Secrets of Successful Prospecting

April 2019 by Chris Ralph

Winter is the time for research, and if you haven’t already done some research to find new places to prospect, now is the time to cram in some last minute research before the good weather arrives.

Ask The Experts

April 2015
• Making a noisy dredge more quiet

A Family Quest for Gold

February 2016
Back at our campsite, while the rest of us grabbed a late four o’clock lunch, Fallyn volunteered to do the clean-up panning.

Putting Together A Small Free Gold Mill—Part II

June 2018

There are many smaller old hard rock mines out there—more than you might think. There are some small hard rock properties that are even open to be claimed if one does the right amount of research to find them.

Tucson Show Marketing

May 2012
Normally we do not cover gem and mineral shows, but this one is a little different. The Tucson (Arizona) Gem and Mineral show is the sales source for so many small mining operations, I felt I had to address this show and its possibilities for the small miner.

A Model Mining Operation

August 2014
After he excavates the ore down to bedrock, he goes over the bedrock with a metal detector to ensure he didn't leave any gold behind before he backfills the area.

Following the Clues

May 2019

It took me awhile before I finally got a nice mellow signal. My nugget turned out to weigh in about two dwt (pennyweight). Over the next few hours, we all picked up a few more nuggets apiece.

Alaskan Gold Adventure

December 2016
In Chicken I had my first experience with the famous Alaska blue clay, sometimes called the blue layer. The blue layer is where the best fine gold was to be found.

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