gold hunting

[garimpo]

Hey Garimpo,

How is it going? I been down for a week and a half. Damm PC got nuttier than a peach orchard boar so I got pissed at it, loaded my gear and headed for the hills for four days. Beat the bush hard, wasnt looking for the usual hammered areas but was thinking maybe I would find a new patch. Only one pissy 4.5 grain dink.

To make it worse I found it with the 3500 and 11" stockDD.

Didnt spend three grand-plus for that. Got a Bug II for the dinks.

Anyway it sure makes you look forward to home, a hot shower, a soft bed and a good cup of coffee. Speaking of which, I went off and forget my coffee, four days without a cup, WOW!!!

Only thing that saved me was that, I did remember to take three cans of Skoal with me, and if you get real hard up for a cup of coffee, you just spit in your cup, after a while it will be about half full and looks kinda of like thick brown coffee and then, well you know............

Hey, speaking of kilos, you are talking about gold, right??? Bob T.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You bet Bob T. only gold and not any of that "other" stuff.

[garimpo]

Alarm buzzing at 0600, look out the window and NO RAIN. Just thin high clouds and a slight breeze. It's been two weeks and it's time to go.

Water with ice, lunch pail with sandwich out the gate at 0645. As Willie Nelson would say: ON THE ROAD AGAIN :Innocent:

Went to a place that's been beat to death for years but now the ranch owner has cleared off an area the size of two football fields and then about half a mile of fence. Very hilly and a lot of dozer blade pieces.

Fired the old detector up and walked slowly for a couple of minutes, normal to let the detector settle down a bit. Right off got a signal, thirty feet behind the Toyota, yep dozer blade. In the six hours I got in today I probably dug about 60 pieces of iron, 15 of aluminum.

About 50' behind the Toy another signal, start digging, after a couple of inches the signal is getting a lot louder, normal. Then at about 5" overload, another 2 or 3 " and it's out of the hole and in the dirt.

Today was my first day using the new GRG scoop. Really like it a lot, especially the hook on the handle, really handy and the square edges are wonderful. It's going to take a while to get used to the difference's in material their made out of. For example in the old scoops a nugget dropped in with the other hand would make a "klunk" sound, this new one I guess is plastic and it goes "klink". Oh well that's progress.

Anyway the screamer in the dirt pile went "klink" and for the first time in it's long life the worlds ugliest nugget.

Not kidding, guess I'll have to put it on the anvil and give it a whack just to make sure it's a nugget.

Guess I should have expected it out beeping on Fri. the 13th.

Here's pics to prove it.

[garimpo]

Scoop is 11.5" long, so about 10-11" deep for Mr. Ugly.

[garimpo]

He was hidding just behind the pick ups close to the tree line.

[garimpo]

Here's the other direction and shows how steep the hills are here. Also the miles of cleared fence line.

[garimpo]

Here he is cleaned up, don't say I didn't warn you.

[garimpo]

See if this one is any better.

[garimpo]

No better but here he is at weigh in.

I need more photography lesson fron grubstake, he always has great pics. Course it helps when you have beautiful gold.

[nuggethunting]

Hello Garimpo,

Very nice piece of gold. Curious if the ground was virgin? From the picture it looks like layers of gravel, but it might be just the way the picture looks. As I scanned down, looks like someone dozed the area.

Was the piece 9.4 Grams or 94 Grams?

Take care,

Rob Allison

[COLORADO BOB]

Hey Garimpo,

Nice stuff, don't see anything ugly about it. It's yellow and that makes it beautiful.

Only improvement that I would like to see you make is to get a real big pick, ya can't dig with a little bitty ol thing like that.

Is the gold scattered through out the miles of area that you show or is it in various small areas?

Thanks for the pic's. Bob T.

[grubstake]

Garimpo, you sure make it rough on me, its going to snow here tonight and tomarrow, won't be able to get to my new patch till Monday. Nice gold your getting. My little camara is a Samsung 3.2 megapixel, I just down load my pictures straight off of the camara to the forum, it has its own sizeing program in it, and my wife bought for my birthday Last FEB. 7th, so its almost a year old. Walmart special for a $119.00 and another 15.00 for extra memory. But it has a macro and a 3x zoom lens. It does good for what I wanted it for. Grubstake

[COLORADO BOB]

Hi Grubstake,

That little camera does you proud.

Grubstake, you may have to buy yourself a snowblower just so you can keep posting that yellow stuff. Bob T.

[garimpo]

Good Saturday morning Rob, I wish 94 but no, it's only 9.4 grams. The area there has been pounded for the last 15 years but still has a little gold because of the vegetation. The owner told me about 6 months ago he was going to clear that hill but I've seen him several time and thought he would tell me but no he didn't. I was going to another hammered area when I went past I saw the new dozer tracks and just followed them in. The spot he dozed was abut the size of a football field, flat on top and the sides really steep. Then he cleared miles of fence line. It's probably been three months since the dozer work and someone else had been there, I'm the only one here that back fills holes. From the looks of the deep holes the first person got about 3-4 good nuggets out of there.

Geology here is a real mixed bag, there on top of the hill is gravel, on the sides of the hill slate and then just a few feet away just dirt. Here the gold is in the gravel or slate. Yesterday in the gravel.

Colo. Bob, yep I've got another pick just like that one but only bigger, getting to old to carry the big one except when in deep gravel.

grubstake, sorry about the snow. That's one of the major reason I'm down here. This town is 78 years old and their still waiting for their first snow storm, I think they'll have to wait a while longer since it never gets less than 65° here.

The bad pics ain't my cameras fault, it's a Fuji 3.2 pixel, micro and zoom. I just need to learn how to use the damn thing better.

This afternoon I'm taking the new kid out that just got a new Garrett Ace 250 for Christmas. He only knows how to turn it on and off, the little shit will probably get a one ouncer.

[garimpo]

Garimpo: looks like a clowns head, nose is facing left, hat on top right. I think he looks kinda cool dude--Hammer

[garimpo]

Hi Harold, clown is ok but now think Geography.

[garimpo]

This is the area I took the "newbie" to yesterday. No gold--he spent to much time standing in the shade and drinking water.

Rich Hill is the name the locals call this ridge. It's been detected, blown up, dozed up, sifted and what have you for the last 15 years yet people still find gold here. It would be interesting and I think very profitable for a drywasher to work here. The entire area is over 100 acres and gold has been found in all the surrounding hills. Some of the locals will set up a "drywasher" type operation by using a large round rich screen supported between a three legged tripod. In this one hill alone there's enough material to last a life time.

[garimpo]

Here's some recently pushed area for detectors. It's next to the one above.

[garimpo]

180° in the other direction. In the back ground you can see red dirt, that's a hole about 5 acres in size and 15' deep that over a period of several years has yielded several kilos of gold. Again the entire area needs to be dry washed.

[TXKajun]

garimpo, so what happened with the Ace 250?? I'm biting my nails here waiting to hear. LOL

[garimpo]

TXK, what happened is just what I was afraid would happen. The two, an Uncle and his Nephew, showed up wearing their "townie" clothes, both are townines, tennis a bright fluorescent red and the a yellow, pants with the crotch down past their knees.

The two hr. we were at the digs you see above they detected from shade tree to shade tree, then it was time for a smoke and a big drink of water. They each went through two quarts of water in two hours.

The Garrett Ace is truly a turn on and go machine. Not having read the manual I set the controls full sensitivity, all metal, no discriminate. A few minutes after starting to detect they found a boot tack, this was after the first drink. I notched out the tack by eliminating the first two little squares on the discriminator. I then threw the 9.4 gram nugget on the ground and it would pick it up but had to be very close. Then I returned the machine to accept all targets and it picked up the nugget a little farther. It will pick up gold but it will necessary to use all metal and work the coil on the ground and go very slow. They did dig a few pieces of dozer blade and boot tacks.

[TXKajun]

garimpo, sounds like they need a bit of gold prospecting practical "education"! LOL

Thanks tons for the test and the report. I guess it's time to start saving for a Lobo ST, no? (I know, only if I'm SERIOUS about finding some gold!). Do you have any experience with the ST?

Thanks tons and good luck!

[whats4supper]

Only one question: is this home cooking, like you doing all the cooking, or someone else? Or is there a buffet somewhere outside of the picture borders? any 7-11s?

I especially like the Twinkies, or rather should say, the old un-improved twinkies, new ones just don't work the same way, only good for eating and that's about it. I used to keep a few twinkies in my pack in case the batteries went dead or something. then it was a simple matter to find a stick and poke one end of the twinkie (sort of like a hot dog on a stick). Then you could light one up and use it for a torch that gave you about 15 minutes of light, indiana jones style while underground, caving, or exploring ancient ruins.

Oh yeah, How's the beer? Mexicans seem to have some really good brews, but in SA, if there aren't a lot of germans around, the brew seems kind of wine flavored or otherwise suckky...

I am sure you are the topic of choice among some of the regulars. maybe you feel that YOU are the illegal alien there, or the totem pole in a land of smurfs. I had the experience of kids ganging up and throwing rocks at me while yelling out Giant! Giant! the fact that you use a detector probably throws a lot of them off as I never found anybody outside of a gringo or german that could even get the hang of it or the right tuning sequence. A lot even outright accuse a person of 'planting' the goods, even when there is no evidence whatsoever that the object hadn't laid there for millions of years, and they missed their chance before you came along and ripped them open with your machine.

And how is the summer weather going? Hot or Not so Hot? great posts, great effort. great reading!

Charlie In Las Vegas

[garimpo]

garimpo, sounds like they need a bit of gold prospecting practical "education"!  LOL

Thanks tons for the test and the report.  I guess it's time to start saving for a Lobo ST, no?  (I know, only if I'm SERIOUS about finding some gold!).  Do you have any experience with the ST?

Thanks tons and good luck!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yep, had a Lobo, it tracks the minerals really fast. I really liked the machine, I sold it about a year ago and there's time when I wish I had it back.

[garimpo]

Only one question:  is this home cooking, like you doing all the cooking, or someone else?  Or is there a buffet somewhere outside of the picture borders?  any 7-11s?  No 7-11's and the nearest McDonald's is 4 hrs away. There is a couple of restaurants in town but most eats here are home cooked. Some of the beepers here stop for lunch and either cook some rice, beans and a little meat. I usually just take sandwich material in a cooler.

I especially like the Twinkies, or rather should say, the old un-improved twinkies, new ones just don't work the same way, only good for eating and that's about it.  I used to keep a few twinkies in my pack in case the batteries went dead or something.  then it was a simple matter to find a stick and poke one end of the twinkie (sort of like a hot dog on a stick).  Then you could light one up and use it for a torch that gave you about 15 minutes of light, Indiana Jones style while underground, caving, or exploring ancient ruins.No twinkies here, old or new. I've only been able to buy Gatorade for about a year now.

Oh yeah, How's the beer?  Mexicans seem to have some really good brews, but in SA, if there aren't a lot of Germans around, the brew seems kind of wine flavored or otherwise suckky...The beer here is really good. There's about 3 Brazilian beers and a couple of German ones.

I am sure you are the topic of choice among some of the regulars.  maybe you feel that YOU are the illegal alien there, or the totem pole in a land of smurfs.  I had the experience of kids ganging up and throwing rocks at me while yelling out Giant! Giant! the fact that you use a detector probably throws a lot of them off as I never found anybody outside of a gringo or German that could even get the hang of it or the right tuning sequence.  A lot even outright accuse a person of 'planting' the goods, even when there is no evidence whatsoever that the object hadn't laid there for millions of years, and they missed their chance before you came along and ripped them open with your machine.  I was the first here with a PI unit, before me there was a few old VLF's and then after four years of them watching me dig big nuggets while they were hiding in the bush, they made a mad dash for the PI's and some of them really got a lot of gold. I'm mostly alone in the bush and I prefer it that way really because then I don't have to worry about my back side, I know for sure I have to watch that also.

And how is the summer weather going?  Hot or Not so Hot?  great posts, great effort. great reading! You asked about summer, it's summer here year round. The only difference is like now when we have about 4 months of rains.

Goin again tomorrow, if the weather holds I'll be gone for the week. Going to the virgin area again, still a lot of undetected ground there.

Charlie In Las Vegas

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[garimpo]

Hi folks, got back late yesterday from the ranch. Had intended to stay a few days but with school vacations still going on here the ranch bunk house was full.

Tony's wife, son, daughter, nephew and two uncles were camped out there. Maybe your asking why would his family be there now and not the rest of the time or maybe you don't give crap.

His family home is in a town that's 80 miles from the ranch, he works the ranch with his mother during the week and then goes home on the week end. Probably saves a lot of arguments.

Got in four hours of beeping in the "virgin" area. Almost ready to quit, tired, everything hurt, deep in the trees, a lot of BIG mosquitoes and HOT ground. Got a little broken signal, thought it was another mineral hot spot but started to dig anyway. At three inches hit some big roots, signal erratic, tried to get under the root but checked the hole again and no signal, it figures just the way my luck was running yesterday but wait there's a good signal in the little heap of dirt in back of the hole. Hot damn, a nuggie.

3.8 grams, pure.