How to Stake Your Own Claim—Researching Mining Claims

June 2017 by Chris Ralph

Once you have determined that the land is locatable, the next step in the claim research process is to determine if the land has already been claimed by a previous locator.

Arizona Prospector Rescued from Mine Shaft

November 2018

“I heard him hollering down in the hole as soon as I got there,” he said. “I was just glad to see him alive.”

Dry Washer, Wet System or Metal Detector?

April 2016
I love to dry wash old nugget patches found by detector operators, and I have found my fair share of gold dry washing those areas. I have also found a few nuggets using a detector on the bedrock exposed by dry washing the patches.

A Few Pointers About Cracks and Crevices

October 2013
Because these crevices catch and hold gold so well, it's worthwhile to learn how they form, which ones are good for catching gold and which ones are not.

What is a Valid Mineral Discovery?

February 2013
One of the greatest opportunities afforded to the citizens of our country is the right to stake and hold mining claims on federal lands. One doesn’t need to be a lawyer to stake mining claims, but a little bit of knowledge about mining claim laws can be helpful.

Prospecting Hard Rock

March 2014
We panned out maybe three gold pans of the material and we were shocked at the gold that was there. This rock appeared to be rich.

What's Left Behind

December 2012
I love to see old-timer workings while I am out detecting for gold. For one thing, it assures me that gold came from there. Second, it tells me gold should almost certainly still be there.

Lessons Learned From Geologists

July 2019

Not long after this, I was camped out with the geologist beside the Similkameen River where he showed me the evidence that an ancient channel existed on our claim.

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