The Mystery of the Grand Summit Mine

May 2022 by R. V. Larson

I didn’t follow-up on this opportunity at that time, as I already had as much on my plate as I could handle, but the potential for this property has never left my mind.

A Father and Son Prospecting Adventure

May 2013
As I write this, I am still on a rush from taking my 9-year-old son, Jeffrey, prospecting for the first time this past weekend. It’s not that he hasn’t been along on numerous outings before: this is the first time that just the two of us went out for a day of drywashing and detecting under the desert sun.

Green Valley Reconnaissance

January 2013
During this trip we found enough gold to make us want to come back, even with the punishment of a very long, tough hike.

How to Upgrade Your Pocket Plunger

November 2016
These three simple upgrades, when taken together, will considerably increase a pocket plunger’s magnetic pull and make it less susceptible to breakage.

Breaking Rock the Old School Way

June 2013
Prospectors have many reasons why they might want to break rocks. These include dividing up a specimen too large to carry.

Gold Prospecting for Better or Worse: The Disappearing Nuggets

October 2021

Gold probably is one of the easiest things in the world to cheat an absentee owner out of. He would generally have no way of really knowing if a guy had found 3 nuggets or 30 nuggets on his claim.

Prospecting for Diamonds in Kimberlite

January 2014
Kimberlite is very difficult for geologists to find, let alone prospectors and rock hounds. This is because kimberlite is rarely exposed on the surface and few people know how to identify the rock.

Gold Mining Boom in the Carolinas

July 2012
Not too far from the pine-filled mountains, a young boy was exploring along Meadow Creek in Cabarrus County, North Carolina, one fine day in 1799. He discovered a beautiful rock that he took home and put to good use as a doorstop. Shortly thereafter, a jeweler stopped by to visit his folks, and as it turned out, the new doorstop was actually a 17-pound gold nugget. That nugget truly did open a door as it marked the beginning of the first gold rush in America.

Subscription Required:
The Bawl Mill   • Legislative and Regulatory Update   • Ask The Experts - How are gold veins formed?   • Ask The Experts - Is there gold in Monterey County, California?   • Ask The Experts - Can you explain NMR and satellite imagery?   • Ask The Experts - What other indicators are there besides red soils?   • Mineralization, Ground Balance and Metal Detecting   • Gold Prospecting for Better or Worse: Warning Signs   • What To Do With All That Gold?   • Proposed 100-Mile Road in the Yentna Mining District   • All About Trommels and Screens for Placer Gold Recovery   • Judge Orders FBI to Produce Records on Civil War Gold Hunt   • Strategies for Detecting Heavily Pounded Areas—Pt II   • Auburn, California   • Old Water Channels Provide Important Clues   • Melman on Gold & Silver   • Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices

Free: