Prospecting & Detecting
All About Quartz—Part I
May 2013 by Chris Ralph
One of the first minerals most prospectors learn to recognize is quartz, because, in the right circumstances, it can be an excellent indicator mineral for prospectors. Quartz is common, easy to identify, and is often associated with gold and other valuable metal deposits.Ask The Experts
Designing my own dredge...
Summertime Gold Panning
I have smaller pans for cleaning black sand concentrates, big pans for taking large samples, pans with corners for pouring out materials, and pans with lots of special riffles. This variation is why I have so many pans—they each have their specialty.
Breaking Rock the Old School Way
Prospectors have many reasons why they might want to break rocks. These include dividing up a specimen too large to carry.
Finding Streams of Gold
Without knowing or even thinking about it, I had put together a map that showed me a pattern of the ancient Sacramento River channel. I also had a distinct picture of where the ancient channels of several other creeks and rivers were running.
Divide and Conquer—Detecting Old Placer Grounds with Friends
He no sooner had turned around and started moving when I hollered again that I had another nice one.
Who Jumped Whose Claim First?
At this point, stress raised my blood pressure and I was figuring out escape routes through the brush, but thought it best to continue the conversation.
A Few Thoughts About Successful Nugget Hunting
...I got the faintest of rises in the threshold. It was hardly a signal at all, and I thought it was one of the many, deep, hot rocks in the area.
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