I grew up in Southern California, and found my first nugget there, so I know my way around. Because there is good gold there, I thought it might be helpful to take a look at the many placer gold opportunities found in the southern part of the state.

What makes the difference between successful prospectors and those who struggle? It just seems like there are some guys who stumble on gold no matter what they do. Are they just lucky?

Don’t hunker down and just keep digging in one spot where there is very little or no gold—if you don’t find it, you’ve got to get up and move on!

My intention was to end this discussion with waypoints and routes, then I found USGS maps of the Plainfield Quadrangle.

“Much of the ground where Ms. Hollingshead found her diamond is made of unweathered volcanic rock. When it rains, flowing runoff often leaves loose gravel, and sometimes diamonds, on the surface in these areas.”