Where would you prospect on this sand bar?

[ncclaymaker]

Where would you prospect on this sand bar? Would like some ideas before I suit in a wet suit. I have a vague idea, but would like others to input to put me. I'll be positioning a small boat somewhere on the photo.

Thanks to every one in advance!

 

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[russau]

I'd first look into the laws in your state about dredging in a waterway close to a bridge ! Then I'd refer to the fact that gold drops out when the water slows down .I'd say that the picture you posted is looking down stream. I'd also want to look at the sandbar furthest away from the front of the picture ! sample, sample, sample! GOODLUCK I wish I could assist you BUT I'm old and sore enough!

 

[ncclaymaker]

You aren't the only one old and sore. The water is coming towards the bottom of the image from what I gather is from flood water. Are you suggesting the area at the bottom of the frame or at the top? Thanks for your advice.

 

[islamoradamark]

I would try the the deepest areas where the sand washed out

 

[Underburden]

I'd steer clear of a sand bar and look for a gravel deposit upstream. All I can see in your pic is a lot of unrewarding work.

 

[russau]

Yep I again read this stream's flow ! I got the flow direction going the wrong way! I agree with Underburden's post ! Look for the bigger gravel.

 

[ncclaymaker]

So far... great advice. I'll head for gravel bars, not sand bars. Thanks.

 

[Ohiogoldfever]

I’ll also say the sand is not usually very productive. If it’s a mixture of sand and gravel though. One of my best spots is a sand/gravel bar. Big stones locked up in sands and gravel. 10 feet away is all sand and hardly a spec. Crazy how it works sometimes.

 

[ncclaymaker]

I'd steer clear of a sand bar and look for a gravel deposit upstream. All I can see in your pic is a lot of unrewarding work.

Are these rocks large enough? I "plan" to explore them in the late spring if my parts hold up. I am somehow starting to feel like russau.

 

[Ohiogoldfever]

I have good luck working on the back sides of larger stones with my sucker tube.

I find my best gold (in Ohio) around stones that are soft ball size and bigger. I find I do better on outside bends. Find a pile of rocks on a nice sweeping outside bend. Bingo.

 

[ncclaymaker]

In reply to russau - Parts, not equipment pieces are starting to wear out and performance is degrading at a faster rate than I thought it was going to. Perhaps this is more of what I should be looking at in the image below... slightly larger than fine sand! Logic is zero and minus one.

 

[teleprospector]

I'd search the land area as well, where the bridge construction workers may have sat to eat or whatever, maybe there's some nice coins just waiting for you!
Jon

 

[ncclaymaker]

I'd search the land area as well, where the bridge construction workers may have sat to eat or whatever, maybe there's some nice coins just waiting for you!
Jon

Never really thought of MD'ing for coins or artifacts that didn't necessarily appear in the pan or sluice. Thanks.

 

[CGC Miner]

I'm personally not a big fan of urban prospecting. Stay away from the bridges and structures as others have mentioned. The blow sand may contain some super fine flood gold but those are yearly and newly created sandbars. Look for larger cobble bars and where gold may have concentrated during mass flooding events. Good luck out there!

 

[ncclaymaker]

I’ll also say the sand is not usually very productive. If it’s a mixture of sand and gravel though. One of my best spots is a sand/gravel bar. Big stones locked up in sands and gravel. 10 feet away is all sand and hardly a spec. Crazy how it works sometimes.

I had owned a small farm(109 acres) in North Carolina that two streams flowing through it that were mostly sand bottoms and bars. I could have processed two dozen dump trucks and would have been lucky to have recovered two grams of gold.