sdf527 Posted January 11, 2009 Report Share Posted January 11, 2009 Ken P. and I explored the secret canyon that I found at Xmas. 3 small nuggets in 1.5 to 2 gram size for our efforts. The canyon was so full of trash that the upper reaches were almost impossible to detect. I found the source of the trash, an old hardrock mine way up in the hills. The ore was still stacked for a trip out by burro. Not the remotest possibility of mechanized transport from there. The ore had no visible gold and no detectable tones. The vein material consisted of small rust colored crystals with quartz on one side and softer black vein material on the other. The mine was probably late 1940's vintage so there wasn't even any collectable artifacts. We hit it hard from sunup to late afternoon, two solid days. We changed locations and attempted some different tactics by adopting some of Montana's philosphy. We tried every wash and canyon on the margins of known gold producing areas. We covered so much ground in out of the way places that we ran into Mountain Sheep on two separate occasions. We hiked and detected a minimum of 7 hours a day for 5 straight days. On the positive side we had a good time, got plenty of exercise and eliminated a bunch of territory from future consideration. It's times like these that make me want to give up prospecting; then inevitably my legs and feet get rested up I'm ready for a new adventure. Ken had a pretty good analogy to Las Vegas gamblers. "It's not the probability of success that keeps them coming back, it's the possibility." So now I'm already thinking about the next possibility of finding a decent new placer area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montana Posted January 12, 2009 Report Share Posted January 12, 2009 sdf. I can't even count the times I've found a few nuggets in one gully and none in the surrounding 100 gullies. On the other hand I've found a few places where the first gully I tried had nothing and all the surrounding gullies were loaded. That's what keeps a prospector going. I just spent the last 2 days checking out longshots. Detected dozens of small gullies without a crumb of gold. Feet are killing me but I'll rest them up and be back at it in a few days. Been doing it for 20 plus years and the enthusiasm hasn't diminished yet, although the endurance might be waning a little.----Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enigmatic Posted January 12, 2009 Report Share Posted January 12, 2009 Ken P. and I explored the secret canyon that I found at Xmas. 3 small nuggets in 1.5 to 2 gram size for our efforts. The canyon was so full of trash that the upper reaches were almost impossible to detect. I found the source of the trash, an old hardrock mine way up in the hills. The ore was still stacked for a trip out by burro. Not the remotest possibility of mechanized transport from there. The ore had no visible gold and no detectable tones. The vein material consisted of small rust colored crystals with quartz on one side and softer black vein material on the other. The mine was probably late 1940's vintage so there wasn't even any collectable artifacts. We hit it hard from sunup to late afternoon, two solid days. We changed locations and attempted some different tactics by adopting some of Montana's philosphy. We tried every wash and canyon on the margins of known gold producing areas. We covered so much ground in out of the way places that we ran into Mountain Sheep on two separate occasions. We hiked and detected a minimum of 7 hours a day for 5 straight days. On the positive side we had a good time, got plenty of exercise and eliminated a bunch of territory from future consideration. It's times like these that make me want to give up prospecting; then inevitably my legs and feet get rested up I'm ready for a new adventure. Ken had a pretty good analogy to Las Vegas gamblers. "It's not the probability of success that keeps them coming back, it's the possibility." So now I'm already thinking about the next possibility of finding a decent new placer area.It's not the probability of success that keeps them coming back, it's the possibility! Your friend Ken is a pretty wise man!! That one sentience is the lowest common denominator of what we do. Guido Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandana Don Posted January 12, 2009 Report Share Posted January 12, 2009 Morning Bob: Tomorrow is Betsy's last wroking day before her tretirement. There is great joy in knowing one doesn't have to continue working. Good on You Betsy-- here's my wish that your retirement years be filled with many joyous sun rises and sun set PLUS many large pokes full of nice yellow rocks. Congrats Betsy ya made it!Don Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kamikaze Posted January 12, 2009 Report Share Posted January 12, 2009 sdf Did you pack out some of that ore? Might be interesting to have processed some it to see the contents... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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