream of the outcropping?

 

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[The Gilded Lens]

Ok we made a rock crusher! No gold in the couple rocks we smashes this far. But there is silver metal. Some of it is magnetic and I'm wondering if it's from the galvanized pipe we used to make the smasher. But there is also non magnetic silver metal as well.

 

[KevinInColorado]

LoL, swap your galvanized pipe for black steel (also at Home Depot) to avoid getting zinc (the silver metal) in your sample.

 

[The Gilded Lens]

LoL, swap your galvanized pipe for black steel (also at Home Depot) to avoid getting zinc (the silver metal) in your sample.

Home Depot pshh. I work at a hardware store. Are we talking the black gas pipe? Can I just replace the cap on the inner smashy pipe?

 

[The Gilded Lens]

Smashed another rock. I put a black pipe cap on the end of my smasher.

Found this little chunk of mystery. I reckon if it were a sliver from my smasher it would be magnetic like the smasher. This isn't magnetic whatever it is. Is zinc magnetic? Gonna go ask Google.

 

[KevinInColorado]

That is zinc plating which is nonmag. I'm horrified, just horrified that I didn't say to go to your local hardware store...soooo sorry! ;-)

Yes, black gas pipe, exactly. (Says the plumber's son)

 

[The Gilded Lens]

That is zinc plating which is nonmag. I'm horrifies, just horrified that I didn't say to go to your local hardware store...soooo sorry! ;-)

Yes, black gas pipe, exactly. (Says the plumber's son)

LOL! Home Depot has it's place... in the city :P Besides, ours has a deli so I can get lunch too.... and mining equipment. Ok, I'm done bragging.

Ok good, because that's what I got. I only replaced the cap though and not the rest of it, hope that's enough? Meh I don't wanna have to remake it, but if I'm getting shavings I probably should. I do love that black pipe though, we made our coffee table out of it and some 2x12 redwood planks.

 

[KevinInColorado]

I agree, replacing the cap should be enough. Now try filling the pipe with heavy stuff (magnetite left over from your concentrates?), put the galvanized cap on top and pound the s##t out of those rocks!

 

[The Gilded Lens]

I agree, replacing the cap should be enough. Now try filling the pipe with heavy stuff (magnetite left over from your concentrates?), put the galvanized cap on top and pound the s##t out of those rocks!

Hubby filled it with lead shot. It was like a sandbag of lead, figured this would be a good use for it.

 

[The Gilded Lens]

Old 40 between Donner Lake and Donner Summit. First thought? Gee, I wonder if there's any gold in there. Love driving this road though, just not when it's icy.

 

[Goldwasher]

Gold coins from immigrants maybe...from nature...not in that area. For a crusher you can use a t-post driver flipped over and the tamping end of one of those big digger bars...the actual name is lost to me right now. Kevin knows what I'm talking about. I think Terry C. had a thread on it.
I was there when you called Chris at bazooka you could hear your excitement lol....
You never answered my question....did you sample around the quartz? If you go to mylandmatters you should be able to find out about the geology and may be able to narrow down what other metals and minerals may be present.
The piece in your pic does look like it may be contamination...it doesn't look like galvanized shavings though.

 

[The Gilded Lens]

Gold coins from immigrants maybe...from nature...not in that area. For a crusher you can use a t-post driver flipped over and the tamping end of one of those big digger bars...the actual name is lost to me right now. Kevin knows what I'm talking about. I think Terry C. had a thread on it.
I was there when you called Chris at bazooka you could hear your excitement lol....
You never answered my question....did you sample around the quartz? If you go to mylandmatters you should be able to find out about the geology and may be able to narrow down what other metals and minerals may be present.
The piece in your pic does look like it may be contamination...it doesn't look like galvanized shavings though.

Say what? Do you normally hang out with the Bazooka Boys? Small state, LOL. I'm still excited. Can't wait to pick that sucker up!

Ah, elevation is probably too high up there for gold. Oh, I know what you're talking about. Large gray tube with handles, looks like something you'd use to bash in a door but is used to drive t-posts into the ground. Usually gray in color?

I have not been down there to sample. Been at work, and then it's been pouring and windy. Today isn't too bad so far, maybe I'll pull on my wellies and grab my pan...

Am I looking in the geology map section for land matters? If so it's pink and says:
Primary rock type granodiorite
Secondary rock type quartz monzonite
Other rock types tonalite; quartz diorite; diorite; granite; monzodiorite; quartz syenite; quartz monzodiorite; gabbro; trondhjemite; alkali-granite (alaskite); pegmatite; monzonite; aplite

 

[huntsman53]

Old 40 between Donner Lake and Donner Summit. First thought? Gee, I wonder if there's any gold in there. Love driving this road though, just not when it's icy.

Wow! It is a good thing no one was driving through that spot when the rocks and boulders came down! We have a couple of spots like that in what we call the "Gap" on I-40 in North Carolina, not far from the Tennessee border. Even though they have built big concrete barrier walls and use metal netting and cables to hold the mountain in place, every few years the freezing, thawing combined with rain and/or snow, causes thousands of tons of rocks and boulders to come down. It often takes out half or more of the Interstate in that section and sometimes crushes some cars and trucks. There are some pics of some of the rockslides at the link below. One of the worst, took out both the West bound and East bound lanes of I-40 and went all the way down to the Little Pigeon River below and part of it can be seen in pic #6.

I-40 rock slides over the years - Gallery


Frank

 

[Goldwasher]

Say what? Do you normally hang out with the Bazooka Boys? Small state, LOL. I'm still excited. Can't wait to pick that sucker up!

Ah, elevation is probably too high up there for gold. Oh, I know what you're talking about. Large gray tube with handles, looks like something you'd use to bash in a door but is used to drive t-posts into the ground. Usually gray in color?

I have not been down there to sample. Been at work, and then it's been pouring and windy. Today isn't too bad so far, maybe I'll pull on my wellies and grab my pan...

Am I looking in the geology map section for land matters? If so it's pink and says:
Primary rock type granodiorite
Secondary rock type quartz monzonite
Other rock types tonalite; quartz diorite; diorite; granite; monzodiorite; quartz syenite; quartz monzodiorite; gabbro; trondhjemite; alkali-granite (alaskite); pegmatite; monzonite; aplite

I have friends in low places ha ha....I'm at the shop every so often
Yes the battering-ram-ajig!
And when you look at those geologic reports there should be a key and it will say which host rock is auriforus. And when you find mineral reports and cross reference it will tell you more like types of contact zones, fault structure, other types of local deposits. Several of those rock types produce in different ways in different areas. Finding information on local mining in the past will start to make a lot of opportunity fall right in your lap.

 

[The Gilded Lens]

Lol so you're a bazooka shop loiterer. :P Can't blame ya!

I'll have to check out that report, look closer and see of I can wrap my feeble mind around it... And find the key.

Don't know if ill get down to the brook to sample this weekend. (Today is my
Sunday).

 

[The Gilded Lens]

Sample panned (although not well) the upper portion of the brook where it comes in and explored the middle section. The section where we've panned and found specks is in the most downstream portion like 10 feet from the fence.

There's LOTS of red clays and dirt in the upper section above the culvert. I didn't find any gold but granted I was lazy today and only rooms a few scoops and didn't dig down. There is a lot of black sands throughout the entire brook. Even in the upper section where it's basically a ditch in a meadow there were red stained quartz in the bottom and sticking out of the little banks.

The middle section before the confluence where I explored had a lot of oak roots growing right through it. Again lots of black sand and bigger rocks.

I've already posted the giant confluence boulder pic. Upon closer inspection I'm wondering if some blue clay is being produced by this boulder.

On the right side above the confluence boulder in a more flat area before the pasture fence line I found what I though was a big glob of concrete. It actually appears to be a glob of super hardened gravel and rock.

Below the confluence there are some boulders protruding into the banks with one that has a vein of the decomposed rock around it. Then it goes into the dreaded blackberry section to which we do not enter.

Hubby was in the lowest section and panned out 3/4 bucket in the same hole we had previously found flakes and he only found two specks. This hole is about five feet upstream of the quartz deposit.

 

[The Gilded Lens]

Not sure if we will play around much in the brook anymore. Too much hassle and blackberries for not many flakes. Easier to go down to the river.

Ok, did a portrait session with one of the rocks I found today. I only snagged this rock because it felt heavier than it should. It's 17.26 oz. No visible gold, but was intrigued by the dark, metallic substance.

 

[huntsman53]

Sample panned (although not well) the upper portion of the brook where it comes into the yard and explored the middle section. The section where we've panned and found specks is in the most downstream portion like 10 feet from the fence.

There's LOTS of red clays and dirt in the upper section above the culvert. I didn't find any gold but granted I was lazy today and only rooms a few scoops and didn't dig down. There is a lot of black sands throughout the entire brook. Even in the upper section where it's basically a ditch in a meadow there were red stained quartz in the bottom and sticking out of the little banks.

The middle section before the confluence where I explored had a lot of oak roots growing right through it. Again lots of black sand and bigger rocks.

I've already posted the giant confluence boulder pic. Upon closer inspection I'm wondering if some blue clay is being produced by this boulder.

On the right side above the confluence boulder in a more flat area before the pasture fence line I found what I though was a big glob of concrete. It actually appears to be a glob of super hardened gravel and rock.

Below the confluence there are some boulders protruding into the banks with one that has a vein of the decomposed rock around it. Then it goes into the dreaded blackberry section to which we do not enter.

Hubby was in the lowest section and panned out 3/4 bucket in the same hole we had previously found flakes and he only found two specks. This hole is about five feet upstream of the quartz deposit.

The giant confluence boulder is not the source of the blue clay, although it could be coming from somewhere under it! The blue stuff you are seeing on the boulder is either lichen or something similar and is not much different that what is found on some trees. The blue clays are coming from a source that began eroding out long ago and could still be eroding.


Frank

 

[huntsman53]

Not sure if we will play around much in the brook anymore. Too much hassle and blackberries for not many flakes. Easier to go down to the river.

Ok, did a portrait session with one of the rocks I found today. I only snagged this rock because it felt heavier than it should. It's 17.26 oz. No visible gold, but was intrigued by the dark, metallic substance.

The Quartz rock is heavy probably due to being formed under pressure and also because it contains some sort of Iron associated mineral inside and out. This could be Iron, Magnetite or a Hematite-Iron matrix which has a high specific gravity compared to Quartz.


Frank

 

[The Gilded Lens]

The giant confluence boulder is not the source of the blue clay, although it could be coming from somewhere under it! The blue stuff you are seeing on the boulder is either lichen or something similar and is not much different that what is found on some trees. The blue clays are coming from a source that began eroding out long ago and could still be eroding.


Frank

Yeah, not the mossy/lichen stuff in the right. That's on everything. The more minty green section on the upper left of the pic is what looks like the clay material to me. It's hard to see in the image, but it's different. One's plant material and the other is part of the rock.