Im goin to California...(pointers?)

[rocny]

I'm goin to California...(pointers?)

Hey,
I'm going to south central CA next week. I'm bringing my Tesoro Vaquero. I hear there's gold in them there hills. I've only started detecting earlier this year and there isn't really gold where I am now. Other than in the family's yard, any advice on where to use my detector? There is an American Mining Rights group that says for a $200 donation you can access their claim where I'm going but that seems a little steep for a newbie and for only 2 weeks that I'll be around there. Are there any definite "no-nos" I might not have thought about? or maybe "yes-yes's" I guess too. I'll detect for any non-trash.
Thanks,
Ken

 

[Doubter in MD]

My only advice is to listen to this song from Led Zeppelin to get you in the mood.

"Spent my days with a woman unkind, Smoked my stuff and drank all my wine.
Made up my mind to make a new start, Goin' To California with an achin' in my heart.
Someone told me there's a girl out there with love in her eyes and flowers in her hair.
Took my chances on a big jet plane, never let them tell you that they're all the same.
The sea was red and the sky was grey, wondered how tomorrow could ever follow today.
The mountains and the canyons started to tremble and shake
as the children of the sun began to awake.

Seems that the wrath of the Gods
Got a punch on the nose and it started to flow;
I think I might be sinking.
Throw me a line if I reach it in time
I'll meet you up there where the path
Runs straight and high.

To find a queen without a king,
They say she plays guitar and cries and sings... la la la
Ride a white mare in the footsteps of dawn
Tryin' to find a woman who's never, never, never been born.
Standing on a hill in my mountain of dreams,
Telling myself it's not as hard, hard, hard as it seems."

I love that song. Good luck to you.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

Yes. The pointers (rules) for CA are quite simple: You pay be 30% of all your finds (I accept paypal), and you can detect here to your heart's desire !

I'm not a nugget hunter, so I can't help you with So. CA info for that. Except to say that it seems the better nugget producing areas of CA are not down in the desert (although, yes, there's regions that produce nuggets that far south). The better regions are the central sierra foothills further north. Seems to be more nugget md'rs there, than the desert So CA regions. Also: don't assume that all regions that historically produced gold were nugget regions. There's lots of gold areas that only ever produced placer (dust in ore) gold , not nuggets. That was where it had to be extracted via processing the tonnage, but isn't found in nugget form.

 

[Rodbuster209]

You said south central California, that is vague and encompasses an area the size of a small state, what is the name of the town or county you are visiting?

 

[Randyg12]

If you're going to South Central Los Angeles , you'll have better luck hauling yourself out to Santa Monica beach and hitting the dry sand.

 

[rocny]

You said south central California, that is vague and encompasses an area the size of a small state, what is the name of the town or county you are visiting?

Sorry, San Luis Obispo is the destination. Did a little research online and looks like there used to be mining operation up in the hills behind the Home Depot. Just trying to see what opportunities there will be while I'm in CA so I can prepare if necessary. I'm TOTALLY new to any kind of gold hunting like that. So there is some kind of risk/reward line I'm looking for. Otherwise, I'll just poke around my sister's house and maybe a beach or two(new to that too).

 

[Tom_in_CA]

I don't know of any nugget hunting in that area of CA. And to the extent that you have found historical citation of mining in hills @ around CA, the same can be said of ANY speck of CA, at one time or another. Mines here are a "dime a dozen". Ie.: mining for what ? Doesn't mean there's nuggets for today's detectors.

 

[Back-of-the-boat]

Sorry, San Luis Obispo is the destination. Did a little research online and looks like there used to be mining operation up in the hills behind the Home Depot. Just trying to see what opportunities there will be while I'm in CA so I can prepare if necessary. I'm TOTALLY new to any kind of gold hunting like that. So there is some kind of risk/reward line I'm looking for. Otherwise, I'll just poke around my sister's house and maybe a beach or two(new to that too).

The mining in that area was benitoite or cinnabar or asbestos there are a lot of nasty things in those hills because it is part of a fault also could get Valley fever so be real careful you should stick to the coast.

 

[Rodbuster209]

Your best bet would be to go just a few miles away to Pismo and Grover beach to find some Gold as in rings, also the scenery is good there because of Cal Poly University there at San Luis Obisbo. Good Luck!