The Highs and Hazards of Desert Prospecting

June 2022 by Dan Stanton

We hit on a good spot the last time we were at this location and we made up our minds that we weren’t going to let hurricane-like winds stop us.

A Golden Vacation

July 2019

Each day for the first part of the week my boys and I picked and chipped away at that wall, stockpiling dirt in 5-gallon buckets and cement mixing tubs.

Selectable Frequency vs Multi Frequency Detectors

March 2017
I like to think in terms of “conductive mass” because it is a combination of both the conductivity of the metal and the size of the target that determine how a detector sees conductivity.

Prospecting Australia—Part II: There and Back Again

November 2011
Steve got his first nugget within minutes of turning on his metal detector. It only took me about an hour to find my first piece.

Ask the Experts

September 2014
• Using drywashers to work desert gravels

Heavy Glacial Rocks and Gold in the Midwest

December 2013
Over the years, I've noticed a pattern in the type of rocks associated with the best gold deposits in Midwestern glacial gravel.

ICMJ Visits Sonora, CA

June 2023

Weathering, Erosion and Placers

April 2017
The big interest to prospectors thinking about the effect of erosion is not what might happen long into the future, but what they might find in the rivers later this summer when the water levels go down.

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The Bawl Mill   • Why The Paper Change?   • Ask The Experts - When do I use detector discrimination?   • Ask The Experts - Is gold found in limestone?   • Ask The Experts - Can pyrite crystals be the same color as gold?   • How to Use BLM’s New Mineral and Land Records System   • A Short But Productive Hunt   • Blast from the Past: Jeff Casserly Tells His Own Story   • Old Dog(Fighter), New Trick   • Talking Metal Detectors with Brent Weaver of Garrett   • Strategies for Detecting Heavily Pounded Areas—Part III   • EPA Recommends Against Reissuing Permit for PolyMet Mine   • Just Feel The Heft of It   • Proposed Nebraska Mine Has Sizeable Deposit of Rare Elements   • Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices   • Melman on Gold & Silver

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