Does anyone else just bring gravel at home to find gold?

F

firebird

Full Member
Oct 17, 2018
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Central Valley California
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
After two months of prospecting I've come to the conclusion that if I want more gold, I'm better off just digging the dirt up to dump into my pickup to process later on. Once I've prospected and sampled an area and found a specific area with gold I just dig that area up. Does anyone else here do this? Panning/sluicing in location just seems to be a waste of precious outdoor time/cost of gas that could be used hauling more paydirt instead. Then once I'm at home I can just process it in my garage and not have to worry about the cold winter water anymore.
 

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No, on a chair in front of the TV or computer. That way the dirt goes outside and doesn't clog up the plumbing. Now at a hotel, well, that's a different story.
 

That's been my method, though I want to try some production panning this coming summer.

It's illegal to sluice here, so I had to find a way.

I go into a crick with five, 3 gallon buckets, a 3/8 sifter, and a half size d-ring shovel. Dig/sift the buckets almost full, and I'm done.....But I also have reasons.

The place I normally take my dirt is an old logging camp I've been detecting, It's just convenient to snatch some dirt, and it has gold.Then I can get back to detecting.

The 3 gallon buckets are to keep me from getting hurt, 5 gallon just weighed too much.

I want to try the production panning, in some spots because I've found larger amounts of gold in places where the crick has made quite a cut in the earth, and hauling a bucket of unprocessed dirt out, just seems stupid.
 

There is no drain to clog. I bathe in my panning tub! Another time saver!
Pour in some Jet Dry and start scraping those cracks! Oops not that crack!
 

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In case you are not aware of how to do production panning....."Production panning: Fill your pan and pan it down to less than half, add more material to that pan and repeat. You can continue to do this until you are in jeopardy of flushing out black sand and maybe fine particles of gold. When you reach that point empty the pan into a collection bucket to take home or further concentrate by carefully panning (just to reduce volume) at the end of the day. Start over again and again and......"
Bottom line...Take concentrates home to make your garage cleanup easier especially if you were dealing with multiples of bucket loads.

Good luck
 

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I'm in the desert so when checking out a new area I will dry pan to get down to cons, which doesn't take long. However I am more selective about where I get samples from than just scooping up a bunch of dirt.
 

tailing weeds.jpg
BEWARE !
I like winter mining on the Clearwater and bring paydirt home for processing in a warm, controlled environment. When I'm absolutely sure I've extracted all the gold, I use the tailings as fill material on one of the many trails on my property. Unfortunately, the tailings contain weed seed that germinate in the spring. As seen in the picture, sprouts of "Canadian Thistle" have emerged from the tailings. If left to grow, they would quickly multiply and spread throughout the property. Quick work with a shovel will remove them roots and all. Placed in a garbage bag, they will wither away and never be a problem again. If you leave a portion of a root in the ground, it will come back to haunt you in just a few weeks. Be aware of this potential problem if you bring concentrates home.
 

Thats how I have done it for decades.Pan in the field until I find what I'm looking for.Classify it in the field to 1/4" .Bring home buckets of it to process further.
 

Yup -- I have a full 5 gallon bucket of dry dirt classified to 1/4" that I know has gold in it.
Been saving it to test stuff.
Be careful what you bring home as I think I introduced scorpions to my garage.
Cheers Mike
 

I used to do that years ago, I don't anymore unless it is impossible to process on sight, I would rather carry out concentrates than raw dirt.
 

N-Lionberger said:
I used to do that years ago, I don't anymore unless it is impossible to process on sight, I would rather carry out concentrates than raw dirt.
Click to expand...

This is pretty much where I'm at here in Michigan. Finding the most efficient, legal way to concentrate my material in the field.

To do it raw, is simply too much work to be any fun.

Besides, I was more interested in being outside on the hoof, not in my garage or kitchen.
 

Nah, I have no desire to try and find a place to dump 2-4,000 lbs of dirt every week.
 

Wow.. i didn't expect TNET to have a thread about the easiest way to get the least amount of gold...

Yet here it is:icon_scratch:
 

Goldwasher said:
Wow.. i didn't expect TNET to have a thread about the easiest way to get the least amount of gold...

Yet here it is:icon_scratch:
Click to expand...

How so? I've gotten more gold from the gravel I bring back home. I understand what other people say here by wanting to experience being outdoors instead but where I'm at that goddamn bear is still lurking about so it's not really relaxing for me at all.
 

i suppose if i were able to drive up to my intended prspecting location, and needed some fill, then it would be a no brainer, but its hard enough packing in a full size sluice and buckets, shovel, water and food. i couldnt imagine trying to pack out buckets of dirt. if my intention was to pack out paydirt, then it would only be material from cleaned cracks. not material from a gravel bar. then again the medicine to my fever requires my batteries to be charged....... speaking of, better get it on the charger if i want some newyear's day gold!!!
 

I often bring buckets home to a small wash plant I have set up. Where I live water is scarce, and where it flows is often claimed. High benches where I can drive to are an easy way to process material. I live in the country and regulations are more lenient at home. I have a place for the tailings and the washed screened gravel is a bonus. I don't have to wade in cold water and bend over and carry a lot of gear. I can process 20 buckets in a few hours. I pour the buckets into a wheelbarrow that is easy to shovel out of into my hopper. For me it works. Some times I go to the mountain, and some times the mountain comes to me.
 

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