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Impromptu Run to Auburn Area


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I'm going to head up towards Auburn Rec Area tomorrow (Sunday) if anyone's interesting in a quick outing.  I'm doing some looking now as to where's best in the park so no further details available at this time.

 

Rock on!

 

-mox

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Just a suggestion, go across the Foresthill bridge to Drivers Flat road and go down to the river to a place called Ruck a Chuck. I am not sure if you are going to pan, sluice or detect. Detecting at RoC might be OK but another spot to run a beeper is at a public area that is an old Hydraulic pit in Foresthill behind the transfer station. There is good parking, and no stepping on toes of a claim owner........it is in my backyard and nuggets can still be coerced from the dirt! Good luck and the weather will be perfect!

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Ack, it ate my reply!  =(

 

Short version: Huge thanks for the insights.  I'm taking pan/sluice and detector.  Sluice will live in the car, most likely ... it's for "just in case."  The pan is just for a change of pace - this is mostly a detecting trip (and scouting trip to get a feel for the area.

 

I'll read up on the pit and RuckaChuck - I've been Google Earth'ing for a bit and there's a section near Yankee Jim's bridge (hit super hard, I'm sure) but I'm going to take a different tack and try something most casuals won't.  We'll see if it pays off (literally and figuratively.)  I usually hump hills with SAR looking for people; looking for beeps will be a nice change.  =)

 

Nice website, btw.  You have some really great pieces on it.

 

Thanks again!

 

-mox

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Okay, I'm back.  It was ... interesting.

 

I called earlier in the week to check on the regulations.  Got version A.  Loose regulations.  Excellent.

When I arrived I got version B in a booklet form (the very old regs.)

There was a middle-version posted up on the park info boards, version C, which said it was current as of 3/27/14.

The rangers themselves didn't know which was correct, or even what sequence they came out in.

 

Detecting - due to regs being all screwy and the rangers not knowing which was correct, they went with the version which said "you can detect only on the sand/gravel bars which are annually flooded" (the same as panning.

 

They also said no digging, anywhere.  Exception: the old "pans and hands" rules.  Not even shovels/picks in the bars.  I know this one was old and incorrect but nothing I can do.  I neglected to get a copy of the new regs sent over, or even document who I spoke to.  Metal detecting was limited to "recent objects" and they held to the old rockhounding rules where, again, no disturbing the earth.  Whatever you find has to be on the surface. Yeah.

 

Ruck-a-Chucky - Took me 4 hours to finally get there from home.  The river was high and fast.  They had the whitewater people out in serious force.  It would have been doable but obnoxious to hump to one of the few exposed bars (due to high water) and pan (cannot sluice, old regs...) so I gave my pass to some some poor guy and his wife who got all the way to Chucky but didn't have exact change for the iron-ranger.  He offered to pay me $10 for it but I was headed out anyways so they got it gratis.  The ranger didn't look super happy about my transfering it but he didn't say anything or stop me so oh well.  He was really nice while trying to figure out the regs though - tried to raise people on the radio but couldn't get signal down by the river.

 

So I headed up to Foresthill.  Took Garden over to check out Yankee Jim's .... Or the lack of it.  At least they have a monument.  Interesting that they were that high up and mining for gold (or running hydraulics that far from the river but obviously they got paid so good for them.

 

It took me a bit to figure out where the transfer station actually was, and then the older guy at the entrance shack to the station was nice enough to tell me how to find/access the old area.  He did say he sees a lot of detectors going back in there, often the same people over and over.

 

Got parked, headed back and spent about 2 hours there digging up rusty bits and lots of square nails out from under the manzanita.  At least I'm starting to learn the GB2 nuances a little.

 

Fun things I learned:

1)  Iron discrim seems to SOUND if it's iron, not quiet out like I expected it to. (Backwards from what I thought it should do.)

2)  Square nails suck, but at least they like to overload the coil and the iron discrim works on them.

3)  I need a big magnet.  Something to suck square nails directly up out of the soil at 6" would be ideal.   =)

4) The GB2 is almost too sensitive- on 10 I cannot have my tools within about 2' of the coil or it overloads.  It does make it annoying to dig while it's on, too.

5) The use of a metal garden trowel instead of a plastic scoop was a big oops.  Gotta fix that ....

6) Manzanita LOVES headphone wires.

7) I need to find a better "carry" system.

 

I lost a number of tiny targets (one was in a niche of a rock and would trigger the TRX when touched but on cleaning it out I lost it.  I suck.  I keep telling myself it was just more iron.) 

Other things I found - bullets, shell casings, birdshot and a rusty steel can.  I was careful with the can but nothing of value inside.  (Yes, I checked the ground around and under very well too! =)

 

Thanks for the tips Steve!  It's too bad the SRA staff didn't have the same info as the office and kinda borked the day.  The area across from RaC and slightly downstream looked interesting too. The pit was fun.  I could see losing a lot of hours back in there.  It's too bad it's all 3-4 hours away!

 

-mox

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Mox,

Sorry we couldn't hook up on Sunday. I was pushin dirt all day.

I've had my GB2 a couple of years now and still learning.

Dial down your Sensitivity knob to about 5 to quiet it down some in noisy areas.

 

Old iron will chirp on Iron Disc., take some lead to drop on the ground once you ground balance for an area to get a tone for it. I used to epoxy a split shot weight on the end of a chop stick with 1" marks on it. You could push it in the ground to see what sensitivity depth you have based on the dirt you are standing on.

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Don Robinson, founder of the goldhounds, has done alot to keep A.R.A open to us and to be able to pan,sluice,snipe and detect. This is my opinion only, but find the answers yourself before you go...dont go asking Rangers and such, they often don't know crap and you may cause headaches for someone like me.

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Dude, just read your whole (long) post again...Am really not trying to be a dick, and I understand you just want to not get in trouble, BUT think about this....Some rookie, environmental greenie liberal ranger just got asked if someone can dig for gold and detect...now they see me, detecting, digging and I have some old relics and now have a big fat hassle. See where Im coming from? Coming here to ask questions is the right move. Good luck on your quest.

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Read it again -  I did check before I went (via phone call.)  That's how I knew their posted regs and booklet were BS.

 

Not trying to get anyone hassled - just the opposite.   Take the real regs with you so if you get get some "rookie environmental greenie liberal ranger" trying to hassle you then you've got documentation.

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