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Hello All, Sorry the forum is really dropped in attention, but thought I would post a quick one about some gold I found earlier this Summer. Decided to run out with a friend for a half day of hunting before it got too hot and we ended up doing pretty well. I rounded up a handful of small nuggets for over 12 Grams and a friend found I think 7 Grams that day. Since then, we have been back and removed another 20 Grams of gold from the nearly area. We were both using the Minelab GPX 6000's and hunting shallow ground and bedrock. Just some suggestions for Summer hunting - Hunt with a partner if you can, bring plenty of water, hydrate the night before. I suggest some Snake Gaiters, if not Doc's Snake Gaiters/Knee Pad Combo, Light colored clothes, Hat with a good brim and back cover, Sunscreen. If you start feeling hot, get out of there for the day, the gold is not leaving. God Bless,

Had a great day out detecting today. Weather was perfect and we were blessed with gold. I found 5 nuggets for a total of 7/10ths of a gram. They were 4-6 inches deep. Mike found two nuggets also. Four of them were found in a 3 ft. stretch of wash. That was pretty exciting. I'm really impressed with the sensitivity on small gold the GPX 6000 has. Enjoy!

Hi all I decided to start a new thread called Nine Lives. I've had some close ones in my life and just thought it would be fun to share some of them here. You are welcome to jump in here and share your own. Back in my early days of mining (1980’s) I hooked up with a guy named Johnny. We were into wet placer mining and dredging back then. He had a 20 acre claim on Antelope creek just north of Stanton Az. He had a Cat d-8 dozer and we were pushing off top gravel and the boulders aside in the creek and running what was below it through a suction dredge. We were doing very well once we got the dozer finding several ounces a day.. We were blasting some of the big boulders with dynamite to fracture and reduce their size. Some of the boulders were too big and locked into the bedrock holes and we ended up breaking a side rail on the dozer trying to push them out or aside. The track was kinking and trying to run off the idlers. So I managed to run it in reverse back up out of the creek and keep the track on up to the mill site to fix it. (weld it) we knew we were done for a few days down in the creek so Johnny loaded up the dredge and what dynamite we had left, about six sticks in his little beater pick up and followed me up on the Dozer. So we get up there and johnny is unloading things out of the truck and I’m contemplating the best way to weld up the cracked dozer rail. So I walk into the the mobile home where johnny was and sit down on the big chair across from johnny and I look over and I see the dynamite on top of this little antique end table next to the end of the couch where he was sitting. And I remember looking down and seeing the little table has three little wheels under the ends of the legs but one is missing, so someone had put a little block of wood under the leg missing the wheel to level up the table. So I look over as johnny got up off the couch and walked by the little table with the dynamite on it he kicked that little wooden block out from under the table leg as he headed toward the fridge. then he turned and asked do you need a beer? then Johnny and I watched the table tip and the sticks of dynamite roll off the end, we just looked at each other and everything else just seemed like time just froze. It was almost like everything was in some other realm of reality. I remember hearing all six of the of the sticks of dynamite as they rolled off the table in slow motion one by one bounce on the wooden trailer floor and I was just waiting for the explosion. And as we looked at each other in amazement,nothing happened? I jumped up shaking and picked up the dynamite and put it in a cardboard box on the floor with some old magazines and I remember saying to Johnny, I need a beer. AzNuggetBob

This is the Memorial Plaque made for Thomas Sheppard "Shep" as I always called him.

Hello All, It's been a bit slow here, seems like many of the forums have shut down or slowed way down. You would think with the price of gold currently, more people would be chasing it, but I'm sure with all current unknowns with the economy and government, many are holding their money tight right now. That all being said, early this season I decided to start prospecting again with the Minelab GPX 6000. I had some areas in mind that were areas outside of the known gold locations that are documented in many books, reports and now the internet. The Geology was very similar in some of these locations, but nothing documented nor any real gold mines in the area. After several weekend days of searching and exploring, I found a small gulch with some very old handstacking in. Once I located this, I knew it was some type of gold placering, but you never know if it was just fine gold, nuggets or a combo of both. I fired the Minelab GPX 6000 on and within just a few swings within the handstacked area on bedrock was my first target. It was a nice, small shiny nuggets laying right on the bedrock. I knew after this find, the area has never been detecting, at least in recent years. I worked the area for several days picking up nearly 40 nuggets for over 12 Dwts of gold. I have been back a few more times since the recent picture and found over an ounce of gold nuggets for nearly 75 nuggets total from this small, unknown gulch I named "Lost Gulch." Just goes to show, it's still out there for anyone willing to spend the time searching, which will include many days of finding nothing. I'm excited to explore more in this area, as I know there are other spots just like this around. The Summer kept me from going back, so I'm sure with the recent rains and now the much cooler weather it's time to get back and see what else might be left behind hidden. You never know when you're going to find one of those lost, overlooked gulches out there! Wishing you all a very successful 2024 gold season. Rob

Nice finds Rob. It doesn’t look like your missing much gold. Thats some tiny gold with the chunkies. It’s good to see your still pounding them out even in this heat. But I prefer night hunting this time of year. 90 degrees isn't bad or I just go up in the hills to beat the heat. Quartzite and other low altitude gold locations is out of the question for me this time of year.. Andyy put your pendulum away. I’ve got just the device for you. It not only map dowses, and pin points huge deposits on Google earth, it finds long lost relatives too and it’s not affected by the heat either. This device is so sensitive it’s scary and you can operate it from the comfort of your living room!. Introducing the Wishstick 2000! This revolutionary new device can find it all, from fabulous treasures to long lost relatives. The Wishstick 2000 is constructed of the finest materials available. Just check out these fantastic new features. Genuine ultra sensitive quartz controlled tip, (common quartz crystal) Unlimited range, (only limited to your imagination) Fully automatic ground balance, it's not even affected by minerals. Low battery alert built into a precision meter, (cheap battery tester) Finest quality low oxygen copper multi-stranded windings, (lamp cord) The handle is made of fine quality hardwood,(common Az .mesquite But wait if you act now we'll include at no extra charge, A positive/negative switch in the handle for tuning out those undesirable relative finds,(obnoxious mother in law) We have a limited supply of these, (limited to as many as we can sell) Left handed models also available. (Duh) Dont delay for those that take advantage of this great offer today we'll include a free AA battery! Dont miss out on this special offer Only $2000.00 plus S.H. We accept payment by Great West Union monygram purchased from S. Africa banks or cash!. All returns subject to a $1995.00 restocking fee. Some assembly required. Another fine product brought to you by Crapyoudontneed Corp. a division of fly by night industries. Note: This product is for entertainment purposes only, any resemblance to any other product is purely intentional. All rights (if any) are reserved. I've had this hanging on the wall for years and has been a lot of fun. AzNuggetBob

Out working in a large wide flat wash , deep overburden in the wash but gold has been found in it , two days ago my brother dug up a nice 5 gram nugget from the transition area where the hillside becomes the wash and today I dug these two piece from the hillside about 10 to 20 feet above the wash.

Hello All, Over the years I have been fortunately to help a friend work and maintain a small placer mine here in Arizona. Like all mines, placer or lode, I have been able to see all the ups and down, highs and lows. This includes good gold, poor gold, tons of equipment breakdowns/failures and even personality conflicts. That all being said, I would do it again in heartbeat, as I truly have a passion for electronic prospecting and gold mining. Over the years, we have been able to open up a lot of ground that contained "Coyote Holes" or Placer Drifts. These are normally in areas where there is rich, ancient alluvial gravels. I have found these in many States from Nevada, California and Arizona, but I'm sure all rich gold areas could have them. They are basically tunnels dug into the rich gravels normally right on top of bedrock and can vary in weight, height and length. I have seen some that are just small holes punched in the side of a bank, others that are extensive tunnels running for hundreds of yards with many side shoots. In many areas if the ground is hard, meaning caliche and ancient gravels, no timbering was needed. They would use hard tools, dynamite /blasting caps and a lot of back breaking work to muck out and work the tunnels. It's just simply amazing when you find these and see what type of work was needed to dig, maintain and work them. What does this mean to prospectors and electronic prospectors? Well first, it's an indicator that gold was found. No one does this type of work for no gold, so it could be an indicator that good gold was found at some point. The old-timers were pretty good, they knew that the gold and nuggets would be at or near bedrock in these areas, so like anyone they did the best job they could with what they had to work with. We can all quarterback why they might have left a nugget here or there, but keep in mind, like anything, some productivity in their minds had to happen. They had to move as much ground as they could effectively to make a living, so it wasn't possible to break every crack open or find every overlooked gravel pocket on bedrock. This allows modern day prospectors to find missed gold whether thats with a metal detector or re-working some of the old workings using more modern tools. What's normally found? Well, keep in mind, depending where you're located in the World, the weather could be different. Some places freezing cold, while other places blazing hot. This means in a lot of cases, they used them also as shelter from the weather and wild animals. Over the years we have found hundreds of hand-tools, mostly destroyed, broken or half rotten away. This would include shovels, hand-tools like pocket knives, crevice tools and such. You will also find old cans, mostly rotten away, which is a real pain for metal detectorists. You could find anything from old relics, potentially coins, trinkets and gold (fines, flakes or nuggets). I did find some really nice candle holders, which they would hammer into the walls and use candles for light. What I can personally tell you, is they always leave something behind, maybe nice as they couldn't physically see or hear it (metal detector), but on the same note they were good. It always makes you think what they found, as most old documents are not going to have this type of detail in them. I always thought it would be nice for just a day to go back in time and see the guys/gals that are working these areas, interact with them and also see what they were really finding. I'm sure you would see many smiles, along with many frowns ... Safety and Dangers? Below you will see a short Youtube video from about 10+ years ago I filmed. It will give you a general idea of these tunnels and you can get an idea of how deadly they could be. There will be always someone that is curious, but keep in mind, curiosity KILLED the CAT. These tunnels can be extremely dangerous from cave ins, poor oxygen, unknown stuff on the floor, animals, reptiles and insects. If you ever attempt to mess around these, always be prepared and have at least one other person with you for safety. I personally don't recommend try to enter them, regardless of how safe you think it might be, it only takes a second for something to go bad. When your focus is digging a target from the wall, or scratching around on the ground, things happen. Youtube Video on Coyote Hole - Placer Drift https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uhhDAz_wJo Many years ago, I was invited to a famous placer mine in California (Ruby Gold Mine) noted for some of the largest gold nuggets recorded. We spent the entire day walking, exploring and even did a bit of metal detecting. These were some of the most extensive placer tunnels I ever experienced. In some places were were hundreds of feet underground, water dripping from the ceiling, but the experience was mind blowing. Were were able to see some of the gold being found, some of the huge gold nuggets still in their collections from years prior and to imagine all the potential that is still there. I figured this would be a new subject not talked about much. Figure we could open it up to discussion and hear about everyone else's experiences with Placer Tunnels and what they found. I will post more pictures and add to this as we go. Gold Bless & Be Safe, Rob

Went back out to a spot last year where I found a nice 1/2 nugget I had to go back home a couple days after so never got to finish the dig, got back out there today and was able to find a couple nuggets under the rock that was left for another 6.25 grams also found a small speci piece on the right a bit further down the wash for a total of 7.87 grams all in all a good day out in the desert.

Okay, you got me remembering Bob... In 1981, my partner (since passed away), and I were dredging on a river in the Mother Lode. We were being allowed to use a fella's claim - he was dredging upstream from us. Where we were working - we each had a 5-inch dredge - there was a huge boulder that everyone who knew about the claim speculated that, if someone could just get that boulder out of the way, it would be a bonanza. We both talked about it a lot. One evening my partner told me he had an Arizona powder license and some dynamite left over from his work there, stashed in his camper - the first I had ever heard about it and it got my attention because my camper was parked right next to him. He said he was pretty sure he could "shatter" the boulder and then we'd be able to remove the pieces and subsequently be able to get the gold that was beneath it in the slate bottom…this was a pretty rich stretch of river. We decided to give it try. I can't remember how many sticks he had but there were quite a few - enough so that we both thought they would do the job. He knew a hell of a lot more about how to place explosives and how much to use than I did. I actually didn't know anything other than explosives had to be handled carefully and be used with experiential knowledge and safety in mind. We spent a morning placing the explosives. He drilled a few holes into the boulder and also placed some other sticks in what he termed 'advantageous places.' I told him he was the boss, that I would take his word for it - that from what I saw, what he was doing made sense to my rookie comprehension. When he finished wiring everything up to some sort of electronic plunger-type device, we spooled the wires across the river and up into the rocks on the other side that we would use for cover. He looked over at me, "ready?" I said something like "go for it" and he pushed the button. A few things happened simultaneously; the blast was instantaneous, deafening and huge as the boulder literally vanished in an enormous cloud of rocks and dirt accompanied by an astonishingly tall geyser of water. A second later lethal hunks of rock and debris rained down around us for what seemed like thirty seconds. When the rock and debris finally subsided I carefully peeked out from the tree I had crouched behind. The first thing I saw was that the entire river from the explosion site and on downstream was flowing black. It was as though we had struck an ink well under the surface as countless cubic yards of slate had been powdered in the detonation. The entire river was literally flowing opaque black as it disappeared around a distant bend on its way downstream. Black water continued to roil out of the underwater crater for hours. Half an hour later as my heart-rate and the ringing in my ears began to settle down, I heard vehicles approaching up the road that ran beside the river. In the distance a line of cars was making their way upriver toward us. My partner and I ran for my car and drove into a nearby town where we spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening. Apparently the water had turned totally black for miles down the river, so much so that all the downstream dredgers had to get out of the water, which mightily pissed them off. They set out in search of the culprits. It took a day or so before the river completely cleared. It took a bit longer for our dredging neighbors to forgive us. We never found a single flake of gold anywhere near crater where the boulder used to sit.

My name is David Schweitzer, and I am the secretary for the GPAA Chapter 21 out of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. I grew up in rural Oklahoma on the family farm. I currently work full time in the oil industry and am a landscape photographer. When Kevin Hoagland asked me to write an article and share my story, my first thought was, no way! Writing is way out of my comfort zone, then I let it sink in and told Kevin that since it pushes me out of my comfort zone, I was in! I am still very new and very green in the gold game. Early spring back in 2021, my brother-in-law told me about "paydirt". I was intrigued, so I started to investigate it some. I looked it up online and learned how to pan from watching YouTube. I found a company that ended up being a ripoff, but that little bit of gold we found in there got me hooked. Being in Oklahoma, you can’tjust go out to a creek and pan for gold, so at that point, paydirt was my only option. I was not about to get ripped off again, so I investigated more and found Dave at GoldBay. I started buying paydirt from him. I went fishing on some of our property and noticed that the pond had been built in an ancient river channel, so why not try a pan? Lo and behold, I found one baby speck of gold in Oklahoma! I continued to buy paydirt from Dave for a few more months, and I was reading his blog about how he would pay a million dollars to anyone that could dowse his gold. I knew I was very talented in dowsing water, but never gold. So, I sent him an email, and he said come on out and let's find out. So, we planned a trip in late May of 2021. This trip ended up being one that would change my life forever. We planned three days of hiking Yosemite National Park and scheduled three days of prospecting. The first day we went out to Dave's mine, I found out that I could not dowse gold! If I remember right, I was 2 out of 10 on his tests. He showed us all kinds of colossal gold nuggets and one of his prize pieces he had found in his mine, which I will never forget. We had struck out on many places we had access to (we did know about claims and open land). We had struck out in all phases. Then, on the last day, we went to a pay to play place, and little did I know this day would change my life. Most people that went here sluiced or panned for gold. All I had was a pan, a small sluice, and, guess what, NO SHOVEL! I mean, who goes gold mining without a shovel! All I had packed for was crevassing. I had a small blade-style shovel, so that is what I used. I started panning, and my second pan rolled back, and it had a flat flake. What a fantastic feeling, one that overtook anyfeeling I got from any paydirt! I looked at my watch a while later, and we had been there for 9 hours. Where did the time go? We were sore, hungry, and satisfied. I had worked so hard for around twelve dollars of gold. It didn't matter to me. What a fantastic day! Nature, gold, and family! When we got back from California, I only thought about planning another trip to gold country. I knew it would be 2022 before I could go again. I was going to turn 40 in 2022, so I wanted to go metal detecting in Arizona and purchased a used SDC 2300 pulse induction metal detector. I started watching a lot of videos on geology, metal detecting, and anything prospecting related to learning! I even took it out to our property to find lead BBs to try and get a feel for it. I didn't know anyone in the gold business; many people seemed to be hush-hush to help someone that didn't know much. So, what do you do? I sent a message on Instagram to KC Morgan from Gold Rush on TV. He seemed super down to earth on TV, I never expected him to reply, but he did! He told me the best option for me was to get involved with a local GPAA club and learn! Well, I soon realized the trip to Arizona wouldn't happen. 2022 came around, and I decided that I was going to go to a GPAA Chapter 21 meeting and see what it was all about. I was initially nervous when I walked in, but I looked around the room and realized that these were my people! I wasn't the only person that liked rocks and gold. After the first meeting of just sitting back and listening, it was amazing! I knew I would come back! Mike Pung and Cash Best are the President and Vice President, respectively, of this club, and they were at the GPAA shows for the first two meetings I attended. They were back for the May meeting, and wow, those two guys have so much knowledge. I just wanted to be a sponge and soak it all in. So, I planned a prospecting trip to Colorado in the Buena Vista area at the end of May. I had joined the GPAA and knew I would have access to those claims. Cash was telling me a few other places that were public areas to check out when we went. He also told me about a book called Finding Gold in Colorado that had almost every place you can go, written by Kevin Singel. So we went up there, and they had a freak late-season snowstorm that put a little damper on the prospecting, but we still made the most of it, and the snow made for some fantastic photos! We found around three-tenths of a gram of the beautiful fine Arkansas River gold, even with all the snow. As soon as we got back from Colorado, I knew I would plan another trip later in the summer when it wouldn't snow on us! I kept attending the monthly meetings and soaking in everything they taught me. We went back to Colorado over Labor Day weekend, and I told Mike I was going, and he said he would be up there too. We met up, and what a true honor it was to be in the field with a legend, asking questions, and learning hands-on! What a truly unforgettable day! I ended up with almost a gram from this trip! At one of the meetings, I brought in a vial with small gold that from our property here in Oklahoma. Mike and Cash asked if we could plan an outing on the property to give others a chance to find Oklahoma gold. Of course, I agreed, and we met up beforehand so they could see and prospect the place.What a true honor to prospect with Mike and Cash on our property! Mike took a pan from a spot he thought would be good. He found 60 colors from that pan. We could never replicate that pan, but wow! We planned the club outing for October, and what an excellent time. We didn't find much gold, but the time with all the other club members was priceless. We all had a great time. After everyone had left, Mike asked if I wanted to learn how to run a metal detector, he gave me a one-on-one lesson, and I told him sometime in 2023, I would like to try detecting in gold country. In November, the club's secretary was retiring, and they needed to elect a new secretary. They voted for me to take the position starting in January of 2023. I had never done anything like this before, but I was up for the challenge and to be able to give back since I had gotten so much out of these club meetings. Mike and Cash mentioned they would be in Quartzsite for the gold show in February. I had thought about going but wasn't sure how I would be able to. About three days later, my brother-in-law asked if I wanted to go to this show and go metal detecting, and that's all it took. We planned the trip! It is almost 1,000 miles from where I live, so it took two days to get there. We joined a local metal detecting club and gained access to their claims and checked out the GPAA claims. I went out the first day, got skunked entirely, and found a lot of lead, trash, and iron. I was worn out that evening, but being in the desert and nature was just something to behold. The second day we went out and hadn't found anything all morning, and that afternoon I went up close to the edge of one of the claims where I could see old workings, and since it was a hike, I thought maybe it hadn't been hit very hard. I wasn't up there for 2 minutes, and I heard a faint target, and it ended up being a boot tack, but I swung the detector over the hole again, and I heard another signal. I dug it up, and it was a chunk of caliche. I rolled it over and saw gold. I hooted and hollered so loud I bet people 5 miles down the wash could hear me. It was my first detected nugget! I found four total nuggets that trip, including one on my 41st Birthday! They all weighed up to 1.5 grams. It didn't pay for the trip, but the memories are priceless. Since I don’t live in gold country, I can only get out there a few times a year. My learning curve will probably take longer than most due to that. My next step is to learn more geology and understand how to read the ground better. Each area of gold country is completely different on how the geology and weathering occurred. After these trips, I have such an appreciation for all the old timers. They were some tough people. I couldn’t imagine trying to make it out there without the modern convinces we have these days. When most people take vacations, they go sip Mai Tai’s on the beach and relax. Not me, I go to gold country and work, funny thing is, it’s not work to me. I may be sore and tired at the end of my vacations, but my soul is full and satisfied. For those that think it is easy to find gold, it’s not, I learned that really fast. As you can tell, I am still new and trying to learn. I hope for those new and old in the gold game that my story inspired you to get out and find some gold or join your local club. If you are in the Oklahoma area and thought about coming to a meeting, wewould love to see you there! We are always planning different outings! If you’d like more info on our GPAA Chapter 21 Club in Oklahoma City, e-mail me at GpaaOKCchapter21@outlook.com . If you’d like to follow me on my adventures, you can find me on Facebook or Instagram at Oklahoma Backroad Explorer. I would love to hear about your gold adventures and how you got started!

Hi All, I posted on a thread over on DetectorProspectors forum when a person asked about where to look for gold nuggets? You could write a book on it, but here are some quick basics I mentioned - Hello all, This is always one of the first questions asked for new prospectors/detectorist. Where do I even start looking? I think you could write a book on this subject as it's very complex to be honest. You have to first understand gold, the basics of how it's formed and the processes of erosion or weathering to get the gold to it's first location, to it's final location and anywhere in-between depending on it's timeline. Once you have a idea of the basics of gold, say placer gold for example you can understand that due to it's specific gravity it will likely make it to the lowest point in given time (this could be hundreds or thousands of years). The lowest points in most areas is going to be wash bottoms (gullies, washes, rivers and any water water). This is normally why you will see some past placer activity in rich gold bearing areas. Normally, for metal detectorists, this is the first place many will start. Keep in mind, the old-timers did also by sampling and then trying to see if they could be lucky enough to track the traces of gold back to the original source that may/maybe be left. Many of the major gold mines were found by locating the placer first, but this is not the case all the time, many visible quartz veins can attract someone to them to sample and find out if there are any values. I'm sure many of the visible quartz vein in gold rich areas have been sampled from the beginning of mining history. Then the question comes to coarse gold, or nuggets. Many placers throughout the World are not noted for larger, coarse gold, like nuggets. You can do a lot of research and find extremely rich gold areas, but very little coarse gold was located due to the type of deposit. These area might not be very beneficial to electronic prospectors. I have always stated to seek out "Pocket type" deposits if you can find any info on them. These are the types of deposits that contribute to large, nugget gold. For beginners, just try to research areas that historically have produced gold nuggets, even very large ones. Worst case, if you can't find info on what the placers produced, just find the gold areas and work within and around them. This will at least give you a chance of potentially locating something at some point. All that being said, the subject can be simple or very complexed, depending how much you really want to know. To keep it simple, I have always stated, invest in good equipment (right tool for the job), do whatever research you can (knowledge is very helpful) & develop a plan of attack. This basically means finding a potential location, exploring and metal detecting likely locations. It all comes down to a process of elimination, searching here and there the best you can, eliminating spots and exploring new. At some point, you will be successful at finding a nugget or two. You can speed the process up by forming a small group of close friends, all being on the same page that allows you to have the comradery, safety and more ground be explored and sampled quicker. Final notes, don't allow Greed to get the best of you, Gold Fever as some will say. Enjoy the good times, don't get discouraged, stay positive, appreciate the creation around you and give praise to when you find your first, gleaming gold nugget! Wishing you all the best out there, Rob

Hello All, Was able to get out the last day of 2023 to see what I could end the year with. A partner and I discovered some coarse tailing piles that I believe have been overlooked for years. There were no digs, scraps or anything in them. One of the first targets was a nugget right on top for me. This was a great way to start the day knowing there were a lot of piles to scan still. Like all tailing piles, we both dug the typical iron rubbish, maybe a bullet fragment or two and some nuggets. We didn't discover anything super larger, the biggest nugget was around 2 Dwts, most of them smaller in size. We both were using the Minelab GPZ 7000's, one with a stock 14x13" Searchcoil and I had the Nugget Finder 12" Z Search on mine. The weather was good and we scored some gold! Here are the nuggets I scored on the final trip of 2023 - 5 Dwts total (Quarter ounce of gold). P.S. Sorry for the poor picture quality, this is what happens when you purchase a $1200 cell phone and drop it weeks after the purchase and break the camera lens .... Rob

Hi Guys, Fishing8046 - All the nuggets you see were found detecting, no placer has been done yet. There is no doubt, after placering sections more nuggets will be found. The gulch had exposed bedrock in sections, but also other sections that had anywhere from a few inches to a few feet of gravel. This spot was remote, found it by hiking over several hills, so no road real close. That being said, many years ago a partner and I found a wash, right off the road that yielded probably 500-600 nuggets. Many believe if a road is close by, then it's been hammered or no gold is there, WRONG! I try to get off the beaten path when I can, but that don't guarantee gold. The gold has to be there, whether it's right off the road or 20 miles in. What remote might guarantee is less traffic (metal detectors), less trash in some spots and in some cases if the gold is there, you might be the first guy on it. I have a Youtube Channel, but haven't uploaded or taken any videos in over a year, if not longer. I need to find a better camera and a faster way to upload high-res videos. It was taking my 4-6 hours to upload videos to Youtube from my camera, so I got frustrated. My Internet is very slow, really low upload speed for videos. For anyone that has not seen my Youtube channel, you can view, like, subscribe here - We have 106 Nuggethunting videos. https://www.youtube.com/@Nuggethunting

Great Story Bob. Wow, talk about a close call there! A partner and I also had a nice claim on Antelope for many years, but never really enough water to really dredge, so we ended up selling the claim. The following year, there was Winter storm after storm and Antelope ran for about a month straight, crystal clear dredging water .... go figure! Rob

beatup it's not that occasional big one that keeps me hunting the hillsides, it's multi-pound patches. AzNuggetBob

yes sir Bob sometimes you just have to get out of the washes and work up high , and who knows there is always a possible big one on those slopes.

beatup I have to say, I love the course nuggets you found the photo. I'm glad you pointed this out. I think where you found them is very important. I'm just going to say and I've said this before all the gold out there isn't always in the creek. thanks for sharing. AzNuggetBob

Great topic Rob let me share a recent experience There are still folks out there willing to tunnel in. I ran into a prospector two or so years back who was making a coyote hole tunneling in a very rich placer area. I won't say exactly where but he had found a very hard-packed top cap near a gold-producing drainage that was about 8' thick and tunneled in just like the old-timers where the hard pack met the bedrock. He had the luxury of a battery-operated headlamp and a small hand-held vacuum. He had tunneled in about 30' in one direction before the bedrock started dropping down and 20' in another. When I saw him he was just coming out of the ground to take a five-gallon bucket of dirt to his truck. We talked for a few minutes just normal stuff then I asked him aren't you afraid of a cave-in? Still wearing his headlamp and standing near his truck he said no not at all and walked over to the top cap near his entry hole and hit it with a hammer. See until this gets wet it is solid. I asked him "Man it has to be a bit spooky in a hole you go in head first and have to back out of," He said not really stating he had widened out inside chasing the bedrock. That is when our conversation went to the returns he was getting. I asked him about the 5-gallon bucket he had just put in his truck. He said that is the good stuff right on the bedrock and maybe 2" above the bedrock. I was very interested as a metal detector knowing this was ground I could never get to but was very curious about his take. When I asked he kind of wanted to not fully disclose but gave me this. “I was getting about 10 grams to the bucket" I didn't want to press him more at that point. I thanked him and we went on our way. For me, I do not like the underground so I have total respect for this man for assessing the risks and figuring out where and how to get it. I just don’t For me, I do not like the underground so total respect for this man for assessing the risks and figuring out where and how to get it.

A vein of gold the diameter of a pencil 10' long would weigh 2 pounds....🙂

Hey all: Was able to get out over the last few weeks to start off the AZ gold season. Did pretty good! First place that I got 2.6 grams out of was a wash that I have beat to death over the last 6 yrs. Have had many friends in there and they beat it too. I purchased a 6000 from Rob last summer and I think that is what really made the difference. I was using the 5000 before and the monster. The two big ones were about 2 feet up the bank but the little ones were right in the gut of the wash that was even placered out and turned over many times. We have not had any significant rain to change things this year so, these were simply missed. But it seems like the 6000 sniffed them out. The .2 grammer was found on Wed. I went into a new area that looked good from GE but once I got in there it was all volcanics. HOT volcanics! The 6000 was squawking like a banshee. After two old bullets I found the nug. Even though there was a lot of ground noise once the 6000 gets over a target it will let you know. Just have to wrap your head around the background noise and concentrate. Found about 6 more old bullets and a cool horse shoe. This has opened up a LOT of new territory for me to work now Great day out with friends and the good Lord blessed me with some gold. Tom H.

good on you Rob , nice to see that someone is hardy enough to get out there in the summer heat and get some gold .

Rob I remember where your claims were. You were way up above us on the creek. It was steeper than where we were. It was only wet for a short time after the rains. Sorry to hear things didn’t work out for you up there. I know what your saying, I've walked away from some ground that I regretted and heard about it later. It sucks. Down where we were it was much flatter and we had several ponds with elevated granite dikes crossing the creek acting as dams. We had a problem with the water!. We were drowning the dozer and dozing blind under water half the time banging along trying to figure out what was bedrock or boulders in the muddy water with an old cable rig dozer, and had to put in pumps to continue digging. I remember water flying off the dozer fan blade before we gave up and started pumping the hole out with two 2” pumps. Ok one and a half pumps, I remember one pump only worked half the time. I think It pumped out more water with the pull starter than it did running on its own. That’s all we had. we put a lot of work into it but once we got the boulders blasted with the Dupont rock softener and out of the main hole it was payday. When we were done, it was also the best swimming hole in the whole area.,surrounded with trees. I do miss that place, it still holds a lot of great memories with me. AzNuggetBob

David, It looks like you have been seriously afflicted with gold fever. Congratulations and I hope you have many interesting and memorable adventures. You write well, thanks for sharing your story!

Nugget hunting is not a lazy man's game. I go days and days without gold. But all of that fades away when you find your "Lost Gulch". I also prefer to hike way out away from the roads. If I am worried that nobody will find my body, then I am probably looking in the right place. 😄

Good topic Rob , some of the best coyote holes I have had the chance to detect were in last chance canyon outside of Ridgecrest California about 25 years ago , like you said some were just pockets dug into the hillsides and other were more extensively worked but all were an interesting learning experience for me at the time . And like you said there was always someone outside just in case something went wrong while the other was inside the hole.

Way2cool I sure hope they don’t say no big loss when we’re gone ! Chuck

And if you do go alone ... carry a SPOT GPS device. Never needed it, but feels good to have it. Oh, and nice gold, Rob. I haven't gotten out much lately, but that fever is starting to burn again. But with these temperatures, I can't even do the night hunting thing. For now, maybe just some google prospecting.. or pull out the pendulum. Probably couldn't do worse. LOL.

Congrats on the gold. Over an ounce on few trips is really good. I tried to get out a few weeks back but they had the roads closed due to a fire. I really regret not jumping on the 6000 when they were on sale.

Great story FlakMagnet. We P.O.ed a few neighbors also. I know what you mean about the geysers of water from the blast. At first we used the water as a buffer for the noise and fly-rock.,when the dynamite went off it had more of a big thump to it. but with water in there it really shook the ground. after we pumped it out we lost that advantage and sent some rock sailing. We were drilling shallow hoes in the boulders and that by itself creates a lot of fly-rock. They referred to us as those crazy miners in town and down at Stanton. We had a lot of people driving by also up on the main road but none of them had the guts to stop and come down to the creek and see what we were doing. Just kept driving by. It was like we stirred up a hornets nest of them. I've got another story similar to yours. I wrote it years ago here on Rob’s. If I can find it I will move it here or I will re-write it. I have several more dynamite related stories. If I were you I would get a metal detector and hunt the area above and around the crater in the creek, you probably created a new nugget patch up on the hillside.. and remember gold never disappears completely, it just gets re-deposited. lol AzNuggetBob

I'm sitting on the sidelines waiting for some new owners of the Garrett Axiom to post some experiences and opinions that would definitely perk things up 😁⁉️

Hey Guys, Due to my limited time, I haven't had much time on the new Garrett Axiom metal detector. However, my first impression on the unit were pretty good. First, the new Garrett sells for MAP of $3995 or 15% discount for USA Active/Retired Vets. I believe Garrett marketed this unit to fit perfectly into the budget of most gold prospectors and treasure hunters. They also give you the option of two packages, one with wireless headphones and a 11" Mono and 13" DD, or wired headphones and a 11 DD and 13" Mono. Many of my customers have been split on the packages, the ones that want more depth out of the box seem to take the larger Mono packages, while the ones that are looking for max sensitivity to small targets and nuggets go with the 11" Mono. Secondly, overall the unit is very light, lighter than any other gold hunting Pulse Induction metal detector including Minelab's GPX 6000. I also believe Garrett built a bit better design, haven't seen issues with a shaft turning or wobbling as of yet, seems like a stronger design from other similar manufactures. Finally, on the Goldfields, the unit was very stable overall. I used the 11" Mono the entire time the first trip out as I wanted to just get used to the performance of the unit before dabbling too much with the DD and Iron ID. That being said, Garrett does offer the Iron ID on this unit, where most other PI's have done away with any type of iron discrimination (GPX 5000 and prior). Many believe there is still a need or use for Iron ID in trashy locations, which I do tend to agree. The unit was simple to understand without even reading the Quick Start Manual. I charged the Axiom the night prior, let it charge overnight and removed in the morning prior to the hunt. I powered on the Axiom, adjusted the sensitivity, placed in Normal mode, Tone around 55, adjusted my threshold, used in Medium Tracking then did the EMI tune and started hunting. The unit ran really smooth and stable, the only time it was a bit unstable, which happens with most detectors is when a airplane flew over. This would last a minute or two, then calm down. Believe it or not, my first target in a very trashy area was a nice nugget (pictures will come). I couldn't believe it, had to yell over to a friend and say, "Dude do you believe this?" That being said, I spent the next hour or so digging through a bunch of trash and didn't find another piece until later. I only had a few small hotrocks respond, which could easily be ID's when seen. I ended the trip with 4 nuggets, two pretty nice ones and two smaller ones. I also had a nice pouch full of iron rubbish, as I was not using the DD or Iron ID on the Axiom at the time. This will be something else I need to experiment with, as I heard the Axiom does very well with the Iron ID mode. I was hoping for a bit more sensitivity to small targets, as I was running the "sensitivity" almost all the way, but realized later I wasn't in "Fine" mode, which I believe will increase the overall sensitivity to small gold even more than the "Normal' mode. Quick Conclusion - Garrett did a great job on this unit, it's priced right, performs well, very lightweight and will have other searchcoil options available. The unit is super easy to use, almost a turn on and Go detector. I know there are a ton of people going to ask, is it better than the GPX 6000, I'm not going to say that, but I think with the price, performance and a USA made detector, Garrett hit a "Home Run" here. P.S. I don't claim to be an expert on this detector, I have had very limited time on it, but do have over 30 years detecting experience now, so I felt I could give a fair, quick field test on this new Garrett Axiom. May all your targets be Golden! Rob

Fresh out of the ground today in sunny southwest Arizona ,found by my brother using the 7000 paired with the nugget finder 12 Zsreach coil , it was under a boulder about 3 feet in diameter one foot back under and one foot deep . it weighs 20.02 grams . second photo

Rob Just 10 posts on this that or the other and this forum will gain traction again. 1) Favorite places to hunt. (Gultches, Hillsides, Mine Dumps, Screen piles, bedrock etc.) Tips and tricks 2) Best research sources, maps, Out of box technics " Here is how to find a new location" 3) GPX coils and setting (Simplify the use of a PI) Pi Basics. 4) Metal detecting patterns. We all have things we relate to gold and these tell-tell signs are the first indicator of gold. 5) Seasons As we all know there are different approaches for each season. Summer Dress right and hunt the areas that normally have the worst vegetation Fall Check the areas that have eroded Winter Hunt the gut of the gulch too hot to hunt when it's hot Spring Find the drainages that historically produce and expand 6) I hate to say equipment but the object is to get and identify as many targets as possible in the course of the day. What does that mean? What type of ground are you hunting? What is your pick of choice? Are there different picks for different areas/seasons Do you know when your detector is telling you Iron or non-Ferrous How do you dig a target? Can you use your coil to pinpoint a target's location? 7) Favorite places to hunt: Deserts High Deserts Foot Hill Mountains Rivers Streams Creek Beds Washes Gultches 😎 What do you do with the gold you find Save your gold Sell Your Gold Repurpose your gold for jewelry 9) Trip preparation: research 10) Hunting Gear. Camel Pack, Foods for breaks, Water or Gator Aid, etc Any or all of the 10 items would make a great thread the idea is to make a contribution to your fellow gold hunters who are dwindling in numbers by the year but each and every one of them has the knowledge to pass on Rob This is your forum you are the best of human beings I challenge you to post a topic on each of the items I have outlined or one of your choice. I hope this helps

Rob You may want to add more categories to your forum. Meteorites are big these days, content is king. AzNuggetBob

Around two years ago above the town I call home a gate broke on the Guadalupe River. The powers that be come to the conclusion that all the dam gates needed to be repaired but had to find the first. After that money was found they started lowering river so work could be started . It first the water level was dropping and you could see dry land appearing. That’s when I told myself self when it gets lower you going to detect it , I know most items will relate to fishing but in one picture you will see a old bridge that has not been used in years. But what do people throw away that they want it gone for ever ? A gun and maybe I just may find one . I posted this on another forum and after I took the pictures it rained every week with more rain coming next week. I’ll post more if and when it stops raining. Chuck

Hello Fishing8046, Tons of footage, just don't have the time to upload it .... Hopefully we can get some traffic back here, always fun to chat with others. Any suggestions on getting more people to post/talk? Rob

So, when does the book come out????😁

Beautiful Gold you found there. Hope you find more, a nice patch or vein! Rob

Super Impressive gold you found there. Keep up the great work and sharing with us here. Rob

Hello All, Many have known the Minelab Gold Monster 1000 has been probably the best all around VLF gold detectors available today. The original version, which is still offered while inventory last, had 2 searchcoils included. This new Gold Monster 1000 offered at a lower MAP Price of $799 will only have the 5" Round Searchcoil and 2 batteries. This is a great deal and most were probably only using the 5" coil for small gold, bedrock hunting, mine dumps and such. If you're interested in this new Gold Monster 1000 Package, contact us today or visit our online link here - https://www.robsdetectors.com/product/minelab-gold-monster-1000-metal-detector-1-searchcoil-2-batteries/

Rob Very Nice! Thank you for sharing, this is so interesting I hope you have time for a few questions. Did you detect all of the gold nuggets or were some nuggets recovered by placering and detecting? I realize it was more than one hike, likely many, but after you located the area how far did you hike from the nearest road? In your 40hr a week work are you often in remote areas? Last question. Can you share any videos?

You hard press to find a gold show of any size anymore. I know it’s some here and there but the big one most of the time was the GPAA one. You could find them going to different states even Texas. So if maybe bye them doing that a lot of people wouldn’t have a long drive to see what’s it’s all about. I keep telling myself I’m going to make the one at Quartzsite but that’s about a 1300 mile drive one way . The sad thing is my grandkids and great grandkids will never know what they missed. Chuck

Great public gatherings, miss having the various opportunities to attend on annual basis. I was lucky to be located where multi state shows were a reasonable distance. Las Vegas seemed to be a really good location to enjoy.

Ok Bob.....thats FUNNY! How are you doing? I got out a few times this year with the 6000. It will find the small stuff. Its like the monster on steroids. Waiting for Halloween to get back out. Too stinking hot! Tom H.

This is a 400 KODIAC ATC. It has both Electric Start AND Pull Start. The 4-Wheel works great. I have outfitted it with a Hard Plastic (lockable) metal detector case on the front and a Hard Plastic (lockable) box on the back. This box is large enough to carry a couple 5-gal. buckets, or a Vac-Pac unit, or a pick and shovel (short handle) a back pack, gold pans and classifiers, or extra gas in a 2 1/2 gal plastic container, or....."What-Ever"... Local Prescott Valley Arizona Pickup only. For those who are truly interested please send me a pm. PRICE: $3500

Frank, come on over to New Mexico, and I'll take you out with my Axiom. We can learn it together. I've had it for a while, but just haven't taken the time to get out with it as I should have.

Thanks fishing8046 I like posting here and sharing some nugget hunting skills that I’ve learned over the years, even though I get a little flack from time to time for exposing some nugget hunting secrets that some pro’s feel should never be shared with the general public. Strictly around the camp fire stuff. 😃 There is a lot of good info already here on Rob’s forum, just search it in the search bar (top right corner of home page) with good key words. Many of the keywords you posted in your post is a good place to start. Just 10 posts on this that or the other and this forum will gain traction again. 1) Favorite places to hunt. (Gultches, Hillsides, Mine Dumps, Screen piles, bedrock etc.) Tips and tricks 2) Best research sources, maps, Out of box technics " Here is how to find a new location" 3) GPX coils and setting (Simplify the use of a PI) Pi Basics. 4) Metal detecting patterns. We all have things we relate to gold and these tell-tell signs are the first indicator of gold. 5) Seasons As we all know there are different approaches for each season. Summer Dress right and hunt the areas that normally have the worst vegetation Fall Check the areas that have eroded Winter Hunt the gut of the gulch too hot to hunt when it's hot Spring Find the drainages that historically produce and expand 6) I hate to say equipment but the object is to get and identify as many targets as possible in the course of the day. What does that mean? What type of ground are you hunting? What is your pick of choice? Are there different picks for different areas/seasons Do you know when your detector is telling you Iron or non-Ferrous How do you dig a target? Can you use your coil to pinpoint a target's location? 7) Favorite places to hunt: Deserts High Deserts Foot Hill Mountains Rivers Streams Creek Beds Washes Gultches 😎 What do you do with the gold you find Save your gold Sell Your Gold Repurpose your gold for jewelry AzNuggetBob

Sometimes you need to think outside the box. https://youtube.com/shorts/RE2bBA_0DOk?feature=share AzNuggetBob

ZIP ZIP BOOK BY LARRY SALLEE. REVISED EDITION, VERY GOOD CONDITION $45, BUYER PAYS SHIPPING.