Ask the Experts: Silent partners and mining—is it worth the risk?

January 2014 by Chris Ralph

The Smell of Gold -- Part II

July 2015
While mapping, I also found rock chips in the soil that were characteristic of the same wall rock alteration that occurs adjacent to the known lodes in the greenstone belt.

Wyoming's Billion Dollar Nugget—The Trilogy Ends

July 2011
With eight loads processed, a pumpkin-size rock fell into the hopper, stopping the whole operation until I could lift it out.

The Smell of Gold—Part I

June 2015
Some claim they can smell gold. This may be, but when I take a whiff of gold, I smell dirt, rotten eggs, garlic or just nothing: my nose is everything but sensitive.

What Happened to The Gold Prospecting and Mining Summit?

September 2018

We continue to seek out a patented mining property with an owner who is willing to host such an event with a water supply and enough remaining gold to make it worthwhile for the students.

Gold in Guyana—Part I: Porknocking on the Puruni River Road

July 2012
In part one of this two-part series on gold in Guyana, I describe artisanal mining efforts currently winning alluvial gold from small-scale placer operations located along the lower Puruni River and its tributaries.

Cyanide-Free Gold Separation

February 2011
Some ores—mostly those with a high free gold content—are very amenable to gravity concentration. Well oxidized ores containing coarse gold are usually best for non-cyanide processes. Ores with significant sulfide content may require the...

Prospector's Guide to Rock Breaking and Blasting

December 2016
The holes were overloaded with explosives, but I didn’t know it. I was just a green mining engineer fresh out of school and told to watch as the experienced miners set the charge.

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