Course for understanding geology and finding gold bearing areas?

[Goldtalk Leonora]

Re (other detectors have been with there chaining)

In the past we have found gold in chained areas, in one place it had been chained with chain lines 40cm apart then at right angles then at 45deg in both directions, it must have been a very very good patch when first found.

If well away from our camp I sometimes set a large rock 50m away then detect towards the rock scuffing the ground every 3m with the heel of my boot, get to the rock move it over 1m or so then detect towards the other rock 50m away ( previously offset 1m). The heel marks are good for a few days then the wind camouflages my patch. Can be visited again with a more modern detector years later with possibly none the wiser.

Hahaha that's actually a good way to hide your gridded area! I noticed the chain marks I found did look old but they were still noticeable and I could see the bare spots where they obviously dug like 10-15 holes so must have been a pretty good spot!

ok...here is another tip that may work for you. Next old patch you find leave your detector in the car. Grab your GPS (we use Garmin GPS Map 64) and waypoint every dighole in the patch. Take your time and get everything you can. When you have done this, 'zoom out' on the GPS to a scale where you can see all the waypoints on the screen. Now....see if you can see a pattern...hint, there is always a pattern...sometimes it;s just a round random blob but if you get lucky it may form an obvious shape that will tell you where you need to be next. Sure you can go onto the patch itself and re-work it if you must, but by heading out on srtike you may find the gold that previous operators have missed. Lets say the shape is a long rectangle...you may want to work out at both short ends of the rectangle.What I would do in this case is use the GPS to mark a waypoint say 1km out from the patch and walk out to it zig-zagging around 100m wide all the way. Then repeat on the other end of the patch. Good luck!

 

[justoverthehill]

JOTH...I guess thats the point.....we do things 'our way' because it works for us. We have been out in the bush more than most and we are not there for the sunsets.
However, most people here are out there for the sunsets and so it may come down to the simple equation of 'what makes the trip fun'?...being 'work like' may take the fun out for many. It's good asking people how they do things.....learn what you can...then you will find a system that works well for you.

As for the vids....yea....we have a youtube channel.....I know the quality is rubbish...but I don't really care. Lisa and I have never sought to be 'known' and we have no interest in trying to make money from videos! We just wanted to show some of our work we do and that everyone with a miners right can do if they wish. We generally dont show vids of detecting as there are any number of those already up there and we rarely show gold as we dont have that kind of ego.

I actually find your videos quite enjoyable and interesting to watch with the drilling, working the machines and then you guys hitting that quartz vein in the recent one! Have you had any luck with that vein yet? Thank you for all this info as well! I will defiantly be putting it into action when I head out for my next trip. I had just purchased a Garmin gps as well so I will be able to check and look for a pattern on that patch I found.

 

[Goldtalk Leonora]

We hit a lot of QTZ structures...like I said...I rarely show gold ( I thought I would chuck one of those emoji thingys in here). Thanks for your feedback though...I often wonder if it's worth the effort doing them. Plotting patches is one of the most powerful things you can do to find gold. Learning how to use a metal detector is what everyone seems to get hung up on...it's actually very easy and all you really need to do is read the instruction manual. It's all this other stuff...like where to be and how to work the area that is more of the prospecting side of things that seperate the 'wheat from the chaff'....if you have the interest and take time to learn that side of things it will put you in the top 5% of people out there trying to find gold. Please remember that these are only my opinions based on my experiences.

 

[Nightjar]

Justoverthehill,
One point to keep in mind is the development of available detectors through the decades.
We have worked an area since the early 90's beginning with Garrett Groundhogs and Whites vSat's through too present day SDC & GPZ.
To give you an example, a mate of mine returned recently from this area with 65 tiny bits totalling 13 grams.
Some will say what a waste of time, but we have enjoyed the sunrises and sunsets for 30+ years and found a lot of gold along the way. The amount of gold hasn't covered expenses but we have thoroughly enjoyed the hobby.
Another example, in 2018 my partner woke one morning and said, "Lets hit the ?? Patch?" It had been flogged with every known back to the first Garrett detector. (Deepseeker). We set off and moved slightly away from the known main area. Not 200 metres away Carol started getting sub grammers with the Dyson (SDC). I spread out another 100metres, picked a tree and begun circling with the Beast (GPZ). We went back to the camp that night and weighed in over 150 pieces totalling over 1 1/2 ozs.

The point of this post is to explain not to give up on flogged areas if you are swinging the latest technology.
BTW: Back to the early 90's when we were operating small engine driven dryblowers fed with a shovel. We picked up countless ozs out of old dry blowing fines heaps.
Back to the camp at night looking like "redskins" with white faces (we used face masks.)
Sluice our buckets of dirt over a beer or three and then enjoy the sunset reflecting off the gold on the table.....
We knew that if we invested in expensive mining equipment the hobby would relegate to a job/chore.
Maybe with the almost ceasing of the use of "Roundup" David De'Havlilind may publish the Victorian Gold & Ghosts?

Good luck with your ventures.

 

[PeterInSa]

Yes I would like to see/read that.............(Maybe with the almost ceasing of the use of "Roundup" David De'Havlilind may publish the Victorian Gold & Ghosts?)