Finding gold isn’t the easiest thing to do. Many people have spent their entire lives searching for the elusive yellow metal. Some of the best places to look for gold are in creeks, streams, rivers or water runoffs.
The rivers and creeks are not where the gold is coming from. This is where the gold collects. The water from hard rains, floods, spring run off and landslides all wash gold into the stream beds. The gold we find in streams is called "placer deposits". Placer gold is gold that's traveled from its original source.
The further the gold travels the more rounded and smaller the pieces become. Gold is 19 times heavier than water. It will collect in bends in the stream, against or behind rocks and in areas where the current slows down. Crevices in rocks and around roots are another good spot to check. Some of the older prospectors say if you see fish, this should be a good spot to look for gold. Fish tend to stay in areas with as little current as possible.
A good trick that may help you find gold in a stream is to take a balloon, attach a piece of fishing line a few feet long with a fishing weight on the end. Send the balloon downstream and see where the weight ends up. This should be a good spot to check.
When you find a location where you are finding gold, the size, shape and how course it is can help you to zero in on where it is coming from. If you are finding very small flakes or rounded nuggets, this tells you it has traveled downstream for a distance and the abrasion from the other material in the water has made it smooth. Try moving upstream until the gold you are finding gets more and more course. If you find gold with quartz attached this is an indicator that you are very close to the source. It has to be coming from somewhere.
With a little fine tuning you may just find a vein or an outcropping. Be sure to get permission before going on other people’s property and Remember, finding gold isn’t a one day adventure. When you do you will be hooked for life. “Gold Fever” has a tendency to set in. Whether you find a few flakes or nuggets or the “mother load” have fun and enjoy yourself
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