Worthwhile Creek?

[BrisJoe]

There is this creek I know of in a 4wding spot I like to go to.
There is this creek at the end of it which comes down from the mountain and ends in this calm pool at the bottom.
Along the sides is lots of quartz pebbles and chunks.
I am not sure as to how far this creek comes down from the hills is, but I'm guessing down in this rocky part of the creek before it goes into the pool could be worth checking out with a luice or pan at least?
The water is somewhat deep, about head height at the middle so not something that yu can easily wade through and shift it.

 

[63bkpkr]

The Quartz is a positive sign but there are no guarantees in gold prospecting. A gold pan would be your best bet for sampling dirt from the down river side of the boulders on the sides of the creek. Also look for dirt filled cracks in the bedrock, scrape those out and pan that material.

The pictures show a rough little creek, lots of boulders narrow creek bed at the time of year the pictures were taken but during high runoff times the creek would have jumped the banks so checking above the normal banks is worthwhile. This sampling will tell you if you have any heavies in there, there are minerals other than gold that accumulate like gold - silver, platinum, diamonds.

The best of luck with your challenge...........................63bkpkr

 

[Goldwasher]

where are you? Has gold been mined inyour area?

 

[BrisJoe]

OK next time I go over there I will take a pan and trowel to scoop from dirt.
What you see in the pictures is what the creek is like 99% of the year except after a good amount of rain.
In the Janurary floods in 2010 this creek was a ragging torrent and wiped out trees and everything, I have other pictures of some of the debri still pinned against other trees.
The whole gulley here is about 25-30m wide but the water is only in the section as you see it.

Where would the pick of the spots to do my sampling? near the pool at the end? or further up the creek at various spots and cracks?

 

[Alex Burke]

Here's some links that may help you, I'd go for it! Sounds remote and possibly unexplored I'd check the maps on the first link.
Information on Goldfields
Digital Collections - Maps - Australia. Bureau of Mineral Resources, Geology and Geophysics. Geological Section. Map Compilation Group. Geological map of Australia and New Guinea [cartographic material]

 

[Hoser John]

Your gully washer sounds like it ripped it up pretty good. Look for the debris piles--much lighter than gold. Then backtrack with a pan as that gold-if there be any-fell out way before limbs,trees and such. Look for solid bedrock fulla cracks,crevices and dropoffs as that's natures sluicebox and the hard work of mass classification has already been done for you. tons a au 2 u 2-John

 

[BrisJoe]

Reading some research on the area, there was a gold rush in the mountains and surrounds in the last 1800's thus many creeks in the area are named, gold this, gold that, rush that etc all relating to a typical old school gold rush.
Only problem is it's a national park so wouldn't be able to setup a highbanker and such, so limited to sneakily using a pan and regular sluice, lucky it's a part of the park that nobody goes near very often and the further I go up the creek the less likely I'll be to be interrupted

 

[delnorter]

Be caaaareful. An unattended vehicle can warrant a look-see by the guys in the Smokey Bear hats.

Mike

 

[Alex Burke]

Be caaaareful. An unattended vehicle can warrant a look-see by the guys in the Smokey Bear hats.

Mike

He's in Australia, they treat their recreational miners like real citizens. The miners right is strong over there, if they tried to mess with it they would be in the streets....

 

[BrisJoe]

Well we are still not allowed to prospect in national parks etc, so if the rangers were working (mon to fri only 2 guys) then I could risk getting caught, but the spot where it is, I have not seen anybody there ever, as it's off the track and the path to the creek is through thick trees and down an embankment and there are no signs for it, so very little chance of someone dropping by