Prospecting & Detecting
Tips for Detecting Nugget Patches
April 2015 by Fred Mason
Hunting for Hardrock: The Basics
Exposed veins and outcroppings can be a great source for gathering good gold ore for processing. Veins and outcroppings do require a lot of work to free the ore from its earthen grip, but this labor can be very rewarding.
What Have You Got to Lose?
It’s accepted knowledge that wet methods will recover more fine gold than dry methods and processing the gravel as a whole will get more gold than only using a metal detector. The question is how much more?
California State and US National Gold Panning Championships
This was two days of gold panning, with just over 250 gold panners trying to win a medal to show they were one of the best of the best.
Mutiny on The Mason
We decided to check some spots that were pretty good to us on previous trips. The detector was deceptively simple with few buttons and auto-ground balance.
Getting Started
He excitedly told me he was going mining and wanted to know where he should go, how to do it, and so on. After he calmed down, I got excited. “I need to go!” was my response.
The Life of an Independent Prospector
“JP, is it possible to make a living looking for gold with a metal detector?” I get asked this question a lot...
Romancing the Lens
...a large number of these aspiring miners developing their operations seemed to have missed "Placer Mining 101" somewhere along the way.
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