Nice Take! I lived in Fair Oaks in the later 80s and me and a friend from work would go in there and pan some in the that same looking area if memory serve me, but I know much of the river looks that way. I recall allot of ticks in areas that looked like that as I had Vizsla dog that was a companion back then and had to clean her of those dang little critters before we headed back home. It's sure a great place to get some sunshine and spend a little time outdoors, even if you don't find allot of paydirt.
Not as good as California. It's here and there, but I'm thinking there'd be allot in your pan if it wasn't 97% flour size particles. I think if you worked steady for 5 days you would get what you washed in a day with your pan. I lived in the mountains along the Arkansas river and that's where I looked for gold back then and its there, but you will need to work for it. I've been told in other places in Colorado are better.
