White or Yellow clay good or bad

[triple d]

Ive been working a spot. Dug test holes in a ten square foot area. Still testing some of the cons. I have always dug on the other side of the stream. Did hit clay there but it was like muck. And it was always a good sign. But this side that Im digging now is nothing but a white or yellowish clay. I have dug 4 holes and its been clay down as deep as i could dig. Probably 40" deep. Ive found three specks. Its In a boulder field and possibly on bedrock. Im thinking it could be decomposing bedrock. Possibly limestone.There is a fault that goes thought the area. I have always heard clay layers generally don"t hold gold. Other then the first few inches. There"s very little overburden. Basically all clay. Should I keep digging or move to another spot. Any help would be great. Other then the clay looks like a great spot.

 

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[Goldwasher]

If there's material un3r it I would test it....I'll give up on clay if it's on bedrock maybe but only if I can't break the bed rock.....sometimes clay is from large upstream workings.....where there hydraulic mines or ground slicing digs up stream?

 

[triple d]

Its not a known gold stream. But I have found some gold in it. There was a 100 year flood twice in the Last 10 years. But the ground in the area has a lot of clay in it also. May have been piled up by the glaciers. Right now not looking very good. Going to test a little more. Would like to get below the clay. But I don"t think its possible. Or down to bedrock. There some large boulders I think are bed rock. But the clay would be on top of it.

 

[M.E.G.]

Yellow like this?:



Boulders this size?:


This one boulder was uncovered about 5 feet down. It was sitting atop another about the same size, which is setting next to yet another, still mostly covered, looking to be by what is exposed about the same size aswell. Best I can figure at this time is the yellowish muddy mixture of smaller rocks and gravels to be about 4 feet above bedrock.

 

[triple d]

Yes thats it.But lots of it. I have run 15-20 5 gallon buckets. Mostly all clay. And rocks like that one. But a lot more.

 

[Lanny in AB]

If it's almost exclusively clay with very little accompanying stream run or lenses of river run, you may want to move to a different location.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Hoser John]

Some good, some bad, geological conditions mandate which is what. Normally clay just holds fines,if any gold. In particular areas-SF Yuba Channel of Gold-the orangey/gray clay sits on top of good gold. Trinity river it's that nasty baby kaka green/brown. Sooo many rivers and creeks all dependent on history of so long ago as no solid rule of thumb I've seen in 60 years a gold grubbn'-John

 

[triple d]

John your right on the baby kaka. Looks just like it. It has some texture. So I really think it is some kind of decomposed bedrock. But theres very little gold in it. So far may check it out a little more. It just below the surface. So i don"t think the water. Has to much effect on it. But it is protected by the boulder field.