Preparing for The Hunt

[Glenn]

In my years of gold prospecting I have seen so many people hit the goldfields completely unprepared for the experience. I have been away from Arizona for about eleven months so I have spent the last month getting ready for my long winter hunt, I hike a minimum of five miles a day, I now walk in the dark so I have to get used to lifting my feet up over the uneven sidewalks and hiking trails, I just started carrying a jug of water in my right hand to get used to the weight of the detector and I am switching my food over to what I will be eating in camp. The saddest thing I saw at Moore Creek was guys who paid good money to get to prime gold ground and then burned out in two days and cramped up. I was just curious if I am the only nut out there that treats gold hunting like an extreme sport, lol.

[deathray]

Good strategy. I dont go to that extreme,but I do try to hike as much as possible to stay ready for NoCals canyons. Being a roofer,I stay in decent shape,but it still kicks my butt when I havent been out for awhile.

[Glenn]

I am in construction myself so I have always been in good shape, but prospecting the way I like to hunt puts a different strain on your body. I tend to always want to see what is over the next hill until camp is so far away I wander how I went that far, and now I have to work my way back.

[Steve Herschbach]

I had to change my whole life. Working a desk job, cooped up in Alaska all winter not getting out, poor diet, and age were all catching up with me. In posts a few years ago I was starting to look like the Pillsbury dough boy. I did not like the way that was all heading and luckily it was possible for me to do a radical life change by moving south. I also changed my overall lifestyle and lost 40 pound in the process. I want to stay healthy and active at this as long as possible and so far could not be more pleased with my new direction in life. My wife and wiener dogs are happier too!

If I was in Alaska right now my detecting and indeed going outdoors would be over until May. Instead, I was climbing the hills yesterday putting on the miles in steep terrain. And no stopping at all unless I want to. Alaska can be great if you love winters but for me winter just stops me from doing what I want to do.

Obviously Glenn I got to see a lot more people than you at not only at Moore Creek but at Ganes Creek. The number of people willing but unable is disheartening. Nobody has to be as gung-ho as you but staying in good shape as we get older is critical not only to nugget detecting success but a healthier, happier life in general.

Left Costco card three years ago, right, drivers license last year

[fredmason]

Way back when I lived in Portola, near Quincy, I could run up and down mountains like a goat. Now I am a flatlander in San Diego and almost 65...I can still get up the hills and cover some miles...but, the climb is a little bit slower.

 

I hope to drop dead in the mountains or the desert...that would be the perfect ending!

 

fred

[hawkeye]

Hey Glenn, sorry but I got a laugh picturing a guy walking around in dark with a jug of water.

[Glenn]

Yeah everyone in town keeps asking me why I am carrying a gallon of water because it is not that hot right now, but when I explain how heavy my detector is with a large coil and speaker and battery pack and how after about 4-5 hours my shoulder is cramping until I get back into peak shape they understand, but I'm sure they still get a good chuckle when the nut from Arizona shoots past them on my evening runs. I only have about two more weeks until I am back in my old stomping grounds and the desert will whip me back into shape real quick. I know when Steve gets down here to do some long range hunts I don't want to be whining, slow down I need a break, lol. He might just leave me behind for coyote bait.