Tuesday, February 2, 2016


Getting Gold off The bedrock ,Clay or caliache Golds Heavy and it will always settle and sink to a solid bed this can be hard clay rock or caliache a hard mineralized cement like material here we are working the side of a wash digging down to rock behind boulders is another good area to work try to get down to something solid where the gold will settle here a paint brush comes in handy to sweep any gold out of the crevices of the rock screen into a bucket and run it through your dry washer make sure its good and dry if your using water in a sluice being dry not important you can  run it right away the reason you want the material dry with a dry washer is most of gold will be lost right out the end and be missed running damp material through a dry washer.

Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Gold In Washes this is a typical gold bearing wash in the desert west . Gold is not distributed in desert areas like it is in steams rivers its a much
slower process in the desert its alluvial deposits and the lack of rain in these areas or water its the rare flooding of these washes that move new gold in.
A wash might see water here running in it  once or twice in a year here if that then again may not see water for several years at a time so its a much different
than a river and you can dig in one spot and find gold and move just a couple feet away and find none its just harder than river and stream mining there is more to it than following the inside beds of steams out here and many a stream miner has had his problems using the regular methods for river mining in the desert all you need to do is forget about river mining methods and start learning some tricks and the whole new game Desert Mining learn what to look for to spot a good area and get as much information on desert gold prospecting as you can it took me several trips out there before I started having success I get gold every trip out now and I learned a lot just by doing it and getting out there.
Next post Tips on desert mining

Tuesday, January 19, 2016

 The First View of Stanton and the gold camps at the base of the mountains as you travel in from Stanton rd the lost Ductchman Mining assoc claims are on the lower flanks up behind the distant buildings. The road then continues to the right at the base of the mountains just out of the picture to the right just a short distance there
would be the old ghost town of octave and the octave mine and the weaver claims along weaver creek.
The LDMA property the lost Ductchman Mining Camp was the Ghost Town Stanton Arizona the gold prospectors of america bought a few years back it they have preserved a few of the original Ghost town buildings and use them for the club
Stanton was a Dangerous place back in the days
shootings murders gangs of thugs and drove many town people out of stanton to nearby octave only a mile away home of the famous octave mine The Queen of the arizona gold mines. Next posts  we will look at the claim pictures and some mining .



Friday, January 15, 2016

Hello Got up this morning got back home around 4 pm yesterday  took the 40 minute ride up to Stanton Ritch hill area yesterday morning and octave with my sister. Never checked or got to the clean out from yesterday at all was tired  last night .But got up this morning pulled the small white bucket of cons off the back porch from yesterdays trip first pan found these nice pickers already have more to check .Ended being a nice day and  a good trip the weather was nice sunny saw a bald eagle on the way in . I prefer to use and went with a small recirculating High banker sluice I like using water they can keep those noisy dusty dry washers.Really just plain simple nothing is better than water for getting gold out of material its the best.But you have to haul all the water out there 10 gallons will run mine in a big plastic tote . I have a small re charge able battery it will run it all day long no problem and remember camping out there make sure I might not have mentioned this bring all your water there is none out there nowhere so you have to bring Whatever you need to cook camp its pretty nice belonging to the clubs you can camp right on the claims many guys where doing just that yesterday more pictures of Stanton octave the washes coming up in next posts.




Thursday, January 14, 2016


HEADED UP today packed up the Gear this morning put 10 gallons of water for my recirculating sluice in the jeep headed up to the gold fields in stanton for a day out got a lot of good pictures today I will share in the next on coming posts in next few days .Lets start just north of congress the highway here above is just north of the four way stop in  congress Arizona .Follow it north toward the mountains maybe two miles past the bar to the transfer station there  take a right onto the dirt road witch is Stanton Road its pretty much what you see the whole six miles to Stanton just rolling desert wilderness with great views as far as you can see with rugged mountains on your left all the way to Stanton the dirt roads are in pretty good shape.Make sure your vehicles running good not a good place for break down  there is nothing out there at all or any phones so be prepared once your reach stanton there are people there phones for emergencies but along the way its all desert. Its traveled pretty good in late fall winter early spring In summer your taking your chances not many folks out there .Winter they Expect peak campers  and the road is really taken care of in the peak season and many tow RVs in it to LDMA s camp it can have wash out problems in heavy rain but most times its good quite .Its an unforgettable ride in with just great wide open views lots of wildlife and free range cattle along the way next post will be on the other end of he road the mining ghost towns Stanton Octave and some pictures of the mining in the washes .

Tuesday, January 12, 2016

Finally have some Arizona weather again .Hopefully We can get up to congress then to Stanton later today . I can get some pictures and show you the sluice on action  the problem has been the Rain and really cold temps the last few days Delayed me getting up and its sunny and nice today and we have had no snow here in the desert but its been cold through the weekend I was up  yesterday out having my coffee in the back yard I noticed The Four Peaks wilderness Area Superstition Mountains had snow on them but its warmed and this morning however its back to sunny again and the snows already gone off the the four peaks and its much warmer today .A lot of folks up there at the camp Lost Dutchmans Mining asoc in Stanton its a branch of GPA Gold prospectors of America have trailers of course bet that heat was on last few nights and a lot of retired couples come out and spend the winter here in there trailers at LDMA kinda nice to see these folks still have the adventure in them at that age they have there atvs to get around and prospect during the day at night they have social activities at the camp.     Good site for tips on buying silver for Investment
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Friday, January 8, 2016

The Desert and the wildlife here grows on you if your here for a while. This is across the street from my house I hike through the desert every day its become a good friend I find beauty in it . Its full of life too the pole in front of the cactus is the dirt road I live in I am right in the desert the mountains you see extend north these here are the foothills across the street right behind these the mountains get big and rugged here it starts and extends a major part of the gold belt right through San Domingo wash Wickenburg up through the weavers all the way across black Caynon cave creek and north of there all the way up to Colorado. I always been an outdoor person hiker and a back packer .My father was a nature documentary lover so I grew up watching 10,000 of them lol with a lets say drilled in knowledge of the desert its animals. I have seen some really cool wildlife since moving here even was thrilled with the mountain loin tracks close to the house that is all right by me I am the intruder here he was living around here first I love knowing there out there this is his home .See coyotes lots of road runners I saw a big Gila monster up by octave mine of course there slow moving and pretty docile guys checked him out took some pictures as long as you do not try to pick him up or mess with him there mellow if you leave then alone if he was to bite you will never get him off your finger .They have no interest in biting most of the time just wander off slowly . Roads Runners are always running across Stanton road on the way in to Stanton we always burst out laughing when one runs there pretty funny to watch. Eagles everywhere thats open range up there too so watch out for cattle all the way through you will notice the cattle guards you will have to drive over .As far as the rattle snakes go yes sir we have more types  of rattlesnakes here 18 different species more than any other state . BUT YOU AND THE SNAKE ARE GOING TO BOTH  HAVE A GOOD DAY here is how to insure that those things your most important tool your  eyes USE THEM ! always look at the ground out front you always want to be able to see where your hands go and where your feet are going stay out away from bushes and rocks to you know for sure nothing is behind them. Respect them if you see one leave him alone and he will leave you alone most guys get bit trying to mess with them there important to the environment and really your chances of getting bit are very small if you just be alert and relax your pretty safe I hike and prospect all the time in the summer I stay out of dangerous areas I cant see in like prickly pear clumps in the shade is where they will be most of you guys will be coming out in the winter to prospect and the snakes will be in hibernation  nov through march april
the two snakes most common up around stanton and the claims the green mohave rattlesnake and western diamond back pretty much dont see many but you know just be alert nothing to worry about if you watch where your going.

Thursday, January 7, 2016

Getting Your Gold
Best place to find gold is where its already been found like they say
And joining one of the local clubs assures this there all on the best ground out here in arizona ,Also remember most of these areas has been worked in the past for over  80 years first by early miners then by the mexican miners then by club members all these years theres plenty of gold left its just harder to find and in far less amounts than the old timers got back in the day thats for sure .So you really have to work hard to get some good amounts . Find a promising spot on a claim I like to look for really heavy mineralized soils as far as black sand goes
that  is not as intuitive out here in arizona as other places black sand is everywhere out here I look for good wash areas and dig out behind under boulders down to a solid bedrock caliache a cement like material that forms here or hard clay bottom here the small gold sits in all the little  cracks and crevices a paint bush out here is just as important as a shovel get in and brush the material out of those cracks theres where you going to get your gold .

Tuesday, January 5, 2016

History Of Rich Hill Arizona Gold mining and Pauline Weaver
in may 1863 legendary mountain man guide trapper led a prospecting expedition up the hassayampa river to the weaver mountains.While in the area scouting a pack animal was lost and during a an attempt to find it gold was discovered in large amounts setting off a Rush and mining boom towns of weaver stanton octave where born after  the discovery on rich hills flat top. One of the biggest and richest strikes  some of the exposed nuggets
where the size of potatoes hence since ever known as the potatoe patch till this day the name stuck forever.
Pauline Weaver the son of white father and Cherokee
mother had worked for the legendary hudson bay company in canada where he ended up from his work with hudson bay in the rockies and then arizona where he lived out the last of his life .

Sunday, January 3, 2016

Wickenburg is the closest town to the gold fields with full services motels ect.
Its about twenty minutes away. Equipment your going to need most up here use dry washers I prefer a recirculating mini high banker that runs on 8 gals of water I haul in water is and water always is the most efficient way of getting gold out of the dirt and it will do it with the material  wet or dry however in a dry washer the dirt must be dry or you will loose gold right out the end a matter of fact  someone else running your tailings can get more gold than you did if you ran damp dirt if he ran your dirt after it dried .All this equipment just allows you to run more dirt  faster than if you had to pan it all .So you would run dirt for a few hours then clean out your dry washer or sluice pan out the heavies . Really all you need is a gold pan if you want to go basic all this extra stuff increases the amount of dirt you can process that is all to that respect the desert and it will take care of you I live pretty much in it the picture above is the other side of our driveway I walk in it its full of life . Next post we can get into the history of Rich hill Stanton and San Domingo wash. I will be go to get some photos and do little mining so I can post those Next post

Saturday, January 2, 2016

Come on Out if your coming out prospecting here find a local club and join .
It its your best bet for success and a good trip you can camp on it while your here also its BLM land prices can be cheap to join it ranges from 75.00 a year most are 150.00 up and weaver has three day passes for 15.00  dollars  I think its your best bet they have the best claims in these areas and then your legal and have a right to mine these claims I  would not  come out thinking your just going to get out of the car and start digging just about all of the land around these areas is claimed and active Its a felony to mine on claimed property without rights  here in Arizona .Its legal to shoot at someone on your claim here too. And guys get tired of excuses fast around here .My advice join a club dont get in trouble they will prosecute you for claim jumping Here is a list of the local clubs who have claims in  the rich hill area and the San Domingo wash. weaver mining Road Runners and weaver have great claims Road Runners and in the San Domingo Wash Area Arizona Gold Prospectors  

Friday, January 1, 2016

Jan 1 2016 Hello welcome to Arizona gold adventures a blog for any one interested in gold ,prospecting ,places to prospect ,what to bring and where to go and a little about mining history here in Arizona .I was from New England originally born and raised there of course there is some gold in New England all pretty much glacial deposited and limited to very fine. Unless your up in far northern new England Vermont Maine where you can find a picker or a small nugget.I did enjoy panning the crystal clear streams up there for hours at a time but seemed like I was mining more and  sunshine and fresh air than anything else and that was great but getting some gold be nice too so of course moved here to arizona. I started to read as much about the area and the gold fields here but really your going to learn truthfully
a lot more out there in the  gold fields the hard way. The gold here is not deposited by water here much even in the washes I have dug down and found gold on bedrock in a wash move a few feet and nothing its tricky and almost bet on taking a while to find it I had few trips with nothing to show when i first started out kept at it just kept plugging away and learning and found my spot after a few trips out.  Now I get a little out of that spot every time out now but had to pay my dues to find it that is ok with me got an education and that is the way its supposed to be.I prospect on weaver mining claim anybody can pay 75.00 there and prospect there its in congress az I will  get into that a little later.
Stanton az is out miles out on a dirt road its really out there lots of wildlife its secluded you can see for miles .Just a nice place right now this time a year is perfect its cool .Summer well thats another story 110 is regular thing here I started prospecting in july of course at 530 am, morning and jump in the jeep and get out of there by 9.00am when its already 95-100 degrees
just those two months of july -aug are quite dangerous after 9am.


    I had read before I came out here about many a eastern stream miner  had gone to rich hill or out here in Arizona for some desert prospecting.Well Im saying the same thing  its not the same here in the desert I read up on and learned as much as i could about Desert mining some have a rough time out here the heat the critters and the mining is to say oct -early june is best I go early pre dawn pack up and  head out by 9am in the summer just too dangerous the heat even if you where to break down with you car your in trouble out there on that road also once you step out of the vehicle up there just be alert there is plenty of rattlesnakes in the prickley pear not much to worry about if look where your going watch where your feet and hands are you certainly better stay awake out there ! next post coming soon
                               

A lot of  hard work for this hard earned clean out and a hell of  lot
of five gallon buckets of material  to get this and it took some time to find it with some slim pickings until I did


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