Gold Prospecting Basics

This page contains a variety of different articles to help you learn how to find gold! Also be sure to get our Gold Prospector's Guide eBook! There is plenty of gold out there still waiting to be discovered, you just have to know how to find it...




     Gold Panning

     Basics of Gold Panning

     Choosing a Gold Pan

     How to Make a Gold Pan

     Gold Panning Mistakes You Need to Avoid



     General Gold Prospecting Information

     Gold Prospecting in Roadless Areas

     Placer Gold vs. Lode Gold

     Build a Good Backcountry Gold Prospecting Kit

     The REAL Top 10 Places to Pan for Gold

     Gold Prospecting Clubs - State Directory

     Beginner Gold Prospecting

     Exploring the Gold Country

     Crushing Ore Samples for Free-Milling Gold

     Buying a Gold Mining Claim

     Gold vs. Pyrite

     Fine Gold Recovery

     Gold in the Ocean

     Oregon's Beach Placers

     Safety in the Goldfields

     What does Gold Look like in Nature?

     Professional Gold Mining

     5 Ways to Find Gold Nuggets

     Hard Rock Mining vs. Placer Gold Mining

     5 Tips to Help Capture More Gold in your Sluice Box

     Some Successful Gold Miners I know...

     Sluice Box Matting for Fine Gold Recovery

     7 Tips to Gain Access to a New Mining Area

     Gold Mining Mistakes - Don't be THAT GUY!

     Gold & Earthquakes - Fault Lines and Gold Deposits

     Finding Gold & Diamonds in California

     Prospecting Gold on BLM and USFS Land

     Do Gold Nuggets Still Exist?

     8 Amazing (& Free!) Rockhounding Sites in Oregon



     Finding Gold Deposits

     Finding Gold After a Storm

     Glacial Gold Deposits in the Midwest

     Where to Prospect for Gold

     Where Can I go Gold Mining?

     Types of Gold Placer Deposits

     Using Maps to Find Prospecting Areas

     Finding Gold Underneath a Waterfall

     Proven Tactics to Mine Gold in the Desert

     Research Tips to Find New Prospecting Locations

     5 "Quick and Dirty" Prospecting Tips

     Gold & Volcanoes - Using Geology to Find Gold Deposits



     Historic Gold Mining Methods

     Arrastras

     Hydraulic Mining

     Evidence of Historic Mining Activity

     Bucket Line Dredges

     Stamp Mills

     How Early-Day Miners Sluiced for Gold

     Rocker Boxes Used by the Gold Miners



     Modern Gold Mining Methods

     How to Build a Homemade Sluice Box

     Highbanking for Gold

     Drywashing for Gold

     Suction Dredging for Gold

     Gold Prospecting Equipment

     How a Gold Trommel Works

     How to Use a Sluice Box

     Sniping for Gold

     Types of Gold Mining Gear

     Suction Dredging Alternatives

     Gold Vacuums - "Dry Land Dredging"

     Sluice Box Cleanup

     Different Sizes of Gold Suction Dredges

     Finding Valuable Gold Ore in Mines



     Pay-to-Dig Mining Sites

     Public Crystal Mining Sites in Arkansas

     Public Gold & Gem Mines in California

     Public Gold & Gem Mines in Colorado

     Public Gold & Gem Mines in Georgia

     Public Gold & Gem Mines in Idaho

     Public Gold & Sapphire Mines in Montana

     Public Opal & Turquoise Mines in Nevada

     Public Gold & Gem Mines in New England

     Public Herkimer Diamond Mines in New York

     Public Gold & Gem Mines in North Carolina

     Public Gold & Gem Mines in Oregon

     Public Gem Mines in Texas & New Mexico

     Public Fossil Mines in Wyoming

     Collecting Agates on the Oregon Coast

     Everything to Know about Finding Lake Superior Agates