Idazona45
Greenie
- Joined
- Jan 28, 2026
- Messages
- 15
- Reaction score
- 51
- Golden Thread
- 0
- Location
- Palouse, WA
- Detector(s) used
- Tesoro Lobo
- Primary Interest:
- Prospecting
- #1
Thread Owner
Hello! I joined this forum way back around 2008 or so when I was living in Prescott Valley, AZ and fell in love with gold prospecting. I was working in Phoenix as an auto claims adjuster and was married with two teens at home. I was stressed out, fat, and needed something to get me out of the house that wasn't too expensive. I stopped by the local prospecting supply store and they sold me a pan, a scoop, some classifiers, and pointed me to Lynx Creek on the edge of town.
I went there and met a homeless gentleman panning in the creek who didn't seem like the typical homeless person. He was clean, well-spoken, articulate, and friendly. He called himself, Prospector Bob.
I chatted him up and he showed me how to pan, where to dig into the bank along the creek, and explained the history of that area and why it was so good for prospecting. I found out that he was a former sheriff's deputy from Montana who got divorced. His ex took everything but his camping gear, so he decided to go camping; fulltime. He would stay in Montana during the summers, then travel down to Arizona in the winter. He even had a web page! He said he could pan just a few hours here and there and make enough to pay for his needs for the week. He used the free wi-fi at the nearby McDonald's.
Here's the only pic I got of Prospector Bob...
I ended up getting color in every pan, and while it wasn't a lot, it was better than nothing. I enjoyed the hunt and the time outdoors.
I joined this site and saw a thread from American Digger Magazine saying they were looking for author submissions for articles on the subject of prospecting and that there would be a prize if your submission was selected.
I wrote up an article detailing my exposure to prospecting on Lynx Creek, took some photos, and sent it in. I won!
I received a certificate, a copy of the issue my article appeared in, and a year long subscription. I bought a Keen sluice box and a Tesoro Lobo detector to up my game. But then it all ended.
Long story short, I ended up getting divorced a couple of years later, moved back home to Idaho, tried panning in my area with no luck, and pretty much gave up on prospecting. I started over in a different career, rebuilt my life, and bought some property down in Yuma, AZ.
I've been traveling down there the past few years for a couple of weeks in the winter and going to the Quartzite show. I've explored some cool mines and picked up a bunch of pretty rocks, but never bothered with panning.
I'm going back down there in a month and decided I would bring my equipment and sluice and do a little prospecting since those 100yr floods a few months ago really stirred things up. Plus, with gold hitting crazy levels, it doesn't take much success to pay for your gas and expenses.
I re-joined the site in hopes of getting some insight into the promising areas around Yuma. I also drive my truck down through Nevada and thought it would be fun to find some spots along the way to stop and do a little panning for fun.
I went there and met a homeless gentleman panning in the creek who didn't seem like the typical homeless person. He was clean, well-spoken, articulate, and friendly. He called himself, Prospector Bob.
I chatted him up and he showed me how to pan, where to dig into the bank along the creek, and explained the history of that area and why it was so good for prospecting. I found out that he was a former sheriff's deputy from Montana who got divorced. His ex took everything but his camping gear, so he decided to go camping; fulltime. He would stay in Montana during the summers, then travel down to Arizona in the winter. He even had a web page! He said he could pan just a few hours here and there and make enough to pay for his needs for the week. He used the free wi-fi at the nearby McDonald's.
Here's the only pic I got of Prospector Bob...
I ended up getting color in every pan, and while it wasn't a lot, it was better than nothing. I enjoyed the hunt and the time outdoors.
I joined this site and saw a thread from American Digger Magazine saying they were looking for author submissions for articles on the subject of prospecting and that there would be a prize if your submission was selected.
I wrote up an article detailing my exposure to prospecting on Lynx Creek, took some photos, and sent it in. I won!
I received a certificate, a copy of the issue my article appeared in, and a year long subscription. I bought a Keen sluice box and a Tesoro Lobo detector to up my game. But then it all ended.
Long story short, I ended up getting divorced a couple of years later, moved back home to Idaho, tried panning in my area with no luck, and pretty much gave up on prospecting. I started over in a different career, rebuilt my life, and bought some property down in Yuma, AZ.
I've been traveling down there the past few years for a couple of weeks in the winter and going to the Quartzite show. I've explored some cool mines and picked up a bunch of pretty rocks, but never bothered with panning.
I'm going back down there in a month and decided I would bring my equipment and sluice and do a little prospecting since those 100yr floods a few months ago really stirred things up. Plus, with gold hitting crazy levels, it doesn't take much success to pay for your gas and expenses.
I re-joined the site in hopes of getting some insight into the promising areas around Yuma. I also drive my truck down through Nevada and thought it would be fun to find some spots along the way to stop and do a little panning for fun.
