History & Geology
Gold, Quartz & Chalcedony—Part II
November 2011 by W. Dan Hausel
The specific gravity of chalcedony is 2.58 to 2.64. This is slightly lower than coarsely crystalline quartz because of slight porosity in chalcedony. Being so light, it will easily wash out of a gold pan.
The Birimian Greenstone Belts of West Africa
A few years ago I had a tremendous opportunity to visit Australia and hunt for gold there. The geology of the gold deposits there was somewhat different from what I was used to here in the US. I learned a lot about greenstone belt gold deposits while prospecting them in person, and it was an amazing trip.
The Wild Rush to Find More Cobalt—Part I
While some future cobalt will come from recycling lithium batteries and other products, the coming huge need for cobalt is virtually a perfect storm of heavy demand and insufficient supply.
Can You Recognize Valuable Ores?
The process of recognizing ores all starts with being able to recognize some basic minerals and knowing what hard rock ore looks like in the districts where you prospect.
The Birimian Greenstone Belts of West Africa
The country we were to visit was Burkina Faso, a small country about the same size of my home state of Nevada with about 10 times more people. The second day I was in Africa, we went out to the goldfields for the first time.
When Legends Were Made and Fortunes Found
Sylvester Smith and his younger brother Nathan were among this group who rode and led their Indian ponies, while climbing the rugged Salmon River breaks and rockhewn mountains, looking for a path that would lead them up and over the uncharted wilderness.
The Preacher of Sheeps**t Flats
It seemed that the preacher always gave the same answer to anyone who asked where his gold had come from. His answer was, “If you know your gold, you can find it. However, you will have to find it the hard way, the way I found it.”
Butte, Montana—The Richest Hill on Earth
I recently had the opportunity to spend a day exploring around Butte, Montana and was amazed by the amount of mining that has taken place there. The old-timers called Butte “the richest hill on earth” and had pretty good reasons for doing so.
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The Bawl Mill
• Legislative And Regulatory Update
• Ask The Experts—Compensation for closed mining claim?
• Ask The Experts—Inconsistent fire assays
• Gold From Cemented Gravels
• Evolution Of A Gold Prospect
• Alaska to Target Rare-Earths
• Minnesota Delays Decision on Mineral Leases
• Alaska's Cripple Creek Mining District
• The Gold Of Horseshoe Bend
• Tyrie's Roadway Nugget
• Melman on Gold & Silver
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Are Permits Needed For Highbanking In California?
• Prospecting Australia—Part II: There and Back Again
