Headed to Nome

[GoldenArrow]

Well howdy folks,

I have found this forum very helpful. I am a teacher and looking to try my hand in Nome this summer. Offshore dredging. I plan to be in the 570 acre recreational areas the first year until I have the lay of the land and can make a deal with a claim owner. I don't need to make money the first year, but I can't afford to lose much either.

Does people have opinion on these listings I see on ebay and craigslist for offshore gold dredges and claims?

Any other Nome advice would be most welcome.

Doug.

 

[KevinInColorado]

Do you have experience diving?
How about running a dredge? (In a local stream perhaps at least)
How about maneuvering a boat?
How about doing mechanical repairs in the field?
How about adjusting a sluice to be efficient?
How about panning out you sluice concentrates, got good panning skills?

If yes to all the above you might be ready to go Bering sea diving...

 

[Hoser John]

#1 rule a mining=is a fool and his money are soon parted. Stick to the lower 48 as 1/10th the cost,1/4 the hastles, 10X warmer and dollar for dollar and hour for hour MUCH more profitable, enjoyable and add in 10X more requirements than stated above even. Good place to die the Bering sea is for noobs and even experienced miners leave quick-John

 

[loco oro]

i would suggest getting or building a 4'' dredge, and get your gear together, then take a trip, not so far from home,to see if it all sits well with ya,there are good gold fields ,not so exspensive to get to,not far at all from you, just be sure to leave or. as the libs have successfully taken some of your libertys there, just saying ,you might want to take a trial run for several weeks a lil closer home, and if still dead set on going, sell your 4'', and good luck to you!

 

[russau]

rather than buying a dredge right now, why not ask some dredger if you can work for him and learn the ropes first to really see if your up to it.

 

[Nevada Coyote]

Beware of what you buy on Craig's List. Be sure you know there is gold on the property you buy.

 

[Lanny in AB]

Some good advice so far. I know it looks great on TV when they hit those rich streaks, but as anyone that's been at it a while can tell you, it's lots of ongoing, hard work. Add to that working in the ocean with a dredge, and you're adding some very dangerous conditions to boot. Dredging all by itself has its own list of dangers (in a river).

So, I'd try it out as others have suggested, or just head up to Nome and try panning on the beach for starters before you jump into a major investment, just so you can get the lay of the land, meet some locals, and see what it's really like up there.

I've been there. Things are expensive. Even in the summer, the weather can be wildly unpredictable.

You'll find great people and nasty people in Nome and area just like everywhere, but you'll be far, far from help and home if anything goes wrong. You either fly in to Nome, or you go by boat, and that's it!

You could do a trip with the GPAA and then at least you'd have an organization to take care of you while you're there.

Alaska is drop-dead beautiful, but it's still very, very wild, especially around Nome.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[AU Seeker]

I agree with Hoser, Russau and Lanny, if you must go, get a job with one of the ocean dredgers first to see what is in store for you if you still want to do this!!

Having a lot of diving experience would be a must, IMHO, even with the experience diving in the ocean has a lot of different risks than that of fresh water diving, and diving in cold arctic ocean waters will add another dimension of danger while diving, many of experienced Bearing Sea divers have lost their lives up there dredging!!!

 

[Peyton Manning]

lookie here I have this friend Scott Meisterheimer. Just find him and he'll provide anything you need. He's a great guy.

 

[AK_Au_Diver]

Yep, what they said. Get a job, spend no money that you can't afford to not get back. Check out my guide (I'm assuming I'm allowed to post this link)

How to Start Offshore Dredging in Nome


As for this:

many of experienced Bearing Sea divers have lost their lives up there dredging!!!

Not true. The two people that died dredging offshore had less than 10 hours experience offshore dredging. I think one was on his first dive, and the other, on one of his first dives. I had met them both, both were tough old guys. One was a hunting guide and book author; the other was an older marine (maybe Korean War era) who could still out shovel many others on the beach.

 

[Peyton Manning]

AK AU Diver you on the show? or (more likely) a real dredger who laughs at the antics?

 

[AK_Au_Diver]

I'm not on the show enough for you to notice, they wouldn't pay me enough nor do it right.

I am a professional Bering sea gold dredger, with 1200 hours nozzle time over six years, built several dredges, spent many years broke. Now I make slightly less than I could doing a "real" job in my professional field, but I make it in 6 months.

 

[kazcoro]

That's some good advice based on what I have seen everyone say about the nome situation.

 

[Peyton Manning]

1200 hours nozzle time = 2400 dives for emily's dad ( based on the show)

 

[LP13]

A bit off track here perhaps, but I have a very unique solution to dredging gold on the sea bottom, in Nome or anywhere else, that does not require a diver or a suction device, and not limited by depth, making many inaccessible locations possible to mine at a reasonable cost (Nome and others around the world). Anyone who is interested beyond just curiosity, might PM me.

 

[Gold Maven]

I've often wondered about a clam-shell bucket type dredge. Go as deep as you want, more stable method than a hoe.

Any up there, Ak Au Diver?

 

[augoldminer]

I've often wondered about a clam-shell bucket type dredge. Go as deep as you want, more stable method than a hoe.

Any up there, Ak Au Diver?

I would find a old cargo ship and weld the upperpart of a clam-shell crane on the deck and the wash plant in the cargo hold.
This system is call a grab dredge.
With a good three or four anchor system you could mine deep water beyond diving depth.
During the last ice age sea level was at least 394 feet (120 m) lower. That means there is a lot of deep gold off shore.
This gives a lot of area to mine outside the normal diving area.
plus if the cargo ship is big enough and anchored good you could operate all of the ice free season and working 24/7 with a good rig you could run a lot of tonnage.
http://www.damen.com/~/media/nl/Ima...10_dredging_01.ashx?h=393&mh=393&mw=710&w=710

 

[Jeff95531]

Lanny in AB
"You'll find great people and nasty people in Nome and area just like everywhere, but you'll be far, far from help and home if anything goes wrong. You either fly in to Nome, or you go by boat, and that's it!"

You forgot dog sled!

 

[Lanny in AB]

Lanny in AB
"You'll find great people and nasty people in Nome and area just like everywhere, but you'll be far, far from help and home if anything goes wrong. You either fly in to Nome, or you go by boat, and that's it!"

You forgot dog sled!

True that! My bad.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[AK_Au_Diver]

I've often wondered about a clam-shell bucket type dredge. Go as deep as you want, more stable method than a hoe.

Any up there, Ak Au Diver?

There was one a couple years ago, it didn't work very well. There are a lot of issues that hinder a clam-type operation. I think it has potential, but there are many design parameters that have to be done right from the design phase. I have given such an idea considerable thought over the past couple years, and I think I could build a working one with someone with the right amount of capital to put into it. My PM box is open.