Prospecting & Detecting
Ophir—Possibly the Best Kept Secret in Alaska!
November 2013 by Chuck Merritt
...I decided to excavate the semi-frozen high-bank that was resting on a soft shale bedrock footing. Within three feet, I encountered an intrusive!
Piggin' for Gold
Take a look at the picture—it’s pretty simple and you can build it yourself.
What Equipment Do I Need?
Getting started in prospecting often requires the purchase of some equipment, but one can spend as little as $10 and be finding gold or spend thousands and also be finding gold—yet you will probably have many more opportunities and possibilities with more and better equipment.
Modern-Day Claim Jumping
We soon found that our discovery post and other claim markers were gone and replaced with new posts and a notice of location with an earlier date than had been on our notice of location.
Guinea Africa: Gold, Ebola, and A Monkey Barbecue
Doubters be informed, yes, there is gold in Africa—lots of gold—and all the good and bad that comes with it.
Sniping for Drought Gold
There are not a lot of tools needed to get out and take advantage of the situation. Other than my wetsuit, I typically travel light with a gold pan, maybe a pry bar and a few crevice cleaning tools.
Volume is the Key to Success
While recovery rates are important, they must necessarily be secondary to the volume of material processed. Running more material at lower recovery rates is generally preferable to increasing the efficiency of the system.
Uphill Battle Continues for California Dredgers
There are currently three controlling agencies or entities over suction dredging in California—and you can make that four if the state legislature decides to further muddy the waters with additional legislation to block suction gold dredging in the state.
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The Bawl Mill
• Ask the Experts
• One Potato, Two Potato...
• Proper Placer Sample Processing
• Strategic Metals—Part I
• Dry Washing to Capture Fine Gold
• Are There Any Good Prospects Left?
• Southern Oregon's Illinois River—A Lesson in Sharing
• Using Sucker Guns to Find Gold
• Making Adjustments to Catch Fine Gold
• The Subsurface Suction Dredge
• A Few Thoughts About Successful Nugget Hunting
• Melman on Gold & Silver
• Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices
