Prospecting & Detecting
Ten Detecting Tips for the Savvy Desert Prospector
July 2021 by Chris Ralph
Prospectors who specialize in nugget detecting are especially interested in this special desert type, as it produces nuggets that are close to the surface of the ground and therefore more suitable to be found with a detector.
Underwater Reclamation
Working underwater certainly has its challenges, but since I wanted to learn how to blast underwater, I just needed to dive in headfirst and take charge of the operation.
Revisiting Old Haunts
I had some success following this premise this summer, finding a few nuggets in places I think I overlooked in the past.
That First Nugget
After getting all the gear together we headed up the old road that led us to an old ground sluice site. George and Kaleb were using lightweight VLF (very low frequency) detectors. I carried a newer technology unit that is just a tad coil-heavy in the front.
Tips for Detecting Nugget Patches
Prospecting for Pegmatites
…in some cases pegmatites have produced individual mineral crystals that are enormous, attaining lengths of over 40 feet long, and many of the world’s largest mineral crystals are examples that were found within pegmatite deposits.Gold in the Slate Creek Basin
In some areas these channels were thousands of feet wide, and just figuring out where you are in some of these diggings is a challenge.
Finding Gold Beyond Your Detector
The lesson of keeping one’s eyes open to other possibilities is one of the great secrets of successful prospecting. Prospectors need to always be on the lookout for opportunities.
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