East Coast Dredger Heads West - Part I

Prospectors east of the Mississippi have their share of gold bearing property to explore and prospect upon. There’s plenty of undiscovered gold on the bottoms of the creeks and rivers running through the eastern gold belt.

East Coast Dredger Heads West - Part II

I wandered back across the river, wading through the rapids and slipping at least three more times. I couldn’t believe how slick these rocks were! Once on the other side, I sat down for a few moments to review my plan of attack and lick my wounds.

East Coast Dredger Heads West—Part III

There was an outcropping of exposed bedrock on the bank, and it again resurfaced in the river about 25’ away. I decided to start a hole near that exposed bedrock, and pointed the nozzle down into the sand and cobbles.

The Most Obvious Place

“The biggest nugget you’ll ever find is in a spot that many have walked over for years.” I’m not sure who told me that, but the more I think about that statement, the more it makes sense.

Mining Expedition at Eagle Rock—Part I

We spent the winter and spring months obtaining all of the prospecting and camping gear that would be needed to sustain the five of us for 14 days on the river.

Mining Expedition at Eagle Rock—Part II

We spent more time that first day moving rocks than we did sending material over the sluices. Even so, our cleanup was quite respectable for having only moved down to a depth of a couple feet.

East Coast Prospecting Challenges

There is one gold prospecting requirement... that remains a steeper challenge to prospectors in certain portions of the United States.

From Hand Sluice to Dredge

Gold prospecting in Virginia: Like most prospecting greenhorns, I entered the gold prospecting hobby with a pan, a shovel and a hand sluice. It was January 2007, and I had just stumbled upon the hobby of gold prospecting while researching Virginia’s historic past...