gold mining not working out so well...but fun

[KTP]

Several weeks ago I posted about ways to earn a bit of extra cash which could be tax defered. I decided to try out one method I came up with, gold prospecting, since I figured it would have a minimal investment. I created pan out of a junk wok and hammered some riffles into it. Made a sluice out of some scrap 10 inch wide channel, an old doormat and some expanded metal. Total cost $5, if that much.

Maybe it is just my area, but things are not panning out (insert groan here). I have sluiced and panned maybe 1/2 ounce of gold so far in the local streams but this state is very green and there is a lot you cannot do because of salmon. So, $400 or so for $5 investment but a lot of hours in the woods (very peaceful though).

I have researched online, and I figure if I were in Alaska during the summer that 1/2 ounce would be more like 3 or 4 ounces for the same time invested. So this strategy might work for someone who happens to live there. Nevada and parts of California are pretty good too.

I might keep it up, but strictly as a hobby now. I like building my own gear, so that keeps expenses down.

[boosami]

Have you have tested or sold any of the gold you found? Or is that $400 an estimate?

[simpleyme]

when i was a kid my dad and uncle would set up sluice boxes and such
they would get a few flecks and would have them in little vials of water and show them off but i do not ever recall any extra income from it ;-)
next time I see my dad I will ask if he ever made any money doing that
It was fun for us kids tho playing in the rivers chasing salamanders


I do not ever recall us hitting the mother lode and moving to beverley.....

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Back in the late '70s my Dad funded his travels by panning for gold. Eh, he tended to live in a van....down by the river, of course. It was a happy time in his life.

[swanson719]

Next thing you know, people will be making treasure maps based on Louis Lamour books.

[KTP]

Have you have tested or sold any of the gold you found? Or is that $400 an estimate?

I have examined it under a binocular microscope. It is flake gold from placers on a stream. Doesn't seem to have a lot of obvious mecury or other metals with it. I would guess it is 22 to 23 kt? I figure 1/2 ounce at 80% of spot would be around $400 (shrug). If I were to find nuggets, they sometimes sell for more than spot. I think this is because people use them in jewelry.