Prospecting & Detecting
Carr Fire Gold
April 2019 by David Obester
After burning more than 350 square miles, the Carr Fire near Redding, California, was finally out. Luckily our home was spared, and I had the opportunity to go metal detecting in burned areas previously too overgrown to access.
Modern-Day Claim Jumping
We soon found that our discovery post and other claim markers were gone and replaced with new posts and a notice of location with an earlier date than had been on our notice of location.
The Ups and Downs of Nugget Hunting
I returned to the WSPA claim. Still smug from my previous success, I was thinking I could not fail. However, the gold gods had other plans.
Will El Nino Move Gold for Miners and End California Drought?
I remember in the couple of years after that 1997 flood, prospectors around California did very well, taking ounces of gold from places that had not yielded any gold for years before that.
The Bucking Room
Since this position was the least desirable due to the hard physical labor, the bucking room was used as punishment. Do you have a mediocre worker? Bad attitude? Off to the bucking room!
Sampling Placer Stockpiles
Sampling other people's stockpiles or dumps has some inherent risks that sampling undisturbed ground does not have.
Hunting for Hardrock: The Basics
Exposed veins and outcroppings can be a great source for gathering good gold ore for processing. Veins and outcroppings do require a lot of work to free the ore from its earthen grip, but this labor can be very rewarding.
Gold From Black Sand Tailings
The pile up on the small hill had to be a couple yards of black sand. I’m not one to ignore a little gold even if it is small in size—I have always believed that gold fever comes in all sizes.
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