Colorado Prospecting. South Platte, Clear Creek and Denver.

[GoldpannerDave]

Got a good 2.5 hours of digging in. I wanted to experiment this time with emptying the bazooka every 30 minutes compared to once per trip.
and the results are in..... NOT WORTH IT
Which is definitely the better of the two possibilities.
I cleaned it out 5 times which meant 5 times the amount of black sand I had to take home and process. Also the time resetting the bazooka could have been spent shoveling. Weight today was .19g.
[snip]
View attachment 1329001

Well, I think you showed that with a Bazooka, as long as the trap remains fluid, keep shoveling. More cleanouts mean less time to shovel which means less gold. As an additional downer, you have to pack home more black sands.

Now, for me, an old guy, I could just rest instead of doing a clean out. That means more effective shoveling when I start again.

Thanks for the field test!!

 

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[Jeff95531]

That pic of the V says it all. Perfection!

 

[utah mason]

I just made make sure to check the trap while I'm digging. If there's any doubt that it doesn't feel right I clean it out and
re-setup. More often than not I clean out to see what's in there.

 

[shofs]

I just made make sure to check the trap while I'm digging. If there's any doubt that it doesn't feel right I clean it out and
re-setup. More often than not I clean out to see what's in there.

Absolutely. I agree there. Another thing to consider is the angle it lays off the dam. Its best to keep it in line with the flow of the creek, so if setting up on a bend in the creek the bazooka might be turned at a slight angle to follow the flow. I also like to check every now and again to make sure my angle isn't WAY too steep. I like the fluid bed full to about the level shown in my picture. If you see the PVC pipes inside it might be blowing out. Finally I almost always pack rock underneath the head of the sluice to make sure to maximise the volume of water entering the lower channel.

I've been thinking of making some sort of metal comb that I can attach to my side and clear the stuck rocks in the grizzly quick and easy.

 

[Au dave]

I love seeing that tongue of water peeling off the back of the zook, I also try to run for as long as possible between cleanouts, usually about 8 buckets / 3 hrs :- when its smoko or need a rest, I park on the bank and do a bit of panning.

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[Duckwalk]

I've been thinking of making some sort of metal comb that I can attach to my side and clear the stuck rocks in the grizzly quick and easy.

To get the rocks unstuck for me, i turn my shovel 'round and put a little pressure on the rocks and pull back to upstream side of the sluice. Usually works for me. Or i just push em through using the handle side too.

 

[shofs]

My aunt is in town visiting from California and I took her, my mom and my little brother to the creek today to show them the gold. Had a great time visiting with them! In the picture from left to right is my aunt, brother, mother and myself. My brother with the gold from the day .15g in about an hour

 

[shofs]

There's gully that's just blocks away from my apartment that I wanted to check out. It's mostly swamp but I found some places that add up to a small stream. Access was fun and nearly impossible, just the way I like it . Maps showed that water had been flowing in the same path here for a long time, so I was hoping it cut down deep enough to hit the castle rock layer where the gold is.... but no luck. Still a fun 20 minute quick trip out.

 

[mytimetoshine]

never know unless you try!

 

[shofs]

I've been working on fixing up my new house and haven't been able to get out, but I finally broke free and got some gold today before work. Left the house at 10:30, got there at 10:45, set up and dug from the top on the upstream side of straw bench. Left at 11:45 and home by noon. Good little run.

Found two interesting things today. 1: dug out another fine piece of cutlery.


2: in the bushes on the way to the creek, some Kevin gloves (I'm holding these ransom till next time we meet )


Gold was looking good! I'll upload the clean out soon as its done.

 

[KevinInColorado]

Oops, yup, those are mine!! Want to meet on the 10th perhaps? (I could meet up almost any time as long as I'm on my way from the creek by 3pm. PM me?

 

[mytimetoshine]

Haha, hey those gloves are still in good shape. Definitely a ransom situation.

 

[shofs]

Got the gold all cleaned out and a nice .14g. Interesting to note that I got 6 large pieces with the mix given the short digging time, which is leading me to an idea of where to build my next dam at. I have a feeling that my next serious dig will be a nice one! Until then at least I know where I can now find a consistent source of large size gold flakes mixed with the small! Here's a pic, not bad for an hour round trip to and from the house!

 

[shofs]

Super fun day out with Kevin! We roamed around Denver digging 3 separate spots. First "straw" creek. I built a new dam in an area I was interested in and had some nice gold there. Looking forward to digging it out more. Kevin and I then compared some notes we had about the creek. It really is a great spot to prospect, pretty much the best around. So I was really surprised when Kevin showed me a different creek in the area putting out comparable amounts of gold! That's 2 creeks with awesome gold. The second creek I'll refer to as "crawfish" creek. Have to love the small waters of Denver. Afterwards I took Kevin to a South Platte spot I had prospected and found good gold at. Lots of small gold there so I was happy to share.

Double Bazooka at "crawfish" creek!!! I was digging below the dam and Kevin above. The taper of the snipers provided a good brace against each other and worked perfectly


Gold from today .17g

 

[KevinInColorado]

I had a great time with you, thanks for getting away from your home renovation for a while to adventure with me!

 

[shofs]

Thanks goes to you, it was well worth it! Next time you come to town we have to make it to "clay" creek. Very short walk, easy access but well hidden, untouched and good gold. Very much your style.

 

[shofs]

I haven't been able to go out recently due to refinishing some hardwood floors in the new house. So in the meanwhile I'll show everyone what's in my pack when I go out. This pack covers everything from exploring and sample panning to a full trip out with the bazooka.

Here is the pack. It's meant for skateboarding. Its very large and padded with nice straps on the outside meant to hold a board but it can hold anything from a shovel to a small sluice.



Here's what's inside.
- 3 gold pans (I prefer pans with large flat bowls)
- pipet and gold snuffer bottle
- 2 suction syringes (one customized to crevice)
- Gold magnet to remove black sands, Garrett brand
- 6" -10 mesh classifier for sampling
- telescopic folding camp shovel
- concentrate container with locked lid
- small folding shovel
- towels for the bottom of the pack to keep everything dry
- Thermacell (only mosquito protection I'll ever use)
- tissues
- gloves
- headlamp
- 2 dollar store baking pans for quick and easy sluice wings

I did my research on small shovels and this one is the best. Only $25. Schrade SCHSH1 Telescoping Folding Shovel
Sharpened edges for roots, solid thick metal joint and screw, bowl scoop will hold dirt, telescopic. Takes a beating.


My custom made crevicing tool. A long 5mm metal tube that fits in the bulb syringe.

 

[KevinInColorado]

Where do I get a tube like that?

 

[HMiller]

Looks great but when you get older you will be carrying a roll of TP too.

 

[shofs]

Where do I get a tube like that?

Working as a surgical instrument tech I got it for free at work . It is a medical device used in laparoscopic surgeries called a 5mm hydrodissection probe. I dremeled the connector end down to the nub you see in the pic