Waddell Creek? ?

[Jjhall68]

Mike,

My Daughter will be home tomorrow so I will resize and pass along what I can.
How goes the Salmon hunting?

Kai,

Have you cleaned up any of what we ran Saturday?
I am going to pick up my Miners Moss tomorrow.

 

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[AimSmMissSm]

I ran the -50 on the miller table last night here is what I got. Still havent run the -20 to +50 or the +20.

 

[Jjhall68]

Thanks Kai,

I look forward to seeing the rest. Didn't pan any +20 at Wadell and all I brought home was my -20 cons. I panned the rest there. I gold cubed my cons then classified to -/+50 and panned separately.

All the Best,
John

 

[AimSmMissSm]

Luke is a dredger he is hooked. The 4" is a big machine for a day trip to Waddell but as he said on stream " I can never go back to sluicing"








Sorry about picture quality I tried to get the machine and Luke in the picture he is hard to see past the machine.

 

[LRC253]

Kai,

Thanks for your help yesterday getting the dredge up and running. I can't wait to go again... My clean up after that 45 minute run is looking nice and considering my con build up in the sluice.. I think it turned out pretty good. I honestly still can't believe how much material I will be able to run in this dredge when I have a 3 or 4 day stretch.
Great times!

 

[Jjhall68]

Luke,

Congratulations on your new dredge, that is some machine!
I wish I could have made it Sunday, but I went to the Doc today and she fixed me up pretty good so I think I'm back in action soon.
I can't wait to see that run!

All the Best,
John

 

[LRC253]

Well this is after about 45 minutes of dredging -- I panned this stuff down but still want to run all the cons through the goldcube that's buried in storage.

 

[DizzyDigger]

Mike,

My Daughter will be home tomorrow so I will resize and pass along what I can.
How goes the Salmon hunting?

John, if you're chasing Coho then you need look no further than my backyard...

Got one of the best Coho holes on the river right off our beach. Don't expect
the Coho will show up in any numbers for about 3 more weeks, but I can sure
let you know when they arrive.

There's also gold on the beach; it's awful small stuff but if you get tired
of catching fish you can always do some prospecting..

 

[Jjhall68]

Mike

I would love to give that a try. Coho are about my favorite on the grill, although if have smoked a couple that turned out pretty good for an amateur. I used to smoke big bright chums from the Skagit but that's a sore point for me so I'll skip it. You say the word and I'm there.

John

 

[Echoplex]

Hi Folks,

Brand new W. Washington member here. One of this year's resolutions was to find my first gold and, from what I read, Waddell seems to be a good place to start for a flake or two, and it is a comfortable drive for me. I picked up a Mackirk Explorer sluice and some other basic gear and was thinking about heading out there soon. Being completely unfamiliar with that area, I was hoping someone could answer some basic questions for me:

First is, where is the best place to park to access the creek? I was looking on Google Earth and am a bit confused as to where the main creek access point is.

Any other basic tips regarding access/parking would be greatly appreciated. Not looking for your secrets or honey holes! Just looking to get my feet wet and maybe get a few specs of color.

Also, this time of year, is the area generally safe to bring an 8 year old? My son has been begging to go prospecting and I am unsure if I should bring him this first time around or wait for Summer.

Thanks and best wishes,

Mike

 

[LRC253]

Welcome Mike, this is the very first creek I went to when I first started and it was with an Angus Mackirk as well. The first thing you need is a discover pass then drive to margaret mckenny campground. The gate might be still closed but you can still park outside of it and follow the trail down about 5 minutes and it'll put you straight into the creek. There are some really good spots with a bunch of fine gold and chances are you'll easily get some your first go around. Just pick any inside bend and start digging and classifying. There are other access points down the road from the campground as well.

I heard the creek was moving pretty good about a month ago but we haven't had terrible weather. The creek itself isn't that big so it should be ok. I bring my 5 year old but I make sure he is glued to my side the entire time. Take pictures! If you have any other questions let me know.

 

[Echoplex]

Thanks for the info, LRC! I'll definitely snap some pics. I also joined P. Plus and will be trying my gear at some of their Liberty sites in a few weeks, pending weather. They're also holding a family outing in a couple weeks that we are going to. I have to say, prospecting has really given me something new to look forward to this year. Thanks and happy hunting! -Mike

 

[golddigger14s]

Park at the Middle Waddell Trailhead parking area. I think that parking area is open year round, if not the areas open May 1st.

 

[mike(swWash)]

The gate is closed but you can park outside and walk in year round.

Good hunting

 

[Echoplex]

Has anyone tried any of the other smaller creeks in the Capitol Forest or is the deposition of gold in that area unique to Waddell? I see Cedar Creek listed in the booklet and there are obviously many smaller creeks in the forest.

Also, completely off-topic, but does anyone know if having the PDF of the Gold and Fish booklet on your smart phone qualifies as having it on you? Probably a question for an official Ranger, but maybe one of you know.

Thanks again everyone!

 

[LRC253]

Cedar creek does have gold but not nearly as much as I've got from waddell... give it a shot though. The gold and fish on the phone does qualify however my phone is typically always dead by the end of the day so I wouldn't risk it. Just print it, hole punch then 3 ring binder.

 

[Echoplex]

Interesting thanks! I'm the type of person that always wonders about the "whys". It seems that the Cedar has larger network of feeders that reach deeper into the forest as compared to Waddell. Having not seen either creek in person, does Waddell simply have the most overall volume of water?

 

[mike(swWash)]

Waddell was more or less at the south end of the last couple ice age glaciers and all the melt water left the flour we find down there. If you look at a topo map you can see the ancient valley left from eons of erosion. You can find gold all over the area but as usual it's concentrated most where the water has recently been. Who knows, there might be some nice dryland placer pockets if a person knew where to look and drilled about a million test holes.

I think I figured out where the gold came from originally.
North of B.C. there's the only greenstone deposit with gold in the same area in the west, and since I only find gold where I find small bits of greenstone as well as both being right in the path of the last couple ice ages that slid our way, I'm guessing that's the source. Waddell is the only place I've found more than a few very small greenstone in any creek in the area.
Good hunting.....Mike

 

[Echoplex]

Awesome explanation! This is the kind of stuff that really fascinates me. Thanks for sharing that! I have so much to learn, but that's the fun part for me.

 

[crusty]

Great thread! I'm in WA visiting family, so I left my 2.5" Keene dredge at home, but would now I'll have to pln a trip back in dredging season!

Planning on checking out the creek next week to do a little sluicing. Appreciate y'all Sharing info here!