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Locating “Arizona” Gold Part 2 By Robert Mitchell AZOD Prospecting Section Leader Now lets take a closer look at where all that gold was recovered in ABC creek and why the various “pay streaks” came to be where we found them.
Pay streak #1 is situated right on top of a small granite hill with very little topsoil and sparse vegetation. The gold recovered from this area was done by sight and through the use of metal detectors. All the gold found here was in large nugget form weighing between 60 grains to 5 ounces. The deposit formed an almost perfect circle and all the gold was very rough in texture showing that it had not been subjected to much movement and abuse. This deposit had eroded out of the very rock it was still setting on and because of it’s healthy weight erosion had little effect on moving it from the source. Normally around such a pay streak the washes draining from it will also contain gold but not in this case. Finding this pay streak was simple blind luck as all the normal prospecting techniques failed to locate it even though the area had been homesteaded for many years with the actual cabin having stood within 100’ of the pay streak that yielded around 150 ounces. Pay streaks #2 are the typical deposits arraigned in the same order that all gold bearing creeks will have. The gold simply bounces down the creek following the shortest path like a race driver and when it encounters a wide spot with slower water some of the heavier pieces settle out until the next flood large enough to get it moving again. This process continues until it is broken down into solution or makes it to the sea. The big difference in ABC creek is the shear size of the gold it contained made it difficult to prospect. In an average gold bearing creek, river or wash most of the gold is made of very small flakes that can be found while panning gravels found near the surface. In this case the standard methods of sampling didn’t work, as almost all of the gold was lying right on top of the bedrock with no small flakes of gold anywhere to be found. Pay streak #3 is where the $27k in nuggets was recovered not so long ago. The largest nugget weighed 75 troy ounces. It made a great down payment on the locator’s (now deceased) home in Cave Creek Arizona. This deposit was very similar to #1 in that it contained only large to very large nuggets and even though it was on a very steep slope had eroded only slightly downhill. As the picture shows, some of it was found to enter the creek but as it was entering on the outside bend of the creek the higher rate of water flow would quickly take it down stream. The green square below the pay streak is the foundation of a cabin from the depression era. I bet whomever lived there would have liked to know what was lying around on the hill behind the house. Pay streak #4 is somewhat of a mystery for me. The deposit contains the same large nuggets that are typical in the area but seems to have no source. Nuggets as large as 8 ounces have been recovered from it but no amount of sampling the numerous side washes feeding it show any color. I believe there is a large pay streak that is the source of this gold and someday I hope to find it to be the richest yet. The entire area in the picture was a depression era town of about 1500 people. While most of the towns inhabitants lived in tents, many foundations and tin can dumps abound. While prospecting the area we have uncovered all types of remains from horseshoes and blue jean rivets to parts of old guns. There is no doubt that other places similar to this are waiting for others to find and explore. Next up… Setting up a sampling plan and the different approaches to take for the various terrains. - AZOD - |
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