Mormon crickets... ??? Off-topic...


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Just wondering. It now has been several years since I was with Montana and

Sandtrap spending a day at Placerites in northern Nevada... Montana was ignoring

the Mormon cricket horde and also the sticker-weeds as he was concentrating on

finding gold. Singlemindedly he was swinging his search coil... and finding small gold

nuggets. Very Impressive.

My question: Are the Mormon Crickets causing a problem this year? Just wondering.

Back a few years ago they shut down the freeway near Winnemucca for several hours

as the dead crickets were making a section of the highway slippery... like ice.

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Tim and Chris.... Thank you for responding. Back when we lived in the Lovelock

area in the late 1950's, they were rare due to the usual early spring coldsnap.

There was always a few crickets to be found, but never such a horde of them.

Sandtrap... Do not travel over gold looking for gold.... it is still to be found down

the highway leading southerly from your "home 20." I guess you were up last night

and got a great view of the eclipes. The sky is too light for viewing in most urban

areas but I'm sure you were litterly in the "dark."

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1dredger... it seems that over the last 6 or 7 seasons, the Spring weather has

not experienced a cold snap and the eggs hatch. The hordes can have a density

of hundeds/sq-yd. And cover an area about a mile wide and several miles long.

Quite an experience for anyone caught unawares. One year, maybe about 1990,

Jack Leuf and I were high up Majuba mountain... the switchbacks. We suddenly

found ourselves in a horde. Then a padlocked chain across the road. Jack was

able to turn my 1979 shortwheel base 4-wheel drive 150 around. Barely enough

room. We could have backed down but it would have been slow. In the process

crickets were crushed under the wheels and there was quite a cannabalistic feeding

frenzy.

I still have the 150. Jack and I had it out earlier this year. One thing to remember,

use 4-wheel before bogging down in the loose sand... not after! Saves a lot of

shoveling. (Maybe Sandtrap can speak about this?)

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Guest sandtrap

To Dutch John and Montana,

My hunting in "cricket" country was a learning experience I will never forget., especially with two persons I respect very highly. Now, even with Montana's setup of exterior speakers for hard of hearing people like me, I cannot pickup the sounds, that he skillfully can determine,are good or bad signals. I thank both of you for having patience with me.

As far as bogging down in the sands, that is how i got my name "SANDTRAP".. Never take a heavy Ford truck to places where my Suzuki Samurai "floats" over. The Zuki is one fine machine for hunting the El Pasos, and surrounding areas.

Y'all take care, and may all your pockets be filled with that elusive gold stuff...

TO ALL >> When in the Last Chance canyon area of Cali, visit Bickel's Camp-- a showplace of how the old prospectors' lived, being preserved now as a state historical site. It is off Hwy. 14,, going to Burro Schmidt's Tunnel.

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Sandtrap... Down memory lane... On Sunday, September 8th, 2002 you and I were

beeping during a cut at Lunker Hill. As soon as Tim Dale finished, Jim Malone using

his 2200d with the 11-inch DD made a quick and rough pass up and down the cut

looking for one of the occasional "monsters."

You and the others were using VLF-type machines and were finding shallow small gold.

However Jim was letting me use my Garrett Infinium with the 10x14 DD. I was watching

Jim carefully. I noticed he did not detect the upper corner of the cut as it was thought

to be out of the channel.

Just a hunch... later that afternoon I gave the corner a try. Strong signal, repeatable.

High/low. Now to dig... I tried my old stoping pick... swung it hard into the clay. The

point went a couple of inches. The old wooden handle was stressed and I was afraid

it would break (it was cracked and taped). So I worked it out by wiggling the upper end

of the pick. Then walked down to your truck and got my hammer and moil and dug out

the signal. A "nice" eluvial nugget. The best one I ever found while beeping Lunker Hill.

When I showed it to Jim he let me keep it... no split. This opened up a new "channel"

as neither Tim or Jim thought the upper area was in the main channel.

The point of all of this, is not break my rule "Silence is GOLDen," but this was the same day

and about the same time that our oldest great-granddaughter, Bella, was born. Thus, this

nugget brings back fond memories of days now gone.

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