History & Geology
Kennecott Copper Mine, Kennecott, Alaska
October 2017 by Jack Geck
For approximately 30 years, the mines produced good ore, some so rich it was simply sent straight to bagging, bypassing milling and loaded directly on the rail cars.
The Basics of Geophysical Exploration
In developing a mineral property or mining claims, one of the first goals is to identify and quantify valuable deposits. The classic method of doing this is by drilling holes into the ground to sample what is below the surface. The problem is that one or two holes usually are not going to tell you a whole lot...
Gold Rush Continues in Africa
…some miners are doing exceptionally well… with a few obtaining amounts estimated in the millions of dollars.
Testing Ores for Free Gold
I get a number of questions from people about testing and treating hard rock ores. The simplest way, but also an expensive one, is to just have an assay test done by an independent assay firm. As an alternative...
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.
Epithermal Gold and Silver Deposits
Epithermal deposits form in the ground at shallow depths. They are popular with prospectors because can yield very rich deposits and they are widespread in the Western US.
Exploring and Mining for Uranium
For a time uranium was more popular with prospectors than gold, but this is no longer true, and it has been decades since it was common to see individuals armed with Geiger counters out in the field.
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.”
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