Merced River Chapter 2

[Grubstake1]

Ok, guys and Gals, now a little about the people on the Merced at Bagby.

Lots of great ones, Dan and his family were one of the first I met, fine people for sure, there was a a friend of mine, Clint, and Eddie Fay, and Fred, a reitred Fireman, A guy by the last name of Alan, that owned a Honda Dealership down south, and then a few out laws, I'll get too later, At the end of every season, when people would pack up to go, we would have a Campground party, potluck, Eddie was a singer country of couse, and played guitar also, He was from Akansas, Then there was Gary Bailly, he dredged and fished, Old Fred had every kind of gold getting device they made, but it mostly set in his camp, while he liked to talk about what he was going to do.

He once lost a 5oz bottle of fines, someone told him that a minelab 1700 would find it, so he hid it in a banana peel, and while the guy was going around camp with the detector, a ground squirle, came and stoled the banana peel along with the gold and ran down a hole, as far as I know no one ever recovered it. I loved winter, I didn't have to work, I just detected all winter, living on my end of season bonus, Bill would give me. I got to know the merced river, like a map maker, I have been up every canyon, and every little dig there was to see, inside old mines, I've been inside of Fremonts French mine, And lots of un-named tunels and drifts, I'm much smarted than that now, not a risk taker like I was.

The fishing was great too, Bill would have trout planted, and they were big ones, 4=5 pounders. The names of some of the places I went to detect in the winter, Soloman Gulch, David Gulch, Washington Flat, Fly away Gulch, French gulch, Jackass Flats, Just a few, hard to get into, and even harder to detect. I'll get back with more tonight. Grubstake

[dutch john]

This is true and what a great memory Gary... You really "GOTCHA Me"

Back at the time I was teaching an adult class in prospecting in

Fontana California and my students knew about Gary's class and

very positive and enthusiastic about Gary... so I got to also

know Gary through my students.

[Grubstake1]

Yes, Jim, lets not forget Wilma and her husband Ken. Grubstake

[Grubstake1]

Ok, More on the great people, There was also Wilma and her husband Ken, they would come in two or three times during the summer dredge season for a few weeks at a time, , I had people from as far away as Fla. come in for vacation time, and ask to learn to pan and hunt for gold, I was always glad to show them, and take them down to the river and teach them, how to pan and crevis.

Fishing was great, as I said before, Bill had Trout plant once or twice a month, Gary Bailly and his wife got cought, fishing with more than one pole, from the bank, a couple of times, and having more than there limit, It was not cheap, the fines that is.

One guy name Ogalbys from the La area, had a custom built 6 inch dredge, and moved it around alot, finally at the mouth of David Gulch, he hit a pocket, that he took 20+ oz's out of in just a few days, This was just pickers, some of the nuggets were over two oz's. He would save his black sand, and only take the pickers, at the end of the season he had a 55 gal. metal drum full to the top with fines and black sand. Well he went home for the week, and left the drum sitting on the bank, right below his camp. Guess what? Yep, someone came in camping overnigh, and took his drum, We figure, as to the big stuff he got, there had to be atleast 60 oz's in that drum. All the time he was running up and down the river front camp to back showing those nuggets, saying look what I got !

I had a few people that did not like me, They did not like the fee's they had to pay, it was $150.00 a month for a camp, and $30.00 to leave your dredge in all month, and you were limited to just two vehicles in the camp, without paying extra. But it was a Private campground then, Most payed and never said a word, it was all the LA Boys, with all the big 8 inch dredges and quads, that made the problems.

I want to take time and tell you about some of the gulchs in the area, Soloman gulch, was rich, back in the 1800's they pulled over $2,000,000.00 out of the first mile of that gulch, Savage had a trading post, on the river bank, right at the mouth of that gulch, Them theres David gulch, Its rich also, and has treasure buried up in it, not a make beleave treasure a real treasure, in the form of a nugget the size of a 32 revolver and silver dollars and an old winchester rifle. While working at Bagby, I found out about it, from the people Miwok indians, that came in every summer. and looked for it. I'll relate to that story later on here in another chapter. Break time for me, New glass's and my eye's get tired Grubstake

[Uncle Ron]

Great stories, Grubby ... Keep 'em coming! Cheers, Unc

[Grubstake1]

Here's the story on the treasure: In David gulch, and old timer lived, during the 1930's . He lived about a 1/2 mile in the mouth of Soloman gulch, He had been doing pretty good prospecting and working old diggins, He happened one day to find a large gold nugget up in David Gulch, in the shape of a pistol, and about the size of a 32 revolver, in fact, he used to be seen in the old town of Bagby, carrieing the nugget in a holster on his side. He was an old guy and got diabete's, Well one day he fell and part of a branch from a tree, went through his leg, it got infected, and he could just barely get around, He decided to ride the train down to Merced and have it looked at, So he tool his nugget, and some say about 200 old silver dollars, along with other papers and his winchester, and hiked up either David gulch or Solomam gulch, and burried it, Before he got on the train, he took the only person he trusted, An old Miwok indian woman that lived on Washington Flats. Well his leg was cut off, got infected and he died, before he could recover the stash. The old Miwok woman, was pestered by her kids, her grandkids, to tell them where it was hidden, She would say, Its dead mans gold! No touch!. this went on with her kids and grandkids, until she died. in the early 60's No one ever knew where it was he hid his treasure, but the Grandkids of the old woman would come to Bagaby for family reunions and bring detectors to look for it. They did this every year I worked at Bagby. In 1993 They were there during the summer, They told me it was the last year they wouldbe there, as some were getting sick , some out of work. So they told me the secret of what they were searching for. As far as I know it has never been found, the area is hard to get into, it would be a 3 mile walk one way just to get to the mouth of the gulches. . I'll be walking in this winter, to look. Getting late. More on this tomarrow. Grubstake

[Grubstake1]

Wife has an MRI today, out of town, so I will be off most of the day. Grubstake

[Grubstake1]

OK, more on Chapter 2:

As I said, if the loard is willing, I'll be walking into look for that treasure this winter, I'll te3ll you this, I have already found some treasure up in that area, not big ones, but hidden treasure none the less, I found a prince Albert can Burried, by the corner of an old stone cabin, that had 3 half dollars, 1867, 1868 and 1871, I sold them a few days after I found them, to the owners brother, Owner of the Bagby} for $75.00 each, that was in 91, I also found a miners catch, it had 5 five gallon lard cans full of stuff, some was donated to the Mariposa history museum, I also found that 1811 French 20 Franc coin, It was gold, and I sold it, for $300.00 it was about the size of a nickle, I've explored, way up these gulche's, one goe's all the way to cat town, Old Mule trails, and lots of diggins, hard walking, because of brush, and over growth. In the summer at at Bagby in one season, we killed 27 rattlers right in front of the store and boat docks.

Hells hollow is right there on the Bagby grade, there is a story about an old timer, back in the 1800's that was hiking down to the town of benton mills{now Called Bagby} and he stoped to rest, and roll himself a smoke. Well when he looked, he was sitting on an outcrop of quartz, laced with gold, he marked the spot in his mind, and broke off a few chunks, and put them in his pocket, after getting to Benton Mills, he went in the saloon and got drunk, I guess his mouth was kind of lose, because after showing the gold around and the next morning they found him dead in the street. As far as anyone knows the outcrop has never been located.

Ok. Break time next will be Chapter 3 Grubstake

[FlakMagnet]

Go Grubstake Go!

Great stories of a beautiful and mysterious area

told by someone who has combed the area.

looking forward to hearing more

and really looking forward to hearing how you are healing.

Flak

[Dakota Slim]

Thank you for sharing these stories with us Grubstake. We're digging it!