Mytimetoshine

[mytimetoshine]

Went back to one of my favorites spots. I had two goals. 1st was to finally cross to the other side to sample and 2nd was to see if my GGT Nugget will catch that 100 mesh sand deposit i found.

My Ankle has actually been bothering me even more so now then when it happened. Idk..its really weird. At rest no pain. Standing, walking, Jogging! No pain. But if i move my foot the exact angle of the incident its like a steak knife jabbing me. doesnt make any sense.. what woukd cause that? hairline fracture?

Anyways so after my 2.9 mile one way hike and 1800ft ridge im there. I forded to the other side of the river ive been dreaming to get to!!! Looks so epic from across the river. Once there.. not so much! Why is it always like that! The sun was beating down on this side with zero shade was making me uncomfortable. I dropped my pocket knife and could not find it for the life of me...I tried to sample but had difficulty getting material. The cobble and rocks were packed so tight i struggled. That should be a good thing but my pans were not good so i decided to go start on the other side. total dissapointment lol

So a couple journal entries ago i discovered this high bar deposit of fine black sands. It looks like blonde worthless but a few surface patches of black sand drew me in to test and it had tons of 100 mesh. I think i got .06 from 2 pans worth i backpacked home and proccesed with my GC. So i figure about .03 per pan if it stays consistent and not just a hot spot. Still have no easy way to use my CG here and i would have to have tubs to recirculate to work this bench. So i started running through my GGT pretty slowly and with a flat angle and low flow as possible. Boy the inspection riffles lit up with solid lines!

The material is heavy obviously and a long haul down to the river edge so in abour 3 hrs i think i ran 30 pans, heaping pans though. Got .67g out of it. If my math is correct thats pretty close. Ithink the sample was just barely .06 and im sure the Fluid bed lost some gold.

I think the best thing to do is get a drywasher for this bench... now how to get the money. I got my eyes on the Thompson hank crank/battery puffer but dang so $$$

 

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[Asmbandits]

I was just talking to a guy that knows a guy who pulled a few ounces from a sand bar on the same river if its the one I'm thinking of.. Instantly thought of you and knew it was a legit claim lol.. Great gold, its so fine!

 

[johnedoe]

NICE digs Shine......... Man I would love to be on some ground like that. Only problem is I don't think my old knees could get me there ....

 

[spillercanyon]

I think the best thing to do is get a drywasher for this bench... now how to get the money. I got my eyes on the Thompson hank crank/battery puffer but dang so $$$

You would probably have to throw the dirt on the bank to dry for a few hours or even a day or two, it's surprising how moist the material is near the rivers, even this time of year. If it is not traveled much or if you make it look either natural or like a tailing pile, you could dig and classify the material one day and a couple days later wash it in the drywasher. I have done both, waited a few hours and waited a few days, depending on the moisture content. I classify the material to remove the big rocks which slow the dirt drying process. We're working the same type of areas, I'm a couple counties south of you, and it's worked well for me. With the increase in throughput and with gold at $40/gram, it may not be too long to pay it off.

Have fun, Spiller.

 

[63bkpkr]

Hi There MTTS, Interesting write up, Lovely Pictures, Sweet Color glad you are getting out though do be careful with that ankle. Have you tried a supportive brace for it? May be too thick to get the boot over it and it could impede your movements but protecting it in some manner would keep you going out safely.

I've started my exercise routine with immediate positive results, two nights now I've slept well! I suspect the knee issue was caused by the meniscus having slipped out when the joint was really spread open and it was trapped when the joint closed down. I stepped off of a two foot drop on Monday, there was a twinge in the knee but afterward the knee was a lot better. Now to recover from two months worth of pain.

Take good care of yourself and have lots of fun this year!!..................63bkpkr

 

[mytimetoshine]

Man way behind on post! Busy time of year for me but still been digging.

This was a saturday solo trip. Got to the spot kinda late and energy level wasnt the best but still managed some gold running my GGT. Sure is catching the fine gold well. Couple hours work.

 

[mytimetoshine]

Ok, so epic gold mining trip but i didnt take any pictures!!!.. i know.. i know im dissapointed in my self,lol.

Been wanting to start doing some overnight trips to have more time on those hard to reach better gold areas. Gain that experience and figure out what gear works/isnt worth packing, what i still need etc.. So this trip accomplished all that.

Took some strategic vaca days at work and got word from Asmbandits of a 2 night trip that was right up my alley.

So i decided to drive to Gerry's house to leave my truck for saftey. Huge mistake as traffic was miserable on the trip home to and from.. ugh.

Friday we got to the trail probably around 2. Hiked up river with 50lb packs for about 2 miles.We met up with a few others that were already there. Long,exhausting hike in unfamiliar ground, didnt know anyone in the group other then Gerry. The wind for some reason kicked up in the canyon, and looking up at the remote canyon walls all trees whipping around, kicked off a really good anxiety attack.... Hard to explain the feeling, but it can be really debilitating.. Gerry mentioned the next day i was walking around like an old man...it makes me rather dizzy so walking on cobbles is very difficult at the time...Guess i wasnt hiding it as well as i thought!!

Everyone got to work and i was just sitting around waiting for it to pass, which it did. Then it was on!!!.

We all worked a large section of steep jagged bedrock that had it all.. high and low cracks/troughs plenty of moss holding good gold with a gravel bar to run our sluice!!! The trifecta!!!

Only did a little digging friday evening while everyone else was at work. I went hard all day saturday and sunday morning. even though i started slow i think i stayed on the pay and with an efficient setup most of the trip.

Sleeping wise we were in a pretty tight camp. I brought a cheap(3.99) swimming pool air mattess to use. Thought i was really smart until i could NOT get that thing to inflate. I messed with it for a long time and then threw in the towel... my new friend Casey took on the task and actually got it. His lungs are better then mine thats for sure!! That was the joke all night..lol. So between that the tight camp and some snoring that could wake the dead,it was a little ruff sleep. hahaha

Had great time, met some great people, got great gold and gained more knowledge and experience. A+ trip for sure.

 

[63bkpkr]

Hi MTTS, looks like you've been doing well of late, good for you!!

I had a nice get together with Jerry on the 14th in Coloma. Jarrod also stopped by with a Jaw Dropping Specimen, that thing is beautiful!

My trip up to the mountains 9th to 17th worked out well, I did not injure myself which was always on my mind. I got into some rough country but did not quite get to where I wanted to go but, safety first!! I enjoyed myself just the same. Its starting to get cold out there at night at least. The 17th was just nasty hot where I was!

Take care of yourself and the best of luck to you in finding what you are looking for!.............63bkpkr

 

[mytimetoshine]

2 trips to the same spot couple weekends back. I took Friday off of work and then went back Saturday. Pretty beet up and overworked with responsibilties of late so i was just tired. Slept in and got to the spot with little energy both days, but its just what i needed to relieve some stress.

Had great weather and after a little looking around i found a killer spot. 2 big boulders in the river make the gold drop. you have to ford to get to it. No trail on that side of the river so its only accesible maybe 4 months of the year at low water. Its has some flat area and stays in the shade all day. Some large slate boulders on the bank also trap gold and a small seasonal gulch empties as well to help the low pressure zone. Or it could all be coming out of the gulch? hmm..

Anyways the boulders create a nice 3ft waterfall. Perfect for sluicing. The hike in is about 20 minutes. and the return up hill 30-35. The first day I prospected an 1hr and a half so probably 3hr at the most running material. Next day probably ran 4hrs but my hole got flooded out just before hitting a nice clay layer. I will be back!.. not sure if the rain will cooperate though. Once the river comes up. its cut off. Gold take is both days.. meh, but i think there is more to come from this spot. Trust your instincts!

 

[mytimetoshine]

A Facebook gold mining page im a member of had an outing at their claim in Foresthill. It is in the ancient tertiary gravels. The plan was to camp overnight but i just couldnt justify it as the gold wasnt very good. There was a couple yards of material ready to run but not a lot of flowing water to run. Some panned, one ran a drywasher. I was able to run a drop riffle of the exit flow from the pond. About 5 buckets worth. Cool stuff as ive never seen this stuff in person. The mine goes in at about a 45 degree angle into the darkness. I had the chance to go in but im not trying to die for some fly poop! lol. I prefer to be above ground then sitting in a damp, dark hole. Unless were talking nuggets!

 

[mytimetoshine]

Ive been wanting to hit some of those better gold/harder to get at spots but its just hard to find people to go with so another solo mission.

Pulled up to the top of the ridge and parked the truck Saturday morning at about 9am. No other cars, weather was nice. As i decended on foot to the trail head i double checked with myself that i wanted to do this hike. Ive been before so i knew what i was getting into. 45min of shredding switchbacks and im at the bottom. Nobody around...

I decided just comming down here alone was enough and that i wouldnt venture far from the bridge. water is very low so i forded to the other side where there is a very well used sand bar with a nice area for sleeping under some small trees. Pair of discarded panties just laying there.. i guess i missed the party. A huge bedrock outcrop thats been creviced 100 times. I took some samples and almost nothing... i decided to follow the bedrock down into the sand bar but up against the canyon wall where there was a little rock and dirt.

There was easy panning and a cobble bar for sluicing close by but after hauling a few pans i decided it was a little to far frome where i was digging so i just panned. Finally around 1 or 2 a few people showed up to take a quick swim. That made me feel a little better and that there were at least some people around.

Panned a couple hrs, nothing great but definetly some good gold down here. my little area has been hammered and hammered and i still managed some. I could have done more and got more gold but being alone i got to remind my self not to get too crazy.

 

[63bkpkr]

MTTS, nice junket you had for yourself! Water looks great! All those footpath bridges look similar to each other and the mountains look great whether low or high! Of course a little bit of gold looks better than an empty pan though it would be nice to see some pinky nail sized thicker flakes or some nuggets but then you got out and got some so that's a whole lot better than not going or getting nothing. Well Done!

Being safe is just wise but for some reason I've never thought about going in alone as being dangerous. All my buddies stopped going a long time ago, I still wanted to so I did. I've always taken some sort of safety measures in with me: a map of where I was going to be, a heavy duty revolver with additional ammunition, a really good first aid kit, gear to keep me safe in whatever the weather was going to be (I used to bring tarps then I switched over to tents as they were faster to setup and offered better wet/cold weather protection). And of course as the years passed my packs just became heavier but then as long as I was in good shape it was all good to go! The trips also just got longer and longer till a two week trip Down There was normal

All good times even with injuries: scrapes, cuts, sprained back, sprained ankle, bitten by a nest of yellow jackets, heat stroke, bears stealing my food and ruining my gear with the final ultimate injury a broken leg & a severely sprained ankle both to the same leg. In my first aid-kit I carry several left over heavy duty pain killer pills from surgeries in the past and even after Many Years of sitting in my kit they still worked

Several items kept me going when I hiked out on that sprained/broken leg: two pain pills taken all at once, being in really good physical condition, my 6' 4" long 1" O.D. hiking staff, a few prayers asking for His assistance and mental determination to get myself out along with my entire 85 pound backpack. "Stuff" happens so being prepared for it makes all the difference to living or not! That sprained/broken trip was when I was about 60 years of age and it happened between the Sailor Flat two wheel drive parking area just as the four wheel drive road starts and up from the four wheel drive parking area so it was steep climbing to get out. Would I still go in Yup, as long as I was in good physical strength condition and after I have an operation or two or three or four AND I've done a complete job of re-conditioning myself after the surgeries. Though at the moment I'm looking at starting another company or at least having another job so we will see just what happens first to direct my life!

Thank you for taking us along with you and sharing your trip, I certainly appreciate it! .....................63bkpkr

Late 1960's September 2018 a bit of change and a lot of miles

 

[mytimetoshine]

Thanks for sharing 63! Idk why i always feel a bit apprehensive out there. Ive had some close calls. I fell twice this year not to mention a bear encounter or 2. I dont carry but am thinking about it more and more.. At least having a dog with me would help alot but until i can afford to buy a house, i dont want my dog to be cooped up in my apartment alone all week while im at work. Plus they charge 50 a month..what a racket!!! Ive been going alone 90% of the time in my 4 years mining. Never had given it much thought till this year. I got a garmin sat communicator. But im single, live alone so nobody would even know i was missing until i dont show up to work. My parents would have no idea where to look. I just recently told my dad i was gonna text him with where i plan to be. He asked if my sat was working. I said yes but its hard to use when you are dead and mountain lion is gnawing on your ribcage. His response: Good point..

 

[63bkpkr]

Falling happens while climbing or walking in the water on slick rocks. For the water I try to have a grippy sole running shoe with me as they help some on the slick rocks. I do my best to not fall when I'm climbing.

Safety from the animals w/o a firearm: keep the food out of camp, carry a can of wasp spray that will reach out to 15 to 20' (it will not be handy to carry but it will help), an empty aspirin bottle re-filled with cayenne pepper - throw pepper into animals eyes and it should discourage them (sprinkle pepper around vehicle windows helps to keep bears from pulling rubber seals out)

Leaving a detailed trip plan with your Dad would be a good idea but of course you have to go where your message says so at times that will not work. Once while I was waiting to be rescued the sun had gone down and I wanted to help the search & rescue folks find me so I tied my headlamp to the top of my very tall hiking staff(any tree limb will do) propped the staff up and had the headlamp on strobe. The rescue team followed the light in to me. Be prepared to take care of yourself before you leave home as it can be quite helpful. This year I purchased my first Fire Steel (FireSteel.com) so I can start a fire even if the unit is wet.

Hope you can get into a house as a dog will be a lot happier in a house as you know. Have fun and stay safe...………..63bkpkr

 

[Goldwasher]

A Facebook gold mining page im a member of had an outing at their claim in Foresthill. It is in the ancient tertiary gravels. The plan was to camp overnight but i just couldnt justify it as the gold wasnt very good. There was a couple yards of material ready to run but not a lot of flowing water to run. Some panned, one ran a drywasher. I was able to run a drop riffle of the exit flow from the pond. About 5 buckets worth. Cool stuff as ive never seen this stuff in person. The mine goes in at about a 45 degree angle into the darkness. I had the chance to go in but im not trying to die for some fly poop! lol. I prefer to be above ground then sitting in a damp, dark hole. Unless were talking nuggets!View attachment 1642743View attachment 1642745View attachment 1642746View attachment 1642747View attachment 1642749View attachment 1642750

Is that Sherry?

 

[mytimetoshine]

Is that Sherry?

Yep!

 

[Goldwasher]

Yep!

Always diggin in yoga pants. Cracks me up.

 

[mytimetoshine]

Back out on another Saturday solo mission. One of the advantages of mining alone is not getting up at the but crack of dawn. Every miner I know likes to be at the dig by 7 or 8. I work during the week, hard.. Gold isn't going anywhere so I show up at 11! lol

Make easy work of the hike In and arrive at the Cobble bar. Look around and suck in all that fresh air goodness, yep, river to myself..

Water is so low for this time of year it's an opportunity! The water is noticeably colder though...

I started my dig right where I left off last time. I had been getting great color but I did a 10 pan test run in my GGT and not great, plus the material was getting hard to get out of the hole so I decided to open another. Hoping to hit some bigger gold but just the opposite... Still, weight is weight. Had a great day. Great Excerise and good gold!.

 

[63bkpkr]

Lady Bugs, Gold, the place to yourself, at the time you want to be there -- Had it Your Way!

Yes the water should both be low and cold, after-all it is early November, we've had precious little in the way of rain or snow at the elevations you are "playing" at however, it is still work regardless of how much you enjoyed yourself. Good for you!! Thank you for sharing with us!.............63bkpkr

 

[arizau]

Anytime I get better than gas money I'm happy.....but then actually anytime I get any gold, or even not, I am happy. Prospecting is, just plain and simple, fun!

Good job.