Prospecting & Detecting
Tips for Cleaning Gold Nuggets
June 2019 by Ron Kliewer
I pulled out the nuggets I had worked on previously and looked at the size of the wire basket that the items to be cleaned are placed into. It looks much like a miniature french fry deep fryer.
Gold in Unlikely Places
Detectors have been around for decades now. And with thousands of them swinging, many of the best or at least most likely nugget places have seen a swinging coil. The part that amazes me is that so many nuggets still get pulled out of these seemingly pounded places.
Gold Prospecting for Better or Worse: All Work and No Pay
At first we decided to see what the flat by our camp would produce where the old-timers had worked it with their Pelton wheel and dragline buckets.
Cold Alaskan Gold—Part I
Crowds may be great for football games or the Fourth of July, but not for prospecting. So, this summer, while thousands of gold seekers were heading to the coast of Alaska, I headed to a remote part of the Interior.
A Break in the Weather
Back at the entry point of the mine, we took turns slowly crawling down the slope leading into the mine portal with our metal detectors, hard hats and flashlights. The mine was hand dug and is about 75 yards long.
Uncovering the Find of a Lifetime
• The 75-ounce Butte County nugget is the largest found in California since the 156-ounce Mojave nugget in the 1970s...
California Sniping
I opted for the underwater portion of the river. All I have to do is float down the river and pick large flakes and small nuggets out of cracks and crevices while staying cool in the summer heat.
Procuring Mine Owner Permission at a Mine Site
The first experience involved an overgrown gold mine operated during the 1880s. A razed mill adjoined the mine and could be glimpsed from the isolated public dirt road I was traveling.
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• The Value of Old Patches
• A 'Rare' Opportunity for America
• How Long Does It Take to Find and Recover An Ounce of Gold?
• Gold Prospecting for Better or Worse: In A Tight Spot
• Detecting Wet Ground Yields More Fun Than Gold
• Over The Divide: Jim Straight, 1930-2019
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• Reno's 1872 Time Capsule Includes Gold Rush Lore
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