Lanny in AB
Gold Member
(I posted this in response to a nugget hunter that was having no luck finding gold.)
Some great advice already given, and it's been my experience (to simplify this advice) that the best place to look for nugget gold with a detector (not a pin-pointer style, but regular detectors) is where chunky gold was found in the past.
I know this might sound oversimplified, but it really is the best advice.
If you can find reports of where nuggets were being shed from a high-and-dry ancient channel, or where worked bedrock exists with lots of undisturbed hand-stacks, or in areas where nuggety gold was just downslope (in gulches) from rich quartz veins, those are the best places to find nugget gold or larger flakes (which the new VLF detectors excel at).
Always detect the outer margins of where the rich workings once were as less profitable ground was left unworked, but working it with a detector can produce some nice finds.
You'll have to develop an eye for ground that was disturbed over a hundred and fifty years ago or so or you'll miss some of the old workings, and always detect around old prospect holes where deeper levels of dirt were tossed out while exploring. I found a nice flake, with my detector, the size of my fingernail last summer doing just that. And, I've found enough nice nuggets at around other prospect holes to never pass them up.
If you can get to it, exposed bedrock that was worked long ago can yield some bonanza gold if you find an ancient cemented crevice that was missed--quality metal detectors excel that that kind of work--seeing trapped gold the Oldtimers could never find, and believe me, they left gold behind. That's why I heavily hunt where they hunted the gold.
To summarize and elaborate a bit, go where detectable nugget size gold has been found in the past, and just because you're finding a lot of trash doesn't mean there's not gold there.
Lots of detectable nugget gold is masked by the harsher tones of steel and iron, and until you've used a quality magnet to weed those signals out, you'll miss the gold. And touching on something I haven't mentioned yet, are you scrubbing the ground with your coil and listening for faint whispers and tiny signals? If not, you're leaving gold, especially in heavily worked areas. As well, be sure you are finely ground-balanced to mineral rich soils or the nuggets will slip past you while you dig the louder iron/steel/non-ferrous trash sounds.
All the best,
Lanny
Some great advice already given, and it's been my experience (to simplify this advice) that the best place to look for nugget gold with a detector (not a pin-pointer style, but regular detectors) is where chunky gold was found in the past.
I know this might sound oversimplified, but it really is the best advice.
If you can find reports of where nuggets were being shed from a high-and-dry ancient channel, or where worked bedrock exists with lots of undisturbed hand-stacks, or in areas where nuggety gold was just downslope (in gulches) from rich quartz veins, those are the best places to find nugget gold or larger flakes (which the new VLF detectors excel at).
Always detect the outer margins of where the rich workings once were as less profitable ground was left unworked, but working it with a detector can produce some nice finds.
You'll have to develop an eye for ground that was disturbed over a hundred and fifty years ago or so or you'll miss some of the old workings, and always detect around old prospect holes where deeper levels of dirt were tossed out while exploring. I found a nice flake, with my detector, the size of my fingernail last summer doing just that. And, I've found enough nice nuggets at around other prospect holes to never pass them up.
If you can get to it, exposed bedrock that was worked long ago can yield some bonanza gold if you find an ancient cemented crevice that was missed--quality metal detectors excel that that kind of work--seeing trapped gold the Oldtimers could never find, and believe me, they left gold behind. That's why I heavily hunt where they hunted the gold.
To summarize and elaborate a bit, go where detectable nugget size gold has been found in the past, and just because you're finding a lot of trash doesn't mean there's not gold there.
Lots of detectable nugget gold is masked by the harsher tones of steel and iron, and until you've used a quality magnet to weed those signals out, you'll miss the gold. And touching on something I haven't mentioned yet, are you scrubbing the ground with your coil and listening for faint whispers and tiny signals? If not, you're leaving gold, especially in heavily worked areas. As well, be sure you are finely ground-balanced to mineral rich soils or the nuggets will slip past you while you dig the louder iron/steel/non-ferrous trash sounds.
All the best,
Lanny
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