Prospecting & Detecting
Montana Gold and Sapphires Revisited
November 2019 by Chris Ralph
I had a chance to visit the operation in person and talk with Neal. I was very impressed and I think our readers could learn a lot about building up a commercial placer operation from scratch…
Following Clues to a Lost Gold Deposit—The Northern Extension of the Cedarberg
Last month, in “Following Clues to a Hidden Gold Deposit,” I ended the article with the direction that we were on the hunt! We were getting prepared and ready to roll with our detectors, then snow came, and lots of it. We had already found the seam diggings mine on the mountainside in wild, rough brush and trees. It had been well hidden.
Clues for Detecting Ancient River Channels and Flats
The gold in this area can get quite large. Most of the pieces are about half a pennyweight on average.
Paperwork Guy—A Cautionary Tale
I recently grew complacent, and it caused me to make a mistake that resulted in the loss of a mining claim. It brought my mining plans for the summer to a complete halt.
Grizzly Flats, California—Another Mother Lode Gold Rush Town
We chatted for a bit and then we had to take off, but I kept what he said in the back of my mind as we rushed out to some other gold-bearing place in the Mother Lode to feed our gold fever.
Detecting Nuggets—Overcoming New Challenges

Swing and a Miss

Crumb Hunting With A VLF Detector
Chris got a nice target signal on the edge of rising bedrock, but still in a low, but washed area. After breaking up the bedrock, he recovered several pieces of gold amounting to almost three pennyweight.
Subscription Required:
The Bawl Mill
• Ask The Experts - Seeking advice on setting up an operation and the agreement with the landowner
• A Third Generation Small-Scale Hardrock Revival
• Gold Prospecting for Better or Worse: Respect the Angle of Repose
• The Summer of ‘81
• The “Chuck It Out” Nugget
• High Sulfidation Epithermal Deposits
• Gold and Silver Deposits of Bodie, California
• Melman on Gold & Silver
• Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices
Free:
Legislative and Regulatory Update
• Crumb Hunting With A VLF Detector
• PLP Update