Prospecting & Detecting
Fall Drywashing—Just the Right Time of Year
November 2018 by Chris Ralph
I could see lots of quartz, both loose on the hillsides and in the numerous small prospect diggings. There was a small gold rush here more than a century ago.
Hard Rock 101: Micro Blasting
Micro blasting can be used to take down hanging rock, separate minerals from overburden, and collect gemstones and other high-value product with minimal damage.
Do Gold Nuggets Come Out At Night?
There were many small gold placers found and worked in the deserts in the old days, which had then been pretty much forgotten about. We all tried to be the first to re-discover these spots.
Detecting for Gold: A Return to Familiar Ground
I probably swung over a few targets without noticing them. My first target came about ten minutes later as I went over a part of the high bench in this wide section of the dry wash.
Gleaning for Gold
It couldn’t possibly be a bullet or other trash this deep into the hill. No sir, it was a solid zip-zip signal that I know so well.
Green Valley Reconnaissance

Following Man-Made Ditches to Recover More Gold
Because of multiple take-out points along a ditch line, the ditches themselves become a wealth of knowledge to us present-day miners.
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