Lanny

That's a sweet find for sure, a real heart-stopper. All the best, Lanny

(Annual Christmas Poetry) Santa’s Fate One winter’s day, in ’82, Well, things were lookin’ mighty blue, Cause Santa’s sleigh was runnin’ late, And this produced an awful state. The kids was feelin’ mighty down. ‘Cause Santa might not get to town! An avalanche had closed the way To block their local Christmas sleigh. Now Santa’s name was Honest John, A muleskinner off and on, He cussed and chewed, he liked his booze And in a brawl, he was bad news. So, not your average Santa, no. But Christmas set John’s heart aglow That he could freight the gifts and toys To all those little girls and boys. His mules he’d garb in greens and reds, With antlers mounted on their heads, Then off they’d scoot to meet the train Down far below, out on the plain. So once again they did the same, But Fate had run a crooked game And choked the pass with tons of snow. So, Honest John was stuck below. A telegram he quickly sent, And this is how the message went: “Just meet me at the closest spot Where all that snow just ain’t quite got.” The folks was stumped just how to go Through all the piled up winter snow. Why, snowshoes might just do the trick To meet their hometown Old Saint Nick! The Sheriff rounded up a crew Of miners, ranchers, gamblers too With packs and bags they quickly went. This telegram to John they sent: “We’ll get to you just at that spot Where all that snow just ain’t quite got.” This news was something mighty big! So John, he danced a merry jig To know the good he done each year To fill that town with Christmas cheer Would once again get carried out, On Christmas Eve, without a doubt. Well, Honest John, he met that crew And filled their bags and packs up too. He turned his mules out far below Then snowshoed off across the snow. ******************************* On Christmas morn, the kids they found, With wondrous feelings quite profound, Their toys and goodies 'round the tree Just like the way things used to be. But Honest John was fast asleep. His promises that he did keep Had left him tuckered, plumb worn thin. Yet on his face, a peaceful grin. All the best, and a Merry Christmas to all, Lanny

Enjoyed the story of your adventure, as well as the picture of your captured gold. All the best, Lanny

Amazing finds, nicely done! Thanks for the pictures and the storyline as well. All the best, Lanny

Highly unique find. Nicely done! All the best, Lanny

Nice finds, Montana has some nice gold! You're really doing well. All the best, Lanny

The video looks like another click-bait scam, nothing to do with the real sweat and toil of finding genuine gold. Plus, the coil is flopping around, and the swings are so wild and random, if there really were nuggets in the ground, they missed 80% of them. . . . All the best, and be safe on your trip, Lanny I

You'll always remember your first find. Congratulations, and all the best, Lanny

Nice to see you're having such a great season. All the best, Lanny

Great finds indeed! Nicely done, and all the best, Lanny

Great finds. Is there a spot available for you on Aussie Gold Hunters? All the best, Lanny

Incredible finds, nicely done! All the best, Lanny

Sweet looking outfit! Congratulations, and all the best as you get out there to chase the gold, Lanny

Nice finds indeed. Running out of steam is what's starting to happen to me as well at times. . . . All the best, Lanny

Congratulations! That's some sweet looking gold. All the best, Lanny

Really enjoyed your pictures of the gold you found, as well as of your little dog. Nicely done, and all the best, Lanny

Whenever I'm detecting in the desert, I wear my snake gators that I got from Doc, sound investment indeed. All the best, Lanny

My nephew spent two seasons trying to find that treasure. He saw some beautiful places he otherwise never would have seen, and it got him motivated to do something outside of what he normally would have done. Regardless of what happens to the find/if the find was real, etc., it generated a ton of interest and a sense of adventure for many people. As for those that died, that's truly sad, as it is when anyone dies in the pursuit of anything they take a keen interest in. All the best, Lanny

Yes Jonathan, for those of us that spend 90% of our time detecting in mountains, the weight of the heavy Minelabs really is a killer. I'm with Steve on looking forward to someone that will come out with a top-notch much-lighter-weight machine that will do a comparable (or better) job to the heavy Minelabs. I can only dream about detecting in flat areas because our gold is mountain bred and often requires hanging on by the toes while swinging a coil. If Minelab gets the weight down considerably and it truly offers something remarkably different in their new 6000 model, I'll take a look, if not, I'll look somewhere else. All the best, Lanny

Great overview of how the gold's been chased in Australia! Learned a lot of things I did not know about the gold rushes in Australia. Thanks for posting, and all the best, Lanny

Thanks for the information Steve. Haven't tried it yet, but now I will just to see how it functions. Appreciate the extra efforts you make to educate. All the best, Lanny

I had no idea Steve, the things you do to keep your forum running seem endless. . . . Thanks for your dedication and hard work, truly! All the best, Lanny

Nicely done! Thanks for the pictures, and all the best, Lanny

Nice chunk of sassy gold! Well done, and all the best, Lanny

Thanks for your continuing hard work to keep your forum updated and running smooth Steve. All the best, Lanny