The Reg Wilson Gold Album

[beatup]

beautiful set of photos of gold

[IronDigger]

Amazing , no two alike.....and did I say HUGE....

[jrbeatty]

We're going to wrap up this topic with a return to the first post.

Since many of us don't know what it feels like to unearth a seriously big lump of gold, Reg describes it for us:

"One day In September 1987 I was detecting with a friend in what was known as ' the butchers paddock ' at Corindhap, just north of the town of Rokewood, which is south of the famous gold town of Ballarat, where the 'Welcome' nugget was discovered at Bakery hill. This nugget was the second largest nugget found in Australia, and possibly the second  largest in the world, weighing a massive 2217 troy ounces.

We were detecting around an old surfaced area on the edge of the Break O' Day lead, which once yielded 10 nuggets over 100 ounces. This little known lead was once considered the richest mile of alluvial diggings in the world, with many of the mines yielding thousands of ounces each. The surface gold just to the west of the deeper and main line of the lead dropped into a gully where the old timers had followed it into deep ground where it formed a separate lead. On the south end of the surfaced area I detected a line of bits that seemed to indicate that perhaps some gold may have continued southward. A main road ended my exploration in that direction, and as the property on the other side of the road was owned by a different farmer, I negotiated a deal with this land owner and obtained permission to continue my search"

The very first signal I dug was an 11 oz bit:

  "I realised at that point that the run did indeed continue south, and that the old timers probably had been unable to follow it because the line of gold had thinned out, with the pieces being further apart.

The line widened out and continued south and over the following days we picked up piece after piece with the tally increasing. Good size pieces were common with the largest at that stage being 14 ozs.

One morning I picked up a 5 oz bit. We had lunch behind a hedgerow some distance from where we were detecting. Our car was hidden as we did not want to attract too much attention. Walking back to our area I noticed that the ground on which we were walking appeared shallower that I had assumed, and looked pretty good. I had no sooner remarked on the ground appearance whereupon my detecting partner swung his machine off his shoulder and turned it on (We were using prototype Minelab GT16000s which Bruce Candy had sent me to test)

Photo: Sun Herald.

"I then had to move beyond the interference range of his detector, so I backtracked (towards where I had got the 5 oz) until I was out of range. After turning on and ground balancing, I had only gone 20 feet or so when I heard a big wide signal. At first I thought it was a big charcoal noise from an old burnt tree stump, but when I took off a few inches of dirt it sounded too strong for any sort of ground noise.

I kept digging, widening the hole as I went. My offsider (Murray Cox) came over and offered to help, but I insisted on digging this one out myself. At about twenty inches the gold began to show, and I was extremely careful not to hit it with the pick. Eventually, a great clay covered lump was unearthed. After a wash, it weighed in at a bit over 98 troy ounces. I named it the ' Orange Roughie' because it reminded me of an ugly fish of that name. We ended up with over 300 ozs from that paddock"

Photo: Sun Herald.

You know what Reg? I just love the look of that eleven ounce specimen. Way prettier than the "Roughie"

Thanks everyone for your comments and reactions over the course of this topic. The response has been overwhelming! 

I want to thank Steve once more for hosting the album. Your website is a pleasure to utilise, Steve. It's extremely versatile, glitch free and I really like the WYSIWYG layout while assembling a post. Sure beats previewing! You have clearly put a lot of energy into this site, and it shows.

I moderated a share trading website for many years, and I know how much effort is involved behind the facade, especially when things get passionate. There are many prospecting sites out there that are clunky and poorly moderated, but yours clearly demonstrates how things should be done!

Special thanks also to Mitchel, your encouragement was a vital catalyst in repeating this exercise. Thank you!

More thanks to all the experienced posters here who gave us their reactions and comments. We're humbled and honoured by them!

Thanks also to all the new members who joined just to comment. Now you're here, please tell everyone what your experiences and hopes for the future are. New members are the essential life blood of any forum, and we hope we've stirred your enthusiasm. As that 100 ouncer found recently at Dunolly demonstrates, the biggies are still there.

Now, how can one fail to mention Paul?  

We're really looking forward to meeting you in the not too distant future, and although we can't guarantee you a "half reasonable" colour, Reg and I will do everything in our power to put you onto the type of ground where they can be found, then it's up to you!

In the meantime, Norvic bears the heavy burden of responsibility in attempting to keep you under control

 

Lastly but most importantly, Reg.

It would be a cliché to say that without you, this topic wouldn't exist, but there you are then, I've gone and said it!

You're the kind of person that stands as an inspiration for all detector operators of all ages. I never could have imagined when I bought my first gold detector (all those years ago) that I would one day be working with you. It remains a buzz to this day and, quite frankly, I can't bloody wait to get back on the hunt with you!

 In the meantime, keep looking buddy, that 100 oz plus is out there somewhere

 

 

[Jin]

Once again thank you Jrbeatty and Reg for sharing your story and those awesome photos. I especially liked the 27 ouncer (found in recent times) as I got to see that one in real life. Good luck on the goldfields to both of you.  

[vanursepaul]

Thanks for everything James!

This has been a great album and I appreciate the time you took to allow us to have a peek into OZ gold detecting history, it has been a real pleasure!

Looking forward to our meet-up next year!

_____________________________

Thank you Steve for allowing us all  to meet here ---(and for putting up with all my goofiness)

This forum has allowed me to get exposure with some of the greats of the gold prospecting game--

I have numerous contacts that i credit solely to this forum alone---There is absolutely no way i could have met the amount of people I have any other way---USA and OZ

_________________________________

I truly love Australia , and not just Australia.... Australians!

I have come in contact with more outstanding people there than anywhere else i have been in the world...

Thanks again for the album, James and Reg  --glad it got doco'ed here!

paul

 

[Steve Herschbach]

You are quite welcome Paul. The original forums of old really helped me out a lot, and I have tried hard to make this a place that honors their memory as places where people can share information and make contacts in a friendly fashion. I really appreciate people who contribute in a positive way, and when we disagree, do it in a respectful way. In the end we all benefit. You are a shiny example of that, so thank you!

I also found Australia and Australians to be an incredible land and people. I am happy we seem to have found a good mix here on the forum. Thank you Reg and JR for contributing to this amazing and rather historic thread. What you have done and lived most will ever only dream of.

[beatup]

great album thanks for sharing

[Swampstomper Al]

Thanks for sharing this fantastic album..!

Swamp

[Norvic]

Crikey this thread is enjoyable thank you Steve, Reg & JR. Just a wee bit of friendly advice when you get Paul downunder, you`ve just gotta be strict with the lad, "don`t spare the whip" so to say. Putting him near gold is like putting a young bull with a mob of heifers. If he plays up, give us a cooee and I`ll be down in a flash.

PS. You can loan the lad anything no drama.....just not a Z

[matt]

Thank you for spending your time to make this thread. It has been enjoyable to read and the gold is unbelievable!