Has anyone here EVER PANNED FOR GOLD ?

[nobs]

I will be panning for gold tommorow for the first time ever.

I have heard there is a lot of gold still to be found out here on the West Coast, and while I know I wont make millions of dollars, it does seem like fun.

I have never done this before but will be going with a couple guys who have done it a few times.

So I know the basics a little, looking for a place where water flows, looking for dark sand, thats a good place to try.

But from what I hear, when you do this, YOU WILL FIND GOLD, but it probably wont be a lot and it can be hard work.

So has anyone ever done it, how much did you find, was it worth it for all the work you out in ?

Any advice that might help me ?

Thanks in Advance

[THE PROFIT]

no, but I dated a bitch who was a gold digger!

[nobs]

I think we have all dated a few.

[thezbar]

At Knott's Berry Farm when I was a kid. Waste of time.

[DrStale]

Have not, but then again I am not 170 years old.

[Brock Landers]

sounds like going around slot machines to see if there is any money in the tray

[George7904]

I have panned for gold many times as a child when I visited my grandparents in Colorado. I would find gold flakes, but never enough to actually try to cash it in. We would dig a hole next to a stream and let the water from the stream roll over the pan. the gold is much heavier than the dirt, so the dirt would dissappate in the water and the gold would stay in the pan. It was fun, but don't expect to even pay for your gas or lunch. I have heard of people actually finding a lot in Alaska. Where are you going to be doing this? We had much more luck finding torquiose in dried river beds.

[chilidog]

I love watching that show on outdoor channel; i'd like to try it out one day, seems like a peaceful way to spend a weekend, camping out in the mountains with the family

[mrmarket]

Fishhead has probably tried this. Anyway it seems like a relaxing way to spend an afternoon and get some exercise. I would definately try it if I lived near an area where this was possible.

[Fishhead]

Fishhead has probably tried this. Anyway it seems like a relaxing way to spend an afternoon and get some exercise. I would definately try it if I lived near an area where this was possible.

Why pan when one can buy a metal detector.

Welcome to the 21st century

[Fishhead]

At Knott's Berry Farm when I was a kid. Waste of time.

Ditto

[JoeB]

Definitely we all have!!!!

[nobs]

Why pan when one can buy a metal detector.

Welcome to the 21st century

The gold exists in such small quantities that a detector wouldnt even detect it, not when its just a flake at a time buried under water and dirt.

[Ulyses]

sucks no open gold mines-they want to sell you soil by the bucket today-yeah right

good diamond mine in little rock ark-open to public

[nobs]

Fishhead has probably tried this. Anyway it seems like a relaxing way to spend an afternoon and get some exercise. I would definately try it if I lived near an area where this was possible.

Very much the right attitude. Its not about trying to get rich, its mainly for fun. Its like going Fishing, you put in a lot more work than what it would have cost youto just buy some fish,but its a good time.

I went today for 4 hours and I found quite a few little flakes. I put them in a safe lock coin holder and comparing them to my 1/10 ounce gold eagle I would say I find about 1/4 of the mass of my 1/10 coin. So that makes my estimate about 1/40 0f an ounce or $30 worth of gold as what I found. Just a guess.

But today was my first time, and I know I lost a lot ofthe gold I had in my pan. My friend who was kind of teaching us how to do it probably ended up with 3x to 4x what I got, so he might have gotten $100 worth in 4 hours which is not bad.

We did this in Fox Island, Washington, but I have heard anywhere on the West Coast is good for finding Gold.

I wouldnt want to do this every day, as it is work, but every once in a while is a good time, and its a good skill to know just in case the shit hits the fan on this economy with out 15 Trillion deficit.

Anyway, I might go again next time they go.

[BrentCrude]

Did some with a couple friends where we all worked at the Black Hills,South Dakota greyhound track in the summer of 1980.We would go around the gulches and creeks around Deadwood and Lead right close to where Homestake mining was which at the time had the biggest gold operation in the world there.We made enough for beer,trifecta bets and Shakey's pizza buffets every day while out there.

For about $80 a year you can join a national gold club where you get a huge telephone book size book of claims the club pays leases on and you are free to go there to pan,sleuce or whatever other method you can come up with.Well,no leeching with heavy metals.Obama,Gore and the socialist greenies would have you in prison for the rest of your life.hehe!Google to find the club.They have a show on an outdoors channel all about gold panning where this club sponsors it and runs ads to join the club.

The problem is with going to the claims,they are usually in dangerous places with rattle snakes,scorpions,guilla monsters,killer bees,ornary Humphrey Bogart guys from The Treasure of the sierra madre types and illegals that aren't impressed with stinkin badges.