Big, beautiful North American Placer!! Freakin fantastic!!!

[Lanny in AB]

Big, beautiful North American Placer!! Freakin' fantastic!!!

Unbelievable video of big North American gold nuggets + new finds, pics, videos added: a live thread, so please post your gold shots.
I'll add other videos or stills of big nuggety North American gold as I find them.

This video starts slow, but it's shot underground, so give it a while and then watch out that you don't have a freakin' heart attack!!

I hope you love looking at this as much as I did--every placer miner's dream come true. If you're a rookie, you'll get the fever bad watching this one. (To avoid any confusion, this is not my video, nor is it my clean-up, nor was I involved in any way--I found it by mistake after typing in a search word incorrectly [that's why I'd never found it before], but I sure do love it!!)



Almost 3,800 ounces in the last shot--fines are in the large plastic bags. 100 miles north of the Arctic Circle!

All the best,

Lanny

P.S. I posted it with my beginner's thread as well, but it's so great it deserves it's own place too.

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

 

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[Garetrose]

I was really holding my breath!

 

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[A Sasquatch]

Hi Lanny, thanks for posting this, I finally figured out how to join......

 

[Lanny in AB]

I was really holding my breath!

I'm with you on that.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Lanny in AB]

Hi Lanny, thanks for posting this, I finally figured out how to join......

Fantastic!

Welcome to TNet.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[A Sasquatch]

Hi Lanny
Had a great outing last weekend 74 grams X2
Another Sasquatch for the collection
All the best

 

[Lanny in AB]

Hi Lanny
Had a great outing last weekend 74 grams X2 View attachment 1214175
Another Sasquatch for the collection
All the best

Wow!! That's some serious eye candy!

Thanks for posting the pictures, and if you ever get ready to write a story or two about your adventures with finding big gold, I'd love to tag along as you tell the tale.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Jeff95531]

/\ /\ /\

me too

 

[DizzyDigger]

Squatch: Awesome nuggets!

Looked like that pic went through the washer so I added the
color back in..

 

[goldenIrishman]

Nice finds Squatch! Welcome to the asylum!

 

[Lanny in AB]

Squatch: Awesome nuggets!

Looked like that pic went through the washer so I added the
color back in..

View attachment 1214608

Good job enhancing the photo!

Nicely done, and all the best,

Lanny

 

[Lanny in AB]

Terry, do you think you can post the picture of the Cortez Boot nugget on this thread please?

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Terry Soloman]

Terry, do you think you can post the picture of the Cortez Boot nugget on this thread please?

All the best,

Lanny

You bet Lanny!

THE LARGEST GOLD NUGGET FROM THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE - The BOOT of CORTEZ

At 389.4 troy ounces, the "Boot of Cortez" is the largest surviving natural gold nugget ever found in the Western Hemisphere.

The story begins in 1989 in the area around Caborca, near the Gran Desierto de Altar in the Mexican state of Sonora. The nearest surface water is the Sea of Cortez; some 60 miles to the west. Arizona is 70 miles to the north. Ranching is the chief occupation, but there are a number of mines in the area along with placer gold deposits in some of the canyons. It is within these dry canyons that a local Mexican man began his quest to find hidden treasure in the form of placer nuggets. Some finds of nuggets had been made in the past, and fired with optimistic enthusiasm; our gold-seeker grew determined to find his share. At this point, our latter-day prospector did something very much at odds with tradition: visiting a Radio Shack store - he purchased a metal detector. Practicing on buried coins and other metal objects, he learned how to operate it, and then he set out for an area that was reported to have produced nuggets.

Once there, he started to walk; slowly and carefully across the desert, all the while following a grid pattern that would ensure that no areas would be unchecked. Hundreds of boring hours slowly ebbed away with an occasional 'beep' from his ear-phones to signal a potential find. Most were due to scrap iron or old lead bullets. Then one day; the 'beep' sounded a little different. Digging down; he caught that first gleam from his own personal El Dorado. Hardly believing his eyes he kept digging, the gleaming surface kept going - and going. By the time he had completely uncovered this incredible nugget, it was obvious that it was huge. Just hauling it back to his home was a chore since it weighed over twelve kilograms. There; a gentle washing removed the last traces of dust left on the surface from its subterranean resting place. Now the enormity of his find engulfed him: What to do with this massive nugget, shaped like the boot of a conquistador of old? Who could help him with advice regarding the ways of selling such a thing? Ah, but of course - the Patron. He would know. And he did.

Since that fateful day in the Desierto, the "Boot of Cortez" has passed through a number of hands (These photos were taken at one of the changes of ownership of the nugget), and has been marveled at by hundreds of thousands of museum-goers. It was one of the star exhibits at the Tucson Gem & Mineral Show in 2004, the theme of which was simply: "Gold". Based on its enthusiastic response by the public, the owner of the "Boot" was solicited to place it on loan for the traveling "Gold" exhibition assembled by the Houston Museum of Natural Science where it was exhibited in 2005, along with other notable specimens from: the Smithsonian, Harvard and other major collections.

Its pristine condition and unique shape have earned it the sobriquet "the most unusual and attractive large nugget in the World." It is the largest surviving placer nugget from the Western Hemisphere. The "Boot of Cortez" measures a stunning 10 3/4 inches in height and 7 1/4 inches in width.

 

[EddyMoney]

Really nice. I love the natural color.

 

[rockbar]

I have a picture of that baby somewhere. I saw it at the Tucson gem show. Was that really 11 years ago?
Also, I seem to remember it being much taller than 11"… a testament to the imagination.
Thanks for the full story on it.

 

[Lanny in AB]

Terry,

Thanks so much for taking the time to post the pictures and the story of the find as well!

I really appreciate it as a nugget of that size is a must on this thread dedicated to great North American placer.

All the best, and thanks again,

Lanny

 

[Jeff95531]

Beautiful. Now how do I carry it home? I'd like to have a problem like that!

For those of us metrically not inclined...12 kilograms is 26.455471 pounds!

 

[johnedoe]

I fail to see how carrying less than 30 pounds is a problem....... even for an old fart like me.

 

[Jeff95531]

I fail to see how carrying less than 30 pounds is a problem....... even for an old fart like me.

True. Even @ 1K per ounce spot price you could just keep saying to yourself with every step...$850K $850K $850K

 

[goldenIrishman]

Tell ya what Jeff. When I find one that heavy I'll wait till you get down here to help me haul it home. I want to see if your idea really works or if I'm going to have to throw you in the back of the truck with it.

 

[Lanny in AB]

Woody posted this link over on the detecting for gold forum, but I'd like to give it a home here as well as it fits the North American criteria.



All the best,

Lanny