Currahee Posted October 13 Share Posted October 13 Tl;DR- Can gold be very sparse and not worth mining in the top few feet, but contain a huge pay day on the bedrock, or are the layers above it a pretty good indicator of the gold at the bottom? Full version- I finally got my first claim after lots of research and scouting. It's in a valley that had old lode mines above it, and records of course gold being found in the alluvium below. A logistics problem stopped commercial mining attempts in the old days. From what I can tell, it has never been mined. Which is rare because all the rivers in my area were bucket dredged. I sampled all over my claim and it's depressing to say the least. I found one "paystreak" on a gravel bar bend. Not sure why, but where it should be on the other bends it doesn't seem to be. When I say pay streak, I mean 3-5 colors in a pan instead of one. I set up my sluice and ran five 5 gallon buckets of unclassified material. I got 0.02-0.04g. If my miners math is correct, that's about 0.16g/yd-0.32g/yd. Not great, but could be feasible with my dredge depending on how long it takes me to move the hard pack. What are the chances that gold is extremely low grade in the overburden but amazing at bedrock? I ask because this will entail me hiking 300 pounds several miles in on foot. I will also have to clear 10-15' of overburden to get to bedrock. Given the history of this place, I feel like it could have ancient gold in the massive high grade the old timers were getting. If never mined, perhaps that gold has had thousands or millions of years to work all the way down? Is this wishful thinking and likely to lead to disappointment, or am I on the right track and it could very well be great? Thanks. 3 Link to comment https://www.detectorprospector.com/topic/26797-bad-gold-until-bedrock/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold Seeker Posted October 13 Share Posted October 13 The only way to know for sure is to prospect it, i.e. dig some test pits or bore some test holes to see what's on bedrock!! 1 Link to comment https://www.detectorprospector.com/topic/26797-bad-gold-until-bedrock/#findComment-282605 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Currahee Posted October 13 Author Share Posted October 13 1 minute ago, Gold Seeker said: THe only way to know is to prospect it, i.e. dig some test pits to see what's on bedrock!! So the answer is yes, it could be a huge payday at bedrock even with bad gold up top? Like I said, in order to get to bedrock I have to do what I described. It will take at least a week maybe two of full days of hard work. Link to comment https://www.detectorprospector.com/topic/26797-bad-gold-until-bedrock/#findComment-282608 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold Seeker Posted October 13 Share Posted October 13 Yes there could be, but there also couldn't be, there's no way for anyone to give you a definite answer. 1 Link to comment https://www.detectorprospector.com/topic/26797-bad-gold-until-bedrock/#findComment-282609 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Currahee Posted October 13 Author Share Posted October 13 6 minutes ago, Gold Seeker said: Yes there could be, but there also couldn't be, there's no way for anyone to give you a definite answer. Not looking for a guarantee. Just reassurance that it could be the situation before I waste my time. Thanks! 1 Link to comment https://www.detectorprospector.com/topic/26797-bad-gold-until-bedrock/#findComment-282610 Share on other sites More sharing options...
rexhavoc Posted October 13 Share Posted October 13 I just offer the story of Terry Toop, and the creek called Mary as recounted by Bill Barlee - with which to inspire you to keep prospecting: https://cariboominingassociation.com/2013/02/16/a-creek-called-mary-by-bill-barlee/ 4 Link to comment https://www.detectorprospector.com/topic/26797-bad-gold-until-bedrock/#findComment-282614 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ridge Runner Posted October 14 Share Posted October 14 If nothing else get you a post hole digger the drop type. That’s where you just drop it down and get a bite of dirt at a time. The screw type will give you trouble if it’s lots of rocks. You can go down three feet are more and just maybe the bed rock comes up some. Test it as you go to see if it gets better as you get deeper. Poor man’s way of doing it. Chuck 3 Link to comment https://www.detectorprospector.com/topic/26797-bad-gold-until-bedrock/#findComment-282622 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valens Legacy Posted October 14 Share Posted October 14 I have seen areas like what you are talking about that has more flour gold than nuggets. That can be a very good spot and become very good for you, so try taking some buckets home and sluice it down to find out if you get some good flour gold from it. Good luck and good hunting. 1 Link to comment https://www.detectorprospector.com/topic/26797-bad-gold-until-bedrock/#findComment-282631 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ridge Runner Posted October 15 Share Posted October 15 Currahee If you can why don’t you take a couple pictures of what your up against so we know that we all on the same page so to speak. You got guys on here have been down the same road so to say as you are now and it’s said a picture is worth a thousand words. The Best To You! Chuck 1 Link to comment https://www.detectorprospector.com/topic/26797-bad-gold-until-bedrock/#findComment-282673 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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