Anyone gold panning yet this year?

[leeaspell]

So all the ice is gone and the warm weather is here. Who has started gold panning? I'm going to get me a pan and try it out. Has anyone ever tried in the swan or Inverness rivers? Those will probably be my go to spots, I cross them at work all the time.

[Stewie]

At one of the parks that runs along side the NSR there have been a couple guys there everyday before the water went up... I assume they are panning

[fishtank]

fort edmonton park

[unclebuck]

Yeah, "Big Al McGregor"(Yukon Gold) has gone north to work on his equipment. Had a few wobblies with him Monday.

[thirty-30]

Not here, but back home.

I own a decent amount of land that almost bumps up against a spot they are opening a gold mine in moose river.

Might be time to hit the water on my property with a pan.

[dumoulin]

I have a buddy who picked up a couple pans for me. Can't wait to try. If anyone want to join in... Or have me tag along, I'd like that. Sounds like a good way to spend an afternoon.

[Donkey Oatey]

June 23 a buddy and I are taking a panning course on the Peace River through GPRC, should be good time. Really looking forward to it.

[Fish along]

If you want to pan for gold hit the Alaska highway arround Dawson City , lots of gold panners and Lots of gold in the rivers.

[TBark]

I just started the hobby this spring. Got a fair bit of gear.
Did OK in FSR a month ago, but water is high now, no gravel to get at, hopefully later in June water will be back down.
It was good to see some specks at least, figure we got 300 or so specks in a few hrs sluicing, but at 50,000 specks to the oz, it ain't much, ha.

TBark

[deanmc]

Originally Posted by leeaspell

So all the ice is gone and the warm weather is here. Who has started gold panning? I'm going to get me a pan and try it out. Has anyone ever tried in the swan or Inverness rivers? Those will probably be my go to spots, I cross them at work all the time.

My plastic pan was broken last fall. I bought it at Ron's in Edson. Couldn't find one in Whitecourt.

[deanmc]

Originally Posted by TBark

I just started the hobby this spring. Got a fair bit of gear.
Did OK in FSR a month ago, but water is high now, no gravel to get at, hopefully later in June water will be back down.
It was good to see some specks at least, figure we got 300 or so specks in a few hrs sluicing, but at 50,000 specks to the oz, it ain't much, ha.

TBark

Yes it's need to get a bit of color in the pan. But I doubt person could find a spot here locally that would find you enough gold to pay for your pan. LOL

[ManitobaSlim]

My grandpa game me a pan and i want to try it out. Anyone know of anywhere around GP that i could go? Maybe do some fishing while I'm at it haha. Im new to the area so i apologize if its more obvious for some.

[leeaspell]

Just picked up my gold pan. $15 at the fishing hole. Now just got to wait for the rivers to slow down a bit


I'm going for 100 oz this year in the glory hole lol

[deanmc]

Originally Posted by leeaspell

Just picked up my gold pan. $15 at the fishing hole. Now just got to wait for the rivers to slow down a bit


I'm going for 100 oz this year in the glory hole lol

Lol.

GOLD RUSH WETCOURT

Meanwhile on the McLeod river Leeaspell's crew are still 99.99 oz short of their goal with only 18 weeks left in the season...................

[EarthDaddy]

I use to teach gold panning back in the 80ies and the only people who made money from gold panning were the people who were selling the pans

[deanmc]

Do you have a report? Are you nearing your hundred oz mark yet? I played a bit in groat creek last night. Some really fine flour gold in there. Need a magnifying glass to see it though.

[Badgerbadger]

With all the rain/flooding in Edmonton, I was thinking of hitting the sewer outfalls. Could find some lost earrings and such!

[Steve07]

Originally Posted by Fish along

If you want to pan for gold hit the Alaska highway arround Dawson City , lots of gold panners and Lots of gold in the rivers.

Klondike Hwy? Alaska Hwy doesn't come anywhere near Dawson.

[bullgetter]

Stole my moms pan last weekend. Never done it before but want to hit the Mcleod this weekend. Probably just bring some paydirt home and pan it. I need the practice as I would love to drive to Alaska one year and try my luck along the way.

[deanmc]

I think the McLeod is still too high to get at any decent pay dirt.

[TBark]

Hope to get back on the AB rivers in Aug.
In the mean time are hitting a few BC spots.
Found some color in Sooke Pot hole area, some in Loss creek and some on a Coquahalla claim a fellow invited us on to.

TBark

[Red Bullets]

I have read that the Leech river has the coarsest gold on the island. Heavily mined in the past, but there are still bedrock crack snipers that find a few nuggets up to 1/2 ounce.

[CaberTosser]

Do any of our recently scoured rivers have much in the way of gold? I figure with all the earthmoving that occurred there'd be something stirred up.... or further buried

[leeaspell]

Originally Posted by deanmc

Do you have a report? Are you nearing your hundred oz mark yet? I played a bit in groat creek last night. Some really fine flour gold in there. Need a magnifying glass to see it though.

Yeah, I'm still a little off from my 100oz by about 99.99999oz, but I think with one good clean out I could be right back on track again lol


In all honesty, I'll make more money cashing in the empty beer cans I drink while panning than I will from the actual gold. Kind of addictive though, always got to do one more pan because it might have some gold.

[TBark]

Yes Red B, the Leech is one place to try for sure if you are on the Island.
You will need to know someone or ask permission tho.
Claims rarely come availible and even if a guy wanted to try some unclaimed spots off the river, a lot of the roads up there are gated and claim owners and the panning club members have the keys.

The size of the flakes I have found out in BC amazes me compared to NSR powder specks, but i have only found 30-40 of these BC flakes.
I figure my biggest is near a 20th of an inch in size, I know, not big.
Still a fun hobby.

TBark

[Red Bullets]

Originally Posted by TBark

Yes Red B, the Leech is one place to try for sure if you are on the Island.
You will need to know someone or ask permission tho.
Claims rarely come availible and even if a guy wanted to try some unclaimed spots off the river, a lot of the roads up there are gated and claim owners and the panning club members have the keys.

The size of the flakes I have found out in BC amazes me compared to NSR powder specks, but i have only found 30-40 of these BC flakes.
I figure my biggest is near a 20th of an inch in size, I know, not big.
Still a fun hobby.

TBark

The biggest I found in BC was 2 pennyweight (3.10 gr.) A few years back, crevassing river bedrock north of Revelstoke early in the early spring before one of the glacial rivers started running off I was able to get 50 grams of coarse gold in 4 days with nothing more than tweezers.

[Red Bullets]

Originally Posted by CaberTosser

Do any of our recently scoured rivers have much in the way of gold? I figure with all the earthmoving that occurred there'd be something stirred up.... or further buried

Not sure of which rivers you are asking about.
If you mean around Calgary, southern Alberta, I would say there is small amounts. Then again gold rushes are created by some one finding gold. Gold is where you find it. The lost lemon mine is just west of longview somewhere, supposedly. In alberta gold is noted in quite a few of the river systems and old covered river channels. If you can get 10$ to the yard of gravel you have struck it rich. About 144 shovelfuls in a yard.

If by earthmoving you mean the floods, water definitely move around the fine gold and other minerals.

Between 55 and 70 kilgrams of gold are produced in Alberta per year. Based on government public records.

[leeaspell]

Just got back from panning. Between the McLeod and groat creek I got 2 flakes lol, 100 ounces here I come lol. But I did pan out a rock full of little shell fossils, no money value but pretty cool.

For you more experienced folk, what are all the little pink stones that I keep getting at the end with the black sand. Almost the color of ruby but a little lighter. At the end of a pan its more pink than any other colour. When I say small, I mean like tip of a ball point pen small, but one was spilt the size of a match head.

[Grizzly Adams]

Originally Posted by CaberTosser

Do any of our recently scoured rivers have much in the way of gold? I figure with all the earthmoving that occurred there'd be something stirred up.... or further buried

Some real "nuggets" found on the Elbow.

Grizz

[bang_on_sk]

Originally Posted by leeaspell

you more experienced folk, what are all the little pink stones that I keep getting at the end with the black sand. Almost the color of ruby but a little lighter. At the end of a pan its more pink than any other colour. When I say small, I mean like tip of a ball point pen small, but one was spilt the size of a match head.

Garnets maybe?