The miner was drywashing using a small, gas-powered drywasher for a short period of time—maybe an hour—when he was asked by a ranger to see his permit, which is not required to prospect at this small of a scale.

Plans are also under way to coordinate with the incoming chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Public Lands for the People (PLP) has come up with a guide for miners and prospectors that they believe will alleviate many of the problems faced when operating on public lands managed by the US Forest Service.

Forty prospectors lucky enough to sign up early spent a weekend looking for gold and talking about gold. And there is nothing better than doing both.

The changes we are seeking will most definitely help prospectors, small operations and dredgers. If you haven’t yet read our proposals, you’ll find a link to it at the end of the online version of this article.