Prospecting & Detecting
It's Hard to Find Gold!
October 2013 by Steve Herschbach
...even the best prospectors have times when they do not find gold. It is all about taking chances against tough odds and succeeding.Prospecting The East Fork San Gabriel Canyon, Southern California
I have found gold more than 200 feet above the river. It was not unusual for nuggets of an ounce or more to be found in these deposits, but fine gold and flakes are much more common.
Fine Gold Panning Without Using Mercury
The technique I will describe is a much safer alternative and it works. It’s a fine-gold panning technique that eliminates the need for mercury amalgamation of most placer samples.
Searchers' Dreams
The story began in a southern Arizona mountain range...
Hunting for Hardrock: The Basics

Imagining the Ultimate Prospecting Adventure
I recently found myself wondering what would be the ultimate prospecting adventure. What would be the most amazing thing if I had no restrictions or limitations?
Pros and Cons of Big Detector Coils

Prospecting in the Age of Covid-19
I have a bunch of ideas about what to do in the near term and then other thoughts about what things might look like a few months from now when I hope the situation will look a lot better.
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The Bawl Mill
• EPA Tries to Intimidate Alaskan Miners
• A Few Pointers About Cracks and Crevices
• Hunting for Gold in the Quartzsite Area of Western Arizona
• The Madonna Nugget
• The Alaska Highway and Beyond
• Partner Withdraws from Pebble Project
• Highbanking at the 144
• Potential Gold at Old Hydraulic Sites
• California State Panning Championships—Foresthill, CA Heritage Celebration
• Prospecting Tales: Forest Service, Fires and Bears—Oh My!
• Melman on Gold & Silver
• Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices
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Legislative and Regulatory Update
• Research and Fieldwork Yield Some Promising Gold