Question to those finding good gold

[spillercanyon]

Why are you finding good gold where you are finding it and why is it still there with all the mining that has been done over the years?

I've recently have had a lot more time on my hands and have spent months researching, hiking and prospecting the Mother Lode. It's unbelievable how well every nook and cranny has been worked and yet a number of people on this forum find great gold and my question is to find the answer to what is working. Here are the areas I have been looking for, by themselves or in combination, let me know if there is something I'm missing and what worked when it worked for you.

1)Areas missed by the old timers
-where there was a camp or machinery
-hidden under overburden
-didn't have the methods to work it
-areas skipped due to time/machinery limitations
-held under claim but not worked
-not enough gold compared to areas in the region but decent gold
-area wasn't known at the time
2)Areas that have been replenished since they were worked (and missed recently?)
3)Private property (with permission) that didn't get worked as much
4)Areas with accessibility issues I am willing to endure
5)Other?

 

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[Terry Soloman]

All the "easy" gold is long gone. You need a helicopter, or several days hiking with the bears to get into the higher elevations in the back country of the Motherlode during the summer months to find placer and hardrock mines not worked since WWII. Once there you need more than the Lobo Super Traq, in my opinion. Best of luck and have fun!

 

[Goldwasher]

areas that were hit only in '49 to ' 53 with a little great depression sniping are awesome!!!!.....and seasonal water!! The majority of the hollows and creek bottoms have sat as is since the rush. Its benches that were worked later and the pockets and seams. I think their efficiency was low because of the pick-a-back rides and studabaker wheel barrow races

 

[Goldwasher]

All the "easy" gold is long gone. You need a helicopter, or several days hiking with the bears to get into the higher elevations in the back country of the Motherlode during the summer months to find placer and hardrock mines not worked since WWII. Once there you need more than the Lobo Super Traq, in my opinion. Best of luck and have fun!

I know fellas that sleep on gravel bars eat raviolli out of a can... cold... and they could put a handful of nuggets in your hand...but, it would be a long walk to get to them. Like terry said all the easy gold is gone. but, there is A LOT of sleep on a gravel bar a few nights a week gold left.

 

[meMiner]

Sometimes there is good gold under the cobbles/tailings, but it is work to move them out of the way to find out. If you can get permission from a machine operation after they have finished working a spot, it can be interesting to find out what they missed before they start their reclamation (button it back up).

 

[QNCrazy]

Hey Spiller, I have found good gold on the high benches in the public access along the SF Stan along Italian Bar Road. I agree with everyone else though, put your hiking boots on and plan on a long day or weekend. I have also done real good in the canyons of the Stan below Goodwin Dam. Very hard to get into some areas. Last year I found 1/4 gram in a small worm hole in bedrock with cemented materials 40' above the water line.

 

[ghostminer]

Mr. spillercanyon, try the mining areas where there was/is a lack of water and way up on the mountain. From my experience everyone wants to work the creeks. We call these people CREEKMINERS and they're looking for easy ways to run gravel. Guess what, so is everyone else. Try hauling two 5 gal buckets at a time down a mountain to where you have hand carried 6 gal water cans to tubs to recirculate a 12 V highbanker. Then do it all day every day for a month. This is how you get the good gold that nobody wants to look for because it is REMOTE. It is HARD WORK. There is a lot of gold still out there. I know, I have it in a jar.

 

[spillercanyon]

Once there you need more than the Lobo Super Traq

Yeah, I actually have only used my detector for a few hours, I like to move lots of dirt when I go out.

areas that were hit only in '49 to ' 53 with a little great depression sniping are awesome!!!!.....and seasonal water!! The majority of the hollows and creek bottoms have sat as is since the rush.

I worked one with a dry washer last summer, I agree, they are nice to work.

there is A LOT of sleep on a gravel bar a few nights a week gold left.

That works of me!

Sometimes there is good gold under the cobbles/tailings, but it is work to move them out of the way to find out.

I know of areas to try this but it would be a lot of work. Have you been successful digging up tailings and finding unworked ground underneath?

Mr. spillercanyon, try the mining areas where there was/is a lack of water and way up on the mountain. From my experience everyone wants to work the creeks. We call these people CREEKMINERS and they're looking for easy ways to run gravel. Guess what, so is everyone else. Try hauling two 5 gal buckets at a time down a mountain to where you have hand carried 6 gal water cans to tubs to recirculate a 12 V highbanker. Then do it all day every day for a month. This is how you get the good gold that nobody wants to look for because it is REMOTE. It is HARD WORK. There is a lot of gold still out there. I know, I have it in a jar.

I have worked deposits like that but I prefer to dig the dirt onto some plastic and then return in a day or two to dry wash it. I have carried my fair share of 5 gallon buckets but have found the dry washing method saves my back. As far as a jar of gold, I too had a nice jar of gold from my dredging days in the 80's but some #$%%%@@&& broke into my house a number of years ago and stole it, I am slowly rebuilding that jar.


I am not a real social person and do most of my mining solo (I do drag the wife and son out now and then) so I don't talk about myself much here or anywhere else but I do have quite a bit of experience and some knowledge (I got a degree in geology but when mineral and oil prices crashed in the early 80's I went into computers instead). I have been prospecting for 40 years with pans, sluices, dredges and dry washers. I understand why most deposits were deposited where they were deposited. I have hiked all over Tuolumne and Mariposa Counties, between gold and caves (I used to be a caver), I have hiked 100's of miles in those two counties, God didn't put gold or caves in easily accessible areas. I think if I can figure out what deposits were missed and why they were missed, I could find this scenario elsewhere. Enough about me.

Here is one such scenario I have found. I worked a deposit a few years ago that was a bench just four feet above the current gravel bar. The gravel bar and everywhere within a .5 mile had been hit hard but here is this bench of well worn bedrock and cracks that had never been dug, it was covered with about 8" of soil that had sloughed down the hill. I imagine it wasn't hit by the dredgers in the last 40 years because it is above water line, it is a .5 mile in so it is a bit remote. But then why not back in the 1850's? Perhaps it was not rich enough compared to places near by but it did pay well and if you were set up to mine, it would have been easy digging, so I'm thinking this is where someone might have camped while working the area, it is on the north side of the canyon (cooler on summer days) and flat with shade, perfect for a camp. Why wasn't it high banked or sluiced in the past 50 years while the rest of the claim was slammed, perhaps a combination of remoteness and the past owners of the claim did not understand benches or the soil (very little rock) that had sloughed over the deposit threw them off.

 

[Tanneyhill]

All the "easy" gold is long gone. You need a helicopter, or several days hiking with the bears to get into the higher elevations in the back country of the Motherlode during the summer months to find placer and hardrock mines not worked since WWII. Once there you need more than the Lobo Super Traq, in my opinion. Best of luck and have fun!

Terry, since a lot of the higher elevation back country locations are now National Parks, where we can't prospect, do you have any suggestions on any general areas that aren't national parks and could be prospected? I am an adventure seeker so I relish the opportunity to go deep into the back country where most folks won't go during spring, summer, autumn months. Appreciate any guidance you can provide. Thank you.

 

[N-Lionberger]

This is a really old thread not sure you will get much of an answer from Terry, haven’t seen him here in a while. I’m not sure what you mean about all the places being in national parks, can you give me an example?

 

[Tanneyhill]

This is a really old thread not sure you will get much of an answer from Terry, haven’t seen him here in a while. I’m not sure what you mean about all the places being in national parks, can you give me an example?

Just look on any map of California and travel east towards the summit of the Sierra Nevada mountains. From north to south the National Forests & Parks are listed below:

-Lassen National Forest
-Plumas National Forest
-Tahoe National Forest
-Eldorado National Forest
-Stanislaus National Forest
-Mono National Forest
-Yosemite National Park
-Sierra National Forest
-Inyo National Forest
-Sequoia National Forest

With the exception of Yosemite which is a National Park the others are National Forests. The question is do the same prospecting restrictions as applicable to National Parks apply to National Forests? I assumed they would be the same but I could be mistaken. Anyone know? Thank you.

 

[mikep691]

National Forests are open to mineral prospecting. National Parks are not. There are some exceptions and specific river designations. Due your due diligence .

 

[Terry Soloman]

Terry, since a lot of the higher elevation back country locations are now National Parks, where we can't prospect, do you have any suggestions on any general areas that aren't national parks and could be prospected? I am an adventure seeker so I relish the opportunity to go deep into the back country where most folks won't go during spring, summer, autumn months. Appreciate any guidance you can provide. Thank you.

I have personally never had any problems placer mining in National parks (California, Arizona, Colorado), probably because I am always off trail and miles away from other park visitors and patrolled areas. You have to use judgement and common sense

 

[N-Lionberger]

You don’t want to get caught prospecting in a national park. They don’t like that sort of thing. National parks and forests are different. Parks are managed by the department of the interior while forests are department of agriculture. Also missed a few gold bearing national forests.

 

[gold tramp]

You don’t want to get caught prospecting in a national park. They don’t like that sort of thing. National parks and forests are different. Parks are managed by the department of the interior while forests are department of agriculture. Also missed a few gold bearing national forests.

This is what gave me idea of calling the minelab guys, over grazers I've seen many folk bleepin down in the park.
That's what Goldie does to most, heck they will even high grade a person they call friend or brother....
I don't go in the park I already got a bad reputation from some of the local club folks, still trying figure out that one..
The hills have eyes...

 

[Assembler]

Why is a park called a park?

park (n.) mid-13c., "tract of land enclosed as a preserve for beasts of the chase," from Old French parc "enclosed wood or heath land used as a game preserve" (12c.), probably ultimately from West Germanic *parruk "enclosed tract of land" (source also of Old English pearruc, root of paddock (n

https://www.google.com/search?q=par...2l7j0i390l2.6371j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Old High German pfarrih "fencing about, enclosure," German pferch "fold for sheep," Dutch park).

Internal evidence suggests the West Germanic word is pre-4c. and originally meant the fencing, not the place enclosed. It is found also in Medieval Latin as parricus "enclosure, park" (8c.), which likely is the direct source of the Old French word, as well as Italian parco, Spanish parque, etc. Some claim the Medieval Latin word as the source of the West Germanic, but the reverse seems more likely. Some later senses in English represent later borrowings from French. OED discounts the notion of a Celtic origin: Welsh parc, Gaelic pairc are from English.

Meaning "enclosed lot in or near a town, set aside and maintained for public recreation" is attested from 1660s, originally in reference to London; the sense evolution is via royal parks in the original, hunting sense being overrun by the growth of London and being opened to the public. It was applied to sporting fields in American English from 1867.

New York's Park Avenue as an adjective meaning "luxurious and fashionable" (1956) was preceded in the same sense by London's Park Lane (1880). As a surname, Parker "keeper of a park" is attested in English from mid-12c. As a vehicle transmission gear, park (n.) is attested from 1949.

https://www.etymonline.com/word/park#:~:text=park (n.),, root of paddock (n.

paddock (n.2)

"a small field or enclosure," 1620s, apparently an alteration of Middle English parrock, from Old English pearroc "enclosed space, fence" (see park (n.)). Or possibly from Medieval Latin parricus (8c.), which ultimately is from Germanic. Especially a small pastured enclosure near a stable.