Ancient River Bed?

[oregonmp03]

What do you think? It's pretty deep and not where you would usually find one.

 

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[KevinInColorado]

All you can do is sample it!

 

[Clay Diggins]

Ancient is a relative term. Even truly old river beds seldom have gold. It looks like what you have there may be a fanglomerate, an alluvial fan deposit.

If you go to the Oregon Geology map and use the information function after zooming into that area you should be able to tell the general size, content, age and type of deposit it is.

Heavy Pans

 

[fowledup]

What direction is it running? Everyday I drive by two beautiful cobbled river channels surrounded by basalt and 200' below the upper cap facing out into the east west canyon, they stick out lick a sore thumb. As Clay Diggins pointed out- no gold, just sittin there to tease ya, but still cool to look at.

 

[oregonmp03]

This is a road cut from a road that was cut up through a ravine. Not sure which way it flows. It's covered by about 7 feet of basalt rock on the very top from volcanic activity in the past. This is no place I would ever see a river and is about 5000 feet altitude. The upper portions are finer smaller rocks and sediment while the lower part has larger cobble.

Sampling will have to wait till next year as snow is down.

 

[oregonmp03]

I did look it up and on the Oregon Geology Map and it says that it's all Qs and Qal Lacustiran and Fluvial SSedimentary Rocks and Alluvium Deposits under the Basalt

 

[BurntBear]

Cool photo! I'm sure there is some sort of interesting specimens in there!

 

[Bonaro]

Ancient riverbeds are interesting to the prospector because they have never been mined but just because it's ancient does not mean it has gold. If its in gold country it's more promising but the only way to know is a riverbed, ancient or contemporary, has any gold is to test it.

I spotted a section of ancient river on tilted bedrock once. I happened to have about a dozen pans with me and a climbing rope so over the side I went collecting samples, mapping as I went. It took most the day to get it all down and pack it to the creek but I finally got everything panned out. All of the pans were barren except one which had almost a gram in it. I was totally pumped but my time was up and I had to leave. I revisited that hillside 3 more times over the next couple years and never could relocate that spot. Devise a way to mark your samples and locations, keep notes and use durable markers...I wish I had.

 

[Bum Luck]

Ancient riverbeds are interesting to the prospector because they have never been mined but just because it's ancient does not mean it has gold. If its in gold country it's more promising but the only way to know is a riverbed, ancient or contemporary, has any gold is to test it.

I spotted a section of ancient river on tilted bedrock once. I happened to have about a dozen pans with me and a climbing rope so over the side I went collecting samples, mapping as I went. It took most the day to get it all down and pack it to the creek but I finally got everything panned out. All of the pans were barren except one which had almost a gram in it. I was totally pumped but my time was up and I had to leave. I revisited that hillside 3 more times over the next couple years and never could relocate that spot. Devise a way to mark your samples and locations, keep notes and use durable markers...I wish I had.

That's what GPS is for........

 

[oregonmp03]

I know exactly where this is, I'll have to go back next year and do some panning

 

[Bonaro]

That's what GPS is for........

Yes, I know but taking a gps coordinate is difficult on a near vertical slope....and you have to remember to do it

 

[Reed Lukens]

It's definitely not the normal ancient river channel that we see here as you can tell by the lava flow and color of the cobbles. We do have good Lava Cap Ancient Channel in different areas around here but the most common is located right along I80 in Gold Run, Ca for all to see. In the first few minutes of the video I describe the Blue Lead that we all look for that is shown in detail.