Going out tomorrow no hell but highwater

[Jeff95531]

lol...not only the shortest day but the warmest in a while (Sunny/58 predicted) so for tomorrow I'm gonna go find me an old river channel crevice to bust open. At least that's the plan. Merry Christmas to all. Can't believe hardly no one said what's on their list so if it don't happen, well...

 

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[johnedoe]

Hope ya find a big ol' nugget for Christmas.....

 

[Hoser John]

My trucks loaded and so are the 2 creeks I'm visiting-lotz of luck and be careful as a slip will ensue a frantic ride at these flows-John

 

[Kenmitch]

Good luck on your adventures guys! Be safe and have fun!

 

[Jeff95531]

Back, tired, had fun. Unexpected was the norm as usual but brought home some interesting dirt just the same. Couldn't hit bedrock in either location tho. Tomorrow is supposed to be nice too so we'll see about panning it all out and see which was better.

 

[johnedoe]

Can't wait to see your results...

 

[NorCalPilot]

I'm headed out in the morning! Heavy pans to everyone

 

[DizzyDigger]

Remember Jeff...pics or it never happened...

Glad ya got out! Weather has been less than stellar here. Cold, wet,
snowy, windy and just plain nasty..mercury hasn't risen above 32F. for
about 2 weeks.

Been looking for something to keep me busy this winter, and think I'll
see if I can build a fully functioning "mini-plant" along the lines of "Big
Red".

And of course dream about the bedrock you're hacking into...

 

[nh.nugget]

Hope you found some color Jeff. Our season came to a crashing halt! We've got icebergs here.

 

[Hoser John]

63 and beautiful but spent hours playing evict the high graders game no yaaaaaa. John

 

[63bkpkr]

Thanks guys for keeping us shut ins with something to do! This dark morning as I gassed up the ole 92 Bronco, I stepped back so the pump roof overhang blocked out the bulb on the light post at a Costco station then I could see the individual drops falling. It was such a simple but fun thing to do. It somewhat reminded me of a prospecting trip down the Sailor Flat trail one October, I flew in from Virginia with a fella that wanted to see prospecting along a wild CA river. The last four days of the trip were in heavy rain so while sitting in my double tarp length room at my personal 5 star hotel I could see the rain drops falling and hear the NFAR running strong. After sleeping for awhile I decided there would be no hot meal that night so I got my rain coat on and headed for the apple orchard on the other side of the river. As I walked past my companions tent he was sawing logs so I did not invite him. After picking three small apples from up high where it was not easy for the bears to reach I made my way back across the river to my tent. Took off all the wet stuff in the back of the 2nd tarp and made my way forward for a salami/cheese/garlic sandwich and apples to top it off with. Watching the rain there while listening to the river was such a pleasure, that is why I was smiling this morning.

Best of success with your adventures ........................63bkpkr

 

[Jeff95531]

63 and beautiful but spent hours playing evict the high graders game no yaaaaaa. John

That sucks John. Would sure like to hear the story tho.

There were lots of people out in the woods yesterday. It was a rare day indeed and many were off for the holiday I imagine. Fortunately, I seemed to scare them much more than me and hurried off.


Pics are coming DD. We went where I took you when you came to visit.

 

[Lanny in AB]

Jeff,

Merry Christmas, and happy hunting.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[goldenIrishman]

Remember Jeff...pics or it never happened...

Glad ya got out! Weather has been less than stellar here. Cold, wet,
snowy, windy and just plain nasty..mercury hasn't risen above 32F. for
about 2 weeks.

View attachment 1393676

View attachment 1393677

Been looking for something to keep me busy this winter, and think I'll
see if I can build a fully functioning "mini-plant" along the lines of "Big
Red".

And of course dream about the bedrock you're hacking into...

OK...... Which one of you ordered the "DizCicle"?

....and people wonder why I live in the desert....

 

[goldenIrishman]

Well I'm thinking of going out on Christmas Day. I figure that since we don't have any company coming or kids to worry about it should be a perfect time to have the wide open spaces to ourselves.

 

[johnedoe]

Well I'm thinking of going out on Christmas Day. I figure that since we don't have any company coming or kids to worry about it should be a perfect time to have the wide open spaces to ourselves.

Great minds think alike, I was considering the same thing... even the weather is supposed to break a little......

 

[Vance in AK]

63 and beautiful but spent hours playing evict the high graders game no yaaaaaa. John

63 sounds nice here but not the high graders/claim jumpers.
About a balmy minus 5 at my place at 9am today...

 

[Jeff95531]

The weather man was dead on Wednesday, with a high in the upper 50's, sunny skies and nine hours worth of daylight. We got off to the obligatory late start, but I was fueled up on a six pack of White Castle cheeseburgers and was raring to go. As we turn left onto 199, I'm smiling inside and out cuz it's not far now and it's one of my favorite spots to find a little pocket gold now and then. It also has all the textbook examples of benches, boulders and bedrock you could ever want. So what's not to like you ask?

Well, easy access for one thing. The spectacular day also brought people out of the woodwork. First thing we see is a bunch of unfriendlies out of their vehicle right at the exit to my spot. While Karen navigates the high boulders in the road, I adjust my side mirror to watch them and think to myself "Dummy, you saw the pepper spray, laying right there on the work bench and LEFT it there." WTG.

Fortunately, I watched them as they all piled back into the vehicle and quickly split. (Almost too quickly) Weird. Man...I gotta stop watching all those crime TV shows on Discovery ID. Jeez.

Anyways, I focus on what's up ahead only to find a brand new dead end to our road. I jumped out to take a look while Karen did a 30 point turn around so the Explore would be facing out. (sorry about the quality of the pic, it get's better...



The tree was a good sized Alder and used to be attached atop a six foot high bank next to the road and left a three foot wide, two foot deep hole where the trunk had been. I peered in the hole and found a mix of large sharp edged rock and river rock of various sizes. All for me! I could feel that old "kid in a candy store feeling" coming over me and could sense myself forming a NEW plan of attack for this day.



I went back to the truck to get the pruners and the rest of the necessary gear. The rise was wet, covered in ferns, grass and moss. It was slippery and nearly straight up to the hole. Straight up as in I had to dig in a ladder to get there. Once on top, I settled in and started digging for China. I finally got to a point that if I was going to dig any further, I would have to return with a man's shovel, open it up and get in it. Interesting thing tho, as I got near to the end of my digging, I busted thru a thin layer of what appears to be...charcoal. And started to see small uniform sized river gravels. More on that later.



As I sat on the rim catching my breath, it dawned on me that the bedrock will be EXACTLY two feet further down BECAUSE the road right next door is bedrock. Huh. I grabbed a couple big rocks and lots of leaves and cammoed the spot up real good so it wouldn't look as fresh as it was.. I got back to the truck and downloaded my dirt and gear. Then retooled and set out to look for a crack or crevice to bust open. Besides, I had my new crevice tool(s) that needed the shine knocked off. It didn't take long...




more to come...

 

[Jeff95531]

Good luck on the Christmas prospecting guys. It's likely a day you could be naughty but be good for goodness sakes.

 

[arizau]

The weather man was dead on Wednesday, with a high in the upper 50's, sunny skies and nine hours worth of daylight. We got off to the obligatory late start, but I was fueled up on a six pack of White Castle cheeseburgers and was raring to go. As we turn left onto 199, I'm smiling inside and out cuz it's not far now and it's one of my favorite spots to find a little pocket gold now and then. It also has all the textbook examples of benches, boulders and bedrock you could ever want. So what's not to like you ask?

Well, easy access for one thing. The spectacular day also brought people out of the woodwork. First thing we see is a bunch of unfriendlies out of their vehicle right at the exit to my spot. While Karen navigates the high boulders in the road, I adjust my side mirror to watch them and think to myself "Dummy, you saw the pepper spray, laying right there on the work bench and LEFT it there." WTG.

Fortunately, I watched them as they all piled back into the vehicle and quickly split. (Almost too quickly) Weird. Man...I gotta stop watching all those crime TV shows on Discovery ID. Jeez.

Anyways, I focus on what's up ahead only to find a brand new dead end to our road. I jumped out to take a look while Karen did a 30 point turn around so the Explore would be facing out. (sorry about the quality of the pic, it get's better...

View attachment 1393781

The tree was a good sized Alder and used to be attached atop a six foot high bank next to the road and left a three foot wide, two foot deep hole where the trunk had been. I peered in the hole and found a mix of large sharp edged rock and river rock of various sizes. All for me! I could feel that old "kid in a candy store feeling" coming over me and could sense myself forming a NEW plan of attack for this day.

View attachment 1393783 View attachment 1393784

I went back to the truck to get the pruners and the rest of the necessary gear. The rise was wet, covered in ferns, grass and moss. It was slippery and nearly straight up to the hole. Straight up as in I had to dig in a ladder to get there. Once on top, I settled in and started digging for China. I finally got to a point that if I was going to dig any further, I would have to return with a man's shovel, open it up and get in it. Interesting thing tho, as I got near to the end of my digging, I busted thru a thin layer of what appears to be...charcoal. And started to see small uniform sized river gravels. More on that later.

View attachment 1393793

As I sat on the rim catching my breath, it dawned on me that the bedrock will be EXACTLY two feet further down BECAUSE the road right next door is bedrock. Huh. I grabbed a couple big rocks and lots of leaves and cammoed the spot up real good so it wouldn't look as fresh as it was.. I got back to the truck and downloaded my dirt and gear. Then retooled and set out to look for a crack or crevice to bust open. Besides, I had my new crevice tool(s) that needed the shine knocked off. It didn't take long...

View attachment 1393785


more to come...

What a tease. We are waiting with bated breath.
Good luck.