Prospecting & Detecting
The Value of Evidence
February 2019 by R. V. Larson
That prospecting effort you are about to spend your time on...is it worth your effort? If you are going to devote your time to it, you will need all the facts you can get.
Moving The Big Rocks
The anticipation of finding out if the system of snatch blocks, shackles, chokers, anchor points, and the strap binding the massive slab of rock in the bottom of the river would even budge an inch was weighing on me.
Find of a Lifetime
My metal detecting hobby began about ten years ago when I bought a used metal detector for about $300. I got it specifically to look for meteorites. It was pretty much worthless, not user friendly, and I did not find anything with it.
River Dredging vs. Creek Dredging—Part I
As I started walking down to the river one chilly morning, the mist was hanging over the calm portions of the water like a white cotton blanket. This scene got me to thinking about why the river was like that—the deep pools, boulder fields, gravel bars, the effects of how much water was moving at any given time along the watercourse—and most of all the relationship all these things have on where I will be able to find gold.
Placers Directly Associated with Lode Deposits
Placers that are directly associated with lode deposits are sometimes overlooked and may have good potential for those who are willing to search for them.
Key to Successful Prospecting: Confidence
The one undeniable truth in prospecting is that the more time you spend in the field, the more gold you will find. Here are a few keys I use to help build my confidence.
Ask the Experts
• What to prospect with on the Klamath River
Detecting: Small Creek Yields Good Gold
Most of our gold recoveries have been in the cracks of the bedrock. Hot rocks in the form of dikes cross the creek at various locations, causing us to skip those areas.
Subscription Required:
The Bawl Mill
• Ask The Experts - Do I need something other than a fire assay for PGMs?
• Ask The Experts - This low-grade ore is not worth processing
• Placer Gold Deposits of New Mexico
• The Hunch
• Resurrecting An Old Hard Rock Mine—A Series of Small Victories
• The Basics of Exploration Leases and Contracts—Part I
• Gold Prospecting for Better or Worse: A Long Hike
• Mutiny on The Mason
• Who Jumped Whose Claim First?
• Over The Divide: Charles "Chuck" Cushman
• Melman on Gold & Silver
• Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices
