IMPDLN
Full Member
- Mar 18, 2014
- 218
- 431
- Detector(s) used
- Minelab SD2100 V-2, Gold Bug SE, SDC2300, GPX4500
- Primary Interest:
- Prospecting
I've been prospecting at least 1 day a week for a while. Most weeks 2 days. Even been out with Rod (from another forum) a couple times this winter, however I won't go into any details about those excursions at this time. I got a friend interested in metal detecting for gold last year. He has dabbled with metal detectors off and on for some time. Mostly just goofing around finding coins and such at parks and such when he was younger. After seeing some of my finds he wanted to get out there and find some gold.
Well I got a Gold Bug, non pro version, from Cabelas bargain cave real cheap and proceeded to pay for it the 4th time I had it out detecting with, as Lanny would say, some nice sassy gold nuggets. So my partner asked if I would get him the same deal should I find another GB in the bargain cave and about a month later I did just that. Mostly I use a Minelab SD2100 V-2, but the GB is a sweet deal for sure that I mostly use for long exploratory hikes or days when I am too lazy to heft the Minelab.
So last spring we got out detecting a few times, before it got too hot for him, and he got familiar with the GB but was not able to get his 1st nugget. This fall I was having difficulties getting him enthusiastic about going out and his wife decided to get him the 5x10 accessory coil for Christmas. So on new years day he, his wife, and I got out to an area I had found a few pieces and gave it a go.
I had my trusty 2100 and they went ahead with the GB. We kind of hopscotched our way up the gulch and arrived together at a fork. They went up a little feeder and I stayed on the main wash. I then got a nice target under the coil which I was sure was gold as it had not come to hand easily. I had water seeping into the hole and had to spend about 10 minutes recovering the nice little nugget. I yelled over to my friends that I had 1 and they responded we have 2!!! I was like what?!?!?!? You have 2
My partners wife walked back out to my position and showed me the nice little sassy pickers they had found while I was digging my 1. While I was admiring their 1st 2 nuggets with his wife, he hollered out...I got another 1 !!!! So I gathered my stuff and we walked over to his position and sure enough he not only found his 1st gold that day but 3 in like 15 minutes!!! So we all smiled ear to ear and admired those nice little sassy nuggets and then I dropped back to the start of the gulch to see what the 2100 would find that he missed.
Sure enough about 10 minutes later we both had another target and we both knew in short order that we both had more gold. Just a little sideline here. I was just as excited as they where because I felt like a father who's kid just caught his 1st fish. I was glowing golden with pride at this time so I had to rub it in a little that he missed the nugget I just dug, lol. However he gave it right back when his 4th nugget was a real nice 2 grammer. So we kept at it and they got another nice little picker for a total of 5 for the day. All came in about 30-45 minutes and even though they continued to hunt a couple more hours that day, that was to be all the gold they would be rewarded with that day. I stayed till dark and managed 1 more little picker, for a total of 3 for me, back in the main gulch just before dark. My partner and I went back out the next afternoon and we each managed 2 more little pickers for a total of 12 nice little sassy nuggets and right at 1/4 ounce combined.
So now he has got the fever and has been going at least 1 afternoon a week. Going with me when he can and going with his wife usually 1 day each weekend. So last Sunday they call me and say are you home? Come outside we got something to show you. Of course I knew something was up because he has no cell phone and never calls me from his wife's cell. So out on the porch I go and he hands to me, with closed fist, a large chunk of magnetite with a $hit eating grin on both their faces. I wasn't fooled for a moment and said you didn't come over here to show me that....we laughed and their grins just got bigger. I knew they found something real nice and just started getting the shakes, I held out my shaking hand and he dropped a 1.1 grammer on me. I said that's real nice, but I know you got something better. We laughed and his wife and him played a little hand jive swap. I held out my still shaking hand and said "show me"!!! "The suspense is killing me"!!! So he dropped this beautiful 14.7 gram specie in my hand and I really started shaking. I am really proud of them and their success.
Of course I went straight into my apartment, with them right behind me. I got my soft tooth brush for cleaning nuggets and gave the beauty a nice warm bath so we could realize her true luster. Then to the scale we went to confirm the weight at 14.7 grams and 1.1 grams for the little 1 they showed me 1st. The little guy got a bath too, lol. Of course we talked about the details and laughed at the amazing events of how this gem came to hand. Needless to say we immediately made plans to get back out there the following Thursday and hit that little wash some more.
So Thursday came and we could hardly wait to get going. He was even at the scene before me for a change.....imagine that, lol. So off we go up the wash. He showed me the locations of the 2 most recent finds and the 2100 made sure he had not missed anything as he thought there might have been a couple small targets he missed. We determined it was only the mineralization and proceeded to get to hunting. As usual I sent him ahead to give him the 1st opportunity to better his chances. I stayed back and checked the area thoroughly and made sure he had not missed anything. We both dug the usual lead fragments and iron nails and such and after awhile he returned to my location. He was getting tired but I convinced him to keep trying a little longer while I went on ahead.
Now I am a hiking fool and don't give up easy. I rarely stop till I get way up the gulch. I intended to go quick and cherry pick as not to leave him for too long as he never hunts till dark like I do. Well, as usual I am not back till dark and of course he is long gone. I got up a little ways past where he had turned around and reached another fork. 1st I went to the right for awhile and didn't find anything but an old shell casing. So back down I go and head up the left fork. Shortly after the fork I reached the beginning of a series of waterfalls, which I knew would be there from checking satellite imagery of the area. Right at the base of the waterfall I got a sweet signal on bedrock and under a substantial boulder. I moved a few smaller rocks out of the way and proceeded to scrape the material away from the edge of the boulder. After a few scrapes and rechecking the signal she was in the pile of removed dirt. I thought it would be another chunk of lead as that is a common target for this wash. I had dug a few large pieces of lead shrapnel already this day and thought this would be more of the same because of the loud solid signal from the 2100. So to the scoop I go. 2nd scoop full of dirt and I had the target acquired. Doing the usual pour and scan I narrowed down the dirt and exposed my target. Well, to my surprise there sits a real nice sassy chunk of a nugget. Into the bottle she goes and of course onward and upward I go.
Of course my mode has changed from cherry picking to thorough scanning now and next thing I know I am like 1.5 miles up that wash, over like 5 waterfalls, and running out of day light. Oddly enough hardly any targets of any kind are to be found on up the wash. I suspect that wash had been detected many times before as even when I got up to a fence line I only dug 1 piece of iron junk from below that fence. Normally I find all kinds of iron trash below fences, especially old barbed wire fences like this 1. So anyway it is time to work my way back down the 2+ miles back to the quad as it is soon to be getting dark. On the way I could see where my partner had continued to dig a few targets in my absence and even dug a few more on my way out. As I got back to the main wash and closer to my quad, I got another sweet whisper of a target on some bedrock I have been over a few times before. A little scraping and scoop action and I had another nice little picker which was right at .3 of a gram so 2 nuggets for the day in my bottle.
I called my partner when I got home to check in and he had no success this day. I told him it was because he didn't have the wife along, his good luck charm, and he agreed. I cleaned my 2 nuggets for the day and got out the scale for confirmation of weight. To be honest I had thought my 1st nugget for the day was going to be a 1/2 ounce piece or more. So anyway I cleaned and weighed while I kept him in suspense on the phone, and my total for the day was 11.2 grams. A real nice sassy 10.9 grammer and a cute little .3 picker to finish the day with.
The 5 pieces on the scale are his 1st ever from New Years day for a total of 3.6 grams. The nuggets in the hand are his 1.1 gram and 14.7 gram specie, 2 pics showing both sides of the specie. The next 2 pics are of my 10.9 gram beauty, fresh from the ground and then 2 more pics showing both sides after cleaning. I hope you all enjoy and maybe this post will encourage some people here to go find some gold. Dennis
Well I got a Gold Bug, non pro version, from Cabelas bargain cave real cheap and proceeded to pay for it the 4th time I had it out detecting with, as Lanny would say, some nice sassy gold nuggets. So my partner asked if I would get him the same deal should I find another GB in the bargain cave and about a month later I did just that. Mostly I use a Minelab SD2100 V-2, but the GB is a sweet deal for sure that I mostly use for long exploratory hikes or days when I am too lazy to heft the Minelab.
So last spring we got out detecting a few times, before it got too hot for him, and he got familiar with the GB but was not able to get his 1st nugget. This fall I was having difficulties getting him enthusiastic about going out and his wife decided to get him the 5x10 accessory coil for Christmas. So on new years day he, his wife, and I got out to an area I had found a few pieces and gave it a go.
I had my trusty 2100 and they went ahead with the GB. We kind of hopscotched our way up the gulch and arrived together at a fork. They went up a little feeder and I stayed on the main wash. I then got a nice target under the coil which I was sure was gold as it had not come to hand easily. I had water seeping into the hole and had to spend about 10 minutes recovering the nice little nugget. I yelled over to my friends that I had 1 and they responded we have 2!!! I was like what?!?!?!? You have 2
My partners wife walked back out to my position and showed me the nice little sassy pickers they had found while I was digging my 1. While I was admiring their 1st 2 nuggets with his wife, he hollered out...I got another 1 !!!! So I gathered my stuff and we walked over to his position and sure enough he not only found his 1st gold that day but 3 in like 15 minutes!!! So we all smiled ear to ear and admired those nice little sassy nuggets and then I dropped back to the start of the gulch to see what the 2100 would find that he missed.Sure enough about 10 minutes later we both had another target and we both knew in short order that we both had more gold. Just a little sideline here. I was just as excited as they where because I felt like a father who's kid just caught his 1st fish. I was glowing golden with pride at this time so I had to rub it in a little that he missed the nugget I just dug, lol. However he gave it right back when his 4th nugget was a real nice 2 grammer. So we kept at it and they got another nice little picker for a total of 5 for the day. All came in about 30-45 minutes and even though they continued to hunt a couple more hours that day, that was to be all the gold they would be rewarded with that day. I stayed till dark and managed 1 more little picker, for a total of 3 for me, back in the main gulch just before dark. My partner and I went back out the next afternoon and we each managed 2 more little pickers for a total of 12 nice little sassy nuggets and right at 1/4 ounce combined.
So now he has got the fever and has been going at least 1 afternoon a week. Going with me when he can and going with his wife usually 1 day each weekend. So last Sunday they call me and say are you home? Come outside we got something to show you. Of course I knew something was up because he has no cell phone and never calls me from his wife's cell. So out on the porch I go and he hands to me, with closed fist, a large chunk of magnetite with a $hit eating grin on both their faces. I wasn't fooled for a moment and said you didn't come over here to show me that....we laughed and their grins just got bigger. I knew they found something real nice and just started getting the shakes, I held out my shaking hand and he dropped a 1.1 grammer on me. I said that's real nice, but I know you got something better. We laughed and his wife and him played a little hand jive swap. I held out my still shaking hand and said "show me"!!! "The suspense is killing me"!!! So he dropped this beautiful 14.7 gram specie in my hand and I really started shaking. I am really proud of them and their success.
Of course I went straight into my apartment, with them right behind me. I got my soft tooth brush for cleaning nuggets and gave the beauty a nice warm bath so we could realize her true luster. Then to the scale we went to confirm the weight at 14.7 grams and 1.1 grams for the little 1 they showed me 1st. The little guy got a bath too, lol. Of course we talked about the details and laughed at the amazing events of how this gem came to hand. Needless to say we immediately made plans to get back out there the following Thursday and hit that little wash some more.
So Thursday came and we could hardly wait to get going. He was even at the scene before me for a change.....imagine that, lol. So off we go up the wash. He showed me the locations of the 2 most recent finds and the 2100 made sure he had not missed anything as he thought there might have been a couple small targets he missed. We determined it was only the mineralization and proceeded to get to hunting. As usual I sent him ahead to give him the 1st opportunity to better his chances. I stayed back and checked the area thoroughly and made sure he had not missed anything. We both dug the usual lead fragments and iron nails and such and after awhile he returned to my location. He was getting tired but I convinced him to keep trying a little longer while I went on ahead.
Now I am a hiking fool and don't give up easy. I rarely stop till I get way up the gulch. I intended to go quick and cherry pick as not to leave him for too long as he never hunts till dark like I do. Well, as usual I am not back till dark and of course he is long gone. I got up a little ways past where he had turned around and reached another fork. 1st I went to the right for awhile and didn't find anything but an old shell casing. So back down I go and head up the left fork. Shortly after the fork I reached the beginning of a series of waterfalls, which I knew would be there from checking satellite imagery of the area. Right at the base of the waterfall I got a sweet signal on bedrock and under a substantial boulder. I moved a few smaller rocks out of the way and proceeded to scrape the material away from the edge of the boulder. After a few scrapes and rechecking the signal she was in the pile of removed dirt. I thought it would be another chunk of lead as that is a common target for this wash. I had dug a few large pieces of lead shrapnel already this day and thought this would be more of the same because of the loud solid signal from the 2100. So to the scoop I go. 2nd scoop full of dirt and I had the target acquired. Doing the usual pour and scan I narrowed down the dirt and exposed my target. Well, to my surprise there sits a real nice sassy chunk of a nugget. Into the bottle she goes and of course onward and upward I go.
Of course my mode has changed from cherry picking to thorough scanning now and next thing I know I am like 1.5 miles up that wash, over like 5 waterfalls, and running out of day light. Oddly enough hardly any targets of any kind are to be found on up the wash. I suspect that wash had been detected many times before as even when I got up to a fence line I only dug 1 piece of iron junk from below that fence. Normally I find all kinds of iron trash below fences, especially old barbed wire fences like this 1. So anyway it is time to work my way back down the 2+ miles back to the quad as it is soon to be getting dark. On the way I could see where my partner had continued to dig a few targets in my absence and even dug a few more on my way out. As I got back to the main wash and closer to my quad, I got another sweet whisper of a target on some bedrock I have been over a few times before. A little scraping and scoop action and I had another nice little picker which was right at .3 of a gram so 2 nuggets for the day in my bottle.
I called my partner when I got home to check in and he had no success this day. I told him it was because he didn't have the wife along, his good luck charm, and he agreed. I cleaned my 2 nuggets for the day and got out the scale for confirmation of weight. To be honest I had thought my 1st nugget for the day was going to be a 1/2 ounce piece or more. So anyway I cleaned and weighed while I kept him in suspense on the phone, and my total for the day was 11.2 grams. A real nice sassy 10.9 grammer and a cute little .3 picker to finish the day with.
The 5 pieces on the scale are his 1st ever from New Years day for a total of 3.6 grams. The nuggets in the hand are his 1.1 gram and 14.7 gram specie, 2 pics showing both sides of the specie. The next 2 pics are of my 10.9 gram beauty, fresh from the ground and then 2 more pics showing both sides after cleaning. I hope you all enjoy and maybe this post will encourage some people here to go find some gold. Dennis
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Great golden story of fun n' the AZ sun-thanx for the tag along story-John
