Which Waterways contain gold?

Which Waterways contain gold?

Generally speaking,waterways that are most likely to contain gold have four characteristics.

1. They should not be dammed.
We know that gold is moved by the force of water and gravity downstream in times of flooding.A dammed river or stream restricts the gold from moving.

2. They should be in a mineral rich area.
Areas in which the rocks show a non sedimentary layering would be an excellent choice.
It doesn't make any sense to look for gold if the geology doesn't support it.

3. Elevation Change. There should be enough elevation change to allow sufficient churning of the waterway materials in spring flooding . A river or stream that does not churn in it's flood cycle has very little chance to move gold.

4. Obstacles in the waterway.
Obstacles in the waterway helps the gold to drop out into pay streaks.This is helpful because the obstacles will slow the water just before and after it.Imagine a river or stream that has no obstacles to slow the water and exposed bedrock that is smooth.Gold will continue to move past these areas til there is a bend to slow the currents.

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Where's the Gold in the U.S.

So Where is all this gold?

States where a significant amount of gold have been found are: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Small amounts of gold have been found in Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Missouri, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

Gold is many times heavier than ordinary sediments. It takes a lot of force for water to be able to move gold(thanks gravity)downhill, and the gold will tend to drop out in the cracks and crevices, and settle where the water flow slows.With this in mind we can make a educated guess as to where in a stream or river to pan for gold. Dry stream beds can contain placers(pronounced plasser) of gold as well, laid down by long-gone flows of water.Over time the gold will work it's way down to bedrock. Without a source of water nearby,you'll need equipment other than a gold pan to recover it. Metal detectors and dry washing are two methods that come to mind.

Geological reports and maps from the Government will tell you where and in what quantities gold has been recovered in the past. Gold is washed down into placers over time,areas where gold has been found by earlier miners will likely have gold again. The 49'ers didn't get it all. Technology has advanced allowing profitable searches for gold bearing material on old claims. One more reason for checking government records before hunting for gold,is that some public lands are off limits to prospecting, while other areas have been claimed by earlier prospectors.



My sources for this post: Gold Mining in the 21st Century, by Dave McCracken; You Can Find Gold with a Metal Detector, by Charles Garrett & Roy Lagal; Dry Washing for Gold, by James Klein.

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