Back to Bring You More on Prospecting for Gold

My, but gold has made a nice jump since I last visited with you!  You have probably been wondering why I have been away for so long, but believe me it had nothing to do with boredom.

In August, I got a google alert that my domain name was used in a page title or a variation of the original domain.  I have this alert sent to me for obvious reasons, but keeping an eye on who is using my brand name is the number one.


This alert took me to a page that had 5 links back to my site updating the page whenever I published anything.  My blog was linked to it twice, and thus updated the page twice every time I blogged.  Now, I'm a generous person, but I don't like someone else getting credit for my own work, and doing it without my permission.  The page was made to look like I was selling the product, but it was not me, and for a product I would not sell.  There was no contact information for this person, so the only solution was to stop posting and see what happened.

Well, I have waited long enough, I guess, as the links now go to golf sites, but the page still uses my domain name.  So, now you know why I have been away so long.  I have much to say, and it has been tough staying away long enough for this person to abandon the links.  More this weekend, now that I have my explanation out of the way.  

Good Prospecting to You,
Shirley
http://www.hookedongold.com
hookedongold@gmail.com

Gold Prospecting Season is in Full Swing....for Some of Us

Colorado State Gold Panning Championship Winners - Ladies Division Right to Left, 1st Shirley Weilnau, 2nd Sue Drewes, and 3rd Linda Jent

A lot has happened since I last chatted with you. We have been very busy with all sorts of things, not all related to gold or gold prospecting here in Colorado. Since I last blogged, we have attended Burro Days, the Colorado State Gold Panning Championships have been held, a visit from our oldest son and his family, moving Tin Pan Prospector, RAIN, painting the shed and various other activities with friends. Little of this has had anything to do with sleep, and we spent most of last week trying to catch up on everything.

Burro Days in Fairplay had more people attend it than I have ever seen before. The roads were parked full some 5 blocks away from the Library. It looked like most people were having a lot of fun and, of course, I bought books from the library sale.

Three days were spent in Breckenridge at the Colorado State Gold Panning Championships, where we took a total of 8 medals. I brought home 5 (Firsts in Team, Women’s and Dry, Second in Old Timers, Third in State) and Larry, 3 ( Firsts in National Style and Team, and a third in Men’s).

Our two youngest grandchildren came to stay for a few days at camp along with their parents right after that, and we hiked them around and they went swimming twice. They were pretty worn out by the time they went home. LOL!

Tin Pan Prospector moved from their spot above Alma, across the road. We are still getting dirt moved around and the signs up in the right spots, but everything seems to be working out well.

We hear that things at Cache Creek are good. We also hear that some of the regulations are changing a bit in the prospector’s favor. They may be allowing people with hand equipment to come in and work over the 14 days for a $5.00 per day fee.  That was what highbankers paid to stay past their 14 days with a second permit.  I don't know if they have applied this to sluice boxes, recircs and gold pans or not. 

Next Monday we will be attending the Breckenridge Open Space meeting to introduce what equipment and activities prospectors engage in to the committee, to begin the process of possibly opening up some of the old dredge piles above the Country Boy mine to recreational gold prospecting. The process will probably take most of the winter, as we also must get the items through the Summit County Open Space which controls the open space with Breckenridge. There are several on the committee who would like to see it opened, so we have a good chance of getting this through. We DO need help from any prospectors out there that live in Breckenridge or Summit County to lend a hand. We are commuting more than an hour and a half one way to attend meetings, and weather and highway conditions have been hampering our ability to get to these meetings.

Rain has been a BIG factor in our prospecting these past three weeks. Camp has had close to 5 inches and it has rained every day or night. Alma has had 7 or 8 inches. We are hoping everything doesn’t float away on us one of these days, and we are looking forward to some drier weather. We did get one coat of paint on the shed yesterday before it rained, and we would like to get the second on some time this week.

Other than those things, we have been enjoying our camp in CORA. Even when it is raining, it is peaceful, but the summer is going way too fast. We are hoping we have weather good enough to stay until October. Clouds are already forming over Mt. Bross, but they are white puffy ones, so far.

I have a review on the new blue Keene/Pioneer pan ready to post along with pictures. I’ll post that later this week so watch for it. Love my Safari sluice box!

Until later this week, I am hoping you are having one of the best seasons for finding gold you have ever had.

Good Prospecting to You

Gold Safari Sluice Box Review

The Gold Safari Sluice Box

Guests are gone, new camp is shaping up, and some rearranging is finished.  As promised, I have a review of the Gold Safari sluice I bought last year late in the season.  Since it is gold propsecting season for everyone, I could not find their website active and there are none listed on e-Bay where I found this one.  They may be out finding gold like the rest of us.  LOL! 

The first thing I liked about this sluice box is the 12 inch wide box and riffle system.  This means that the box should be able to handle classified material pretty fast.  The second was the combination of three different types of riffles, each meant to help catch material on it's way through.  It also came with indoor/outdoor carpeting, which we have always liked better than miners moss.  (Too many rocks hang up in it, and you have to run matting underneath.)

The one thing I did NOT like was that it did not have rubber mat or carpeting before the riffles, and it did not come with expanded metal.  Both of these items we added.

The first set of riffles are short round bars.  I wasn't too sure about this when we got the sluice box, but I was willing to give it a try.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that they worked in tandem to provide a calm area between them that dropped heavier black sand and gold into, leaving the second riffle to clear out the lighter sand.  Very nice.  The gold showed up, of course, right away in the black mat, and the wide box spread the material out so that I could spade classified material into it as fast as I wanted to.  I watched the second riffle to be sure it was cleaning out adequately, and we went through 10 buckets as fast as we could classify it.

All in all, I like this sluice box.  Be aware that you will need to add the rubber matting or carpet at the head of the box and expanded metal if you want to.  The box sold for around $150.00, and if you can find one, I recommend it. 

And for your viewing pleasure, here is a pic of the gold we caught with the sluice.

Small Gold Ore Crusher

Crushing Rock

This week has certainly been a busy one! I DO hope you were watching gold rise and fall this past week. It was interesting to see it move higher and then dive by Friday’s close.

Picker that came out of the dirt pile at Tin Pan Prospector

I know most of you are waiting for my sluice box report. It is still on my to do list, but I found out my Mother was coming this past week for a visit and things have gotten put on a bit of a hold while we catch up. I have not seen her for over a year, so there is much to talk about and do.

The gold panning area at Tin Pan Prospector is showing some nice color. We panned out a picker on Saturday, and everyone else was happy with what they were finding.

Fairplay Burro Days is coming up July 23rd & 24th, so get that on your calendar and “Get Your Ass Up the Pass”! GPOC will also have their gold panning troughs out for the public again this year.

Colorado State Gold Panning Championships will be the weekend after in Breckenridge, July 30, 31 and August 1st. All challengers are welcome!

It is quiet, friendly, and full of activity at our new camp south of Fairplay. So far, we are very happy with the area and the amenities we have here in CORA. We even used the pool this last weekend for some relaxing fun. We have many new trails to explore, mines to visit and gold to find here in South Park. With luck and what we know about this mineral belt, we are confident we will be able to assist with opening up some of the private and patented areas here. There is excitement in the valley again over placer and lode mining, but there is much work to be done before it will be a reality. When we are all successful, prospecting for gold in Colorado will become easier on this side of the gold and silver mineral belt.

Watch for the sluice box report. I really do like this new box. It has a triple riffle system that is interesting.

Hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July! AND you have this Monday to rest up from your celebrations.

Good Prospecting to You,
Shirley
http://www.hookedongold.com/
hookedongold@gmail.com

Prospecting for Gold at Cache Creek and Moving our Camp

Prospecting for Gold with Friends at Cache Creek, Colorado

Gold was at $1256.30 when I started this blog today, but it has probably changed since the overseas market is open. 

We had an interesting week and did spend some time at Cache Creek with the new sluice box.  I really like it, and will give you a review on it at mid week. 

We are moving the trailer to its' new home on Tuesday, and will be raising the existing deck 6 inches today and tomorrow so that both trailers can use it.  The lot we bought had a trailer already on it, so we have plenty of storage space for all our 'junk'.

Cache Creek continues to have problems with people stealing gold prospecting equipment, so if  you are there, make sure you take your equipment out each night.  So far a highbanker and a sluice box have disappeared.  The sluice box was taken out of the back of pickup, so secure your equipment even in your vehicle.

Water diversions are still a problem at Cache Ck, too.  Make sure you are not diverting water away from the creek and others ability to use it.  Remember, you are not the only one there and the water must be made available to everyone equally. 

We observed, and educated a team of highbankers on the proper way to fill a pump with gas.  These people were filling their pump without turning it off or removing it from the waterway.  We saw them dump gas into the creek, too.  If you fill your pump while it is running, you run the risk of getting some of the fuel into the wrong area that may be hot enough to explode.  I sure don't want to be around if someone does that!  Make sure you are at least 5 feet away from a waterway before you put gas into your pump's fuel tank, and nver spill it into the water.

Tin Pan Propsector up north of Alam is staying pretty busy.  More people are stopping and we have had several who were here on vacation and had wanted to get to try panning for gold while they were in Colorado.  We were all glad to oblige them.  If you are  up that way, stop in and see what Chad has lined up for the season.  Snow is still too deep for a few areas, but we are finding some gold and getting better acquainted with the area in general.

Gotta run and get some more work done before moving day.  Take care out there while you are prospecting for gold in Colorado or anywhere else.  Water is still high here and we lost our 6th rafter this last week. 

Good Prospecting to You,

Shirley

http://www.hookedongold.com/

hookedongold@gmail.com

Summer Gold Prospecting in Colorado

Fire at Cache Creek

Yes, there was another RV that burned at Cache Creek last week.  Right across from the trailer that burned last year.  Make sure your propane connections are secure, and think twice about bringing a motorhome down through those dips.  There is plenty of camping up above in the forest.

There was, also, a highbanker that was stolen from the area.  The pump was left alone and only the highbanker was taken.  Very strange.

Gold is at $1241 this morning, and we spent a delightful weekend at a family reunion and visiting with our kids.  We will be moving the trailer this next week to a private campground where we have purchsed a lot and are looking forward to having more room to spread out again.  The two sheds will help with all our mining junk, too, and we won't have to keep it all in the truck all the time.  We can also begin collecting rocks again, and have friends over more. 

Summer is finally here!  This also means that we will get more river time and UTV time.  I'm sure you are looking forward to more of this yourselves, as well.  The rivers are still running very high, so be very careful if you are near those rushing waters.  We are looking forward to a summer filled with prospecting in new areas and still lending a hand at gold prospecting in Colorado with Tin Pan Prospector.

If you are in the Colorado Springs area this weekend, stop in at the Western Mining Museum (exit North Academy entrance - east) for a rock exhibit put on by the local rock and gem clubs.  GPOC always gets involved, too, and it should be a great weekend of fun.

Have a great week!

Good Prospecting to You,

Shirley

http://www.hookedongold.com/

hookedongold@gmail.com

You Are NOT on the Wrong Page!

New Look for The Prospector's Blog.  Let me know what you think.

High Water in the Arkansas River Makes for Dangerous Rafting. Be Careful!

A Spring Time Snow in Colorado




So, how would you like to do some panning for gold in this stuff?  LOL!  This weekend has been a bit cold and wet, so we have been visiting with friends and planning this next week.

Gold closed last Friday at $1228.70 as we were getting the beginning of this storm, but it is clearing out now and we will have a cold night.  Next week is looking better weather wise, so we are looking forward to some more summer fun prosecting for gold. 

GPOC had a members outing in the snow this weekend, and I hear that all had fun slipping in the mud, finding gold and getting numb hands and fingers from the fridge water.  All the peaks were white this morning.

The parking lot at Cache Creek was scheduled to be expanded this past week, but we have not been up there since it was done.  I also hear that there is some very nice gold coming out of the area.

We did attend the 40th birthday anniversary at the Prospectors Village in Nathrop last weekend.  There were lots of folks there and lots of equipment was going out the door.  Cindy had a drawing for some nice prizes, too. 

Run off is so high that water coming out of several high country reservoirs has been shut down to help ease the rivers.  Where there is less control, waters are very high and swift.  Be careful when you are near the rivers and streams.

Later this week, I'll be telling you our tale about the Fairplay Beach, so stay tuned.  In the mean time have fun prospecting for gold in Colorado.....

Good Prospecting to You,
Shirley
http://www.hookedongold.com/
hookedongold@gmail.com

Fast Movng Water in Colorado Gold Prospecting Country

Well, run off here in Colorado has begun with a vengence.  The first rafting death has been announced near Vail, as well as a tuber on Cache la Poudre and a man using a cable trolley to cross the Colorado River all due to high water. 

Anyone near the rivers and streams needs to use extreme caution for the next month or so as stream flows are very high.  The Arkansas River is running almost to the bottom of the bridge at the bottom of the numbers and the lower gravel bar at Granite is almost covered.  The South Platte in Fairpay is running bank to bank, and the Big Thompson is running out of its' banks below Estes Park.  For your added information, I am posting a few examples from yesterday evening's levels.
 
Arkansas River running at the numbers 3650 cfs and 4050 at Royal Gourge
Clear Ck 890 to 935 cfs
Colorado River 15200 cfs at Glenwood Springs
Gunnison River 4700 cfs at Escalante

Panning for gold, sluicing and dredging will be dangerous, so be careful when you are near the water.  The high water also hides rocks and boulders that you can hit your head on, and people have been known to drown in a swift current in less that 18 inches of water.  Snow pack is still high, and we are expecting a long runoff season again this year. 

Finding gold is fun, but even more caution needs to be exercised at this time. 

We visited Cache Creek yesterday to see the beaver pond refilled.  Everyone has been happy with the new regs and that things are under better control.  Larry and I are happy that we were able to give the BLM suggestions that are working as the area is very popular and people love being there.  The parking lot will be enlarged this week to allow for more vehicles in the area, too. 

Have a great gold prospecting week.  I'll talk at cha again when I have a few minutes.

Good Prospecting to You,
Shirley
http://www.hookedongold.com/
hookedongold@gmail.com

Colorado Gold Country and Spring

Aspens Leafing Out Above 10,500 Feet

Howdy to all you gold prospectors out there!  Gold closed on Friday at $1220.90 and the stock market was down over 300 points.  These two haven't gone in opposite directions for some time now. 

I had a bout with a 24 hour stomach junk this past week, but am feeling my old(?) self again.  Our phone connections this year are not working out well, so if you have been trying to get a hold of us, we are strictly on cell phones right now.  Email works, too.

The Aspens are finally leafing out on the mountainsides above Alma, and it looks like Spring is finally arriving in the Colorado high mountain gold country around Fairplay and Alma.  Montgomery Reservoir was emptied earlier in May and will be easily refilled with the snow still left on the slopes above it.  It will quite possibly be the end of June before the roads on Mts. Bross and Lincoln will be passable by 4WD vehicle.

Gold prospecting at Cache Creek is open and we hear many people are in there finding gold.  GPOC has a seasons worth of voluteers ready to be onsite this year to help you with the new regulations and fee structure.  The porta potties are in place and the BLM summer time employee is making the rounds on the Arkansas River and Cache Creek.  Looks like a good prospecting season there with things under better control, as well as all the other Colorado gold prospecting areas. 

GPOC members should be aware that he gate on the road to Beaver Creek will not be opened until the middle of June.

We are still looking for more permanent arrangements in South Park, but until we do we are in Buena Vista at Snbowy Peaks RV Park.  A great place to stay, btw, if you are in the Buena Vista area. 

If you are looking to find gold in Colorado and are curious about the Fairplay Beach this year, they are chargin $5.00 per person for the May - October 2010 gold panning and sluicing season, and you can obtain that permit at the City building in Fairplay.  The 'Beach" will be undergoing some improvements this year with the addition of a concert platform for groups the city is bringing in for entertainment, as well as adding music festival later this summer.  Also, the County is adding a pedestrian bridge across the S. Platte to help people walking from the residential areas on the south side get to the grocery store more safely than walking on the highway.  It is supposed to be completed sometime in August.

While you are there, drive up past Alma about a mile and half, just past mile marker 72, on your right, and check out Tin Pan Prospector for some fun.  Prices for panning, highbanking, dredging and metal detecting are reasonable.  Chad has his dredge in the water now and is driving to bedrock.  Stop by and say 'Howdy'!

That's all I have in my notes.  I'll be back to you from time to time.  Have a great week and a great gold prospecting season!  Until next time....

Good Prospecting to You,

Shirley

http://www.hookedongold.com/

hookedongold@gmail.com

Memorial Day in Colorado Gold Country

Opening Day for Tin Pan Prospector

Memorial Day. Remember and thank all who served or gave their lives in service to this country. I am truly grateful for their dedication and sacrifices for my freedom. This weekend we remember it twice. Yesterday which was the actual day, and today which is the observed day. You have all been in my thoughts this weekend.

Well, I’m sure all of you are wondering what I have been up to since the Gazette missed it’s deadline. You probably know we opened up camp a week ago, and since then we have been unpacking, stuffing everything into nooks and crannies in the camper, having a bit of fun and working our tails off trying to get to Alma by 9 and help Tin Pan get started for the season.

Chad has his summer operation located north of Alma, 1 ½ miles from the South Park Saloon, just past mile marker 72 on the east side of the road. There’s a bit of a dip getting off, so be careful. There is plenty of parking area, and panning is at the back near the old bridge. He plans to crib the back of it up to make it look more like a mine entrance. Should be good for some photo ops, and he has some good areas for prospecting for gold, gold panning, dredging, and highbanking in Colorado.

We have had several highbankers and sluicers in to try it out, as well as panners out for a lesson. The weather has been really good, with mornings cool and afternoons quite warm and sunny. We are seeing a lot of fines and some larger flakes coming out of the top of the bank, and more fines and flakes out of the stream. The dirt and gravel are all loose and part of moraine slump, so volume is going to be the name of the game. Gold in the stream runs all the way through the loose gravel with the biggest being located on bedrock about 20 feet down.

Snow around the Orphan Boy mine should be about melted, and we should be able to get in there and prove that stream soon. The mine dumps are showing some very interested waste rock. You can go and pick up a few for a $10.00 fee per day, as well as the usual highbanking, dredging and metal detecting fees posted on his website. Drop by if you are around and say that you read about it here. We like to know where people hear about Tin Pan.

Other than working to get all this started, we haven’t had much time for anything else. Gold is looking like it has found a resting place for now and closed Friday for the weekend at $1219.40. You will find an abbreviated store on the website for the summer as lugging everything around and shipping is a problem. eMail me if you saw something you wanted and it isn’t there right now. I can always ship when we go home for family stuff and pick up supplies.

Have a great gold finding season.
Good Prospecting to You,
Shirley
http://www.hookedongold.com/
hookedongold@gmail.com

A Windy Start to Our Gold Prospectign Season

I wish I had a picture to go along with the awful ride we had on Saturday to B.V. from Elbert, Colorado! We got waylaid for three hours in Colorado Springs after fighting 60+ mph winds for two hours towing the UTV from its storage place at a friend's home. We broke a tie down strap and almost ruined the doors before we stopped to take them off and tie them down, and then stopped at another friend's house to wait out the wind.

We pulled into camp about 7:45 p.m. and still had to do the basic unpacking before we could fall into bed and tackle the rest of the unpacking the next morning.  After we had accomplished that, we took a rest and headed down to GPOC's  Prospector III for some river time with the gold pans. 

There were several other members there dredging, sluicing and panning for gold as the river has not come up all the way yet.  Snow is still locked up in the mountains and the water is under ice on the lakes, but with this wind and the dirt being blown in from the desert, it will soon melt ice on the lakes enough to open the reservoir gates and send water down to Pueblo.  When that happens, the run off will begin on the Arkansas River and it could rise 2 feet rather suddenly.

We decided to make our trip home today as the weather is still windy and the temps are falling, too.  Not much we can (or want to) do in all this wind!  Since I missed the Gazette deadline, I thought I would send you a report today while I have some time.

The gate at Cache Creek should be open this weekend, if not sooner, and the area below Prospector III has been designated as an area for panning and sluicing only by the BLM.  One dredger has already been sited for violations in this area this spring, so if you think there isn't anyone watching, you would be wrong.

Tin Pan Prospector Outfitters has decided to open the pay for use public panning area at a spot north of Alma on highway 9 on the east side of the road.  (I'll get you a mile marker later this week when I know what it is.  It will be located about a mile north of Alma, though.) Anyone who is interested in additional gold panning, sluicing, highbanking or dredging will be directed from there.  There will be a building, signs and parking, as well as your friendly gold prospector to greet you. You will be able to giver 'er a try starting Memorial Day weekend. 

All in all, we are looking forward to a GREAT gold prospecting season here in Colorado.  Hopefully, we will see some of you here this summer, and remember to be careful around the water until July with all the water coming down out of the mountains. Those streams are sometimes deeper than you think and the currents are strong and swift along their downhill race to the sea. 

Also be mindful of the altitude you will be at if you are coming from much lower elevations.  Altitude sickness can put you flat on your back if you aren't careful with alcohol and salt intake.  A couple of easy days is always recommended until you get acclimated.  Have fun out there, obey the rules and regulations, fill in your holes, and be respectful of all others.  And above all, remember this is MY home!  Take care of it!

Good Prospecting to You,
Shirley
http://www.hookedongold.com/
hookedongold@gmail.com

Hooked on Gold Gazette 5/14/2010

• Gold Spot Closing Price for Friday: $1231.40 – high $1250.40


• Spot price last Gazette : $1137.70

________________

Gold ‘N’ Store
Calendar of Events

May
• 1st May Day
• 9th Mother’s Day
• 29th – 31st Memorial Day weekend

June
• 14th Flag Day
• 19th-20th Kingdom Days-Breckenridge
• 26th-27th Western Mining Museum
_________________________________

NEWS

Ok, Ok, I got the message. LOL! I have several loyal followers who have reminded me that I haven’t been blogging recently and leaving all of you out of the loop of information. For your reading pleasure, this Gazette will be nice and long. :>D

As you can imagine, there has been a lot going on to keep me so busy I have not had the hour it takes to write some words for you. Last weekend GPOC had their annual Let’s Go Gold Panning Days at Point Bar, and, from what I am told, it was its’ usual rounding success with gold prospectors all over the place. We missed this year as my kids have been bugging me about not ever being home for Mother’s Day, and so I opted to indulge them this year. They were grateful and treated me to a BBQ and a dinner out later with lots of hugs and time with grandchildren, too. Instead to digging dirt, I spent my time chasing bubbles with our youngest grandson and listening to our granddaughter try to talk. We will be afield soon enough.

Gold is advancing once again this week on the heels of the Greece bailout. Europeans are not happy with this state of affairs and are buying gold as a hedge against the European economic problems they see coming in the future. At this rate I will have to raise gold prices again.

Memorial Day will be here before you know it. You will find many fairs to attend to kick off the summer season. If you are in the Colorado Springs area, GPOC will have their panning troughs out at Territory Days in Old Colorado City. For those of you in the mountains for the weekend, Tin Pan Prospector will be opening up their gold panning area for the season, too. Chad will be located in Alma this year and NOT on Highway 9 in Fairplay. You should be able to find signs in the Fairplay area to give you directions to where he will be located. He has two new areas for you to try out and Alma is more central to those locations. Right now he is looking at two sites and will make a decision soon where his staging and panning area will be. Stay tuned, as I will give you that location as soon as it is known.

Snow seems to be plaguing us this year, as we had more this past week. Still waiting for Spring weather so I can put away my winter clothes! Had the furnace on yesterday, too. Sure hope El Nino breaks soon so we get some warmer weather!

As a final note, I have had many forum members ask me about this website.  It is ONLY the forum that I must cancel.  Ning.com has decided to begin charging for all sites and so I will be dismantling the forum tomorrow.  Rest assured, I will be continue with my main website and this blog.

Have a great weekend. That’s it for me.

Until Next Week…..
Good Prospecting to You,
Shirley (MQS)

Google has begun running third party ads and is requiring adsense sites to include information about this change on their websites. You can read about this on our Privacy Policy page.

World Open Panning website has this year’s world wide panning competitions listed and they add more all the time. A great site to visit: www.worldopenpanning.homestead.com . If the links do not work, copy and paste them into your browser.

If you find a broken link, please let us know

THE ARKANSAS RIVER is now OPEN TO MOTORIZED EQUIPMENT until OCTOBER 1st.

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Summer Season for Finding Gold Coming Soon

YUP!

Closing gold price for Friday  $1158.40

Last week  $1137.70

Things are popping here at our house and are happening very fast.....well almost everything is happening fast.  Some very important business is progressing very slowly which adds to our frustration levels and anxiety over getting things finished before we begin our prospecting season.

Summer activities are mounting up and the spring throw out and paper round up is not accomplished.  Time is becoming short to finish.  The gloomy weather hasn't helped get any of it done, either.  I did not have time to get the Gazette together yesterday, but I didn't want to let another week go by without a posting.

We continue to look for a place to put the trailer on the Fariplay side of the Mosquito Range and haven't decided what to do yet.  We will soon, however.  We do have temporary arrangements made until we settle down, if needs be.  The number of areas that will be open for Tin Pan Prospecting is amazing, and there are lots of new places to hunt for and find gold.  We will be using all our gold prospecting skills to pinpoint the best areas.  Knowledge, experience, rods and pendulum don't fail me now!  LOL! 

Remember that Mother's Day is coming up.  Visit the Gold 'N' Store for a special, in stock piece of gold in white quartz, gold nugget, or gold in black quartz jewelry for Mom.  While you're there, pick out what you want for Dad.  Gold nuggets are going fast this year.  There should be some new gold nuggets posted by Monday.

Hope your prospecting season is good this year.  We plan to find gold!  How much, I can't say.  But, the potential is very good.  Back to you later this week.

Good Prospecting to You,

Shirley

http://www.hookedongold.com/

hookedongold@gmail.com

Time is flying by. Gold Prospecting Season is near!

Fire in the Sky last summer

Going back over some of the pictures from last summer has reminded me of all the friends we made and the people we talked to, the sunsets and the sunrises, and the fun and aggravation.  We are now preparing for another summer season of prospecting for gold in the high country and find we must leave some of our musings behind.

Today, I was made aware that ning.com has decided to do away with their free sites in favor of their paid sites, and I have had to make the decision whether to pay a fee to keep the forum going or bring it to an end.  Sadly, I have decided not to continue with it. 

While there were many who had an interest in the forum, it does not seem to get enough use to warrant my paying for the site.  Keeping up with hookedongold is quite enough where money expenses are concerned.  My hosting comes up again this year, and while the monthly cost isn't much, (and I have an AWESOME host, BTW!) it is still an expense.  A two year renewal is always more cost effective, and so I must weigh those expenses against also paying for another site, and the numbers don't add up to the positive. 

Anyone who had a membership on the ning site has been contacted and been told that they might want to log in and delete their pictures, etc. before I take it down some time in May. 

To all who joined and joined in, thank you.  I appreciate you and your input.  Perhaps I will find another avenue to bring the community together again.  In the mean time, you can always find me here.

Good Prospecting to You,
Shirley,
http://www.hookedongold.com/
hookeongold@gmail.com

Hooked on Gold Gazette 4/16/2010

An Interesting Collage of Trees I Shot Last Summer







• Gold Spot Closing Price for Friday: $1137.70
• Spot price last Gazette : $1162.20
________________
Gold ‘N’ Store

Calendar of Events
APRIL
• 1st Happy April Fool’s Day
• 2nd Good Friday
• 4th Easter
• 14th GPOC meeting
• 23rd – 25th Denver Gem, Mineral, and Fossil Spring Show
_______________________________________
NEWS
Well, here it is Friday again and time for your Gazette. This week has certainly gone by fast and the weekend will be even busier than this last week has. Hope you all got your taxes filed on time this past week. If not………

I want to start out by thanking my customers. I have to say I have some of the nicest customers on the planet! They are patient and work with me, and I want to take this time to thank them for everything they have helped me with this past month. Selling on line is not easy, but with folks like all of you, it becomes a pleasure! Several have gotten extra special additions to their orders for their assistance in troubleshooting little things in the store I would not know about without their help. THANKS!

Oh, boy! Things are finally warming up here in Colorado, and although the mountains continue to get snow, even the ski resorts are giving up their seasons. Runs are getting slushy and messy, and run off will begin soon. My March energy bill was 30% higher than the year before due to all the cold weather. Glad it’s gone for another 6 months or so, and I can finally get out there and find some GOLD!

Don’t forget the Denver Gem and Mineral SPRING Show coming up April 23rd through the 25th at the Holiday Inn North off of I-25 and Broadway. We always find something new and interesting there. A good time to meet up with friends and have some good conversations, too. If you are looking for gold nuggets, meteorites, opal, gemstones, jadite, turquoise, tiger’s eye, or any other type of gem grade stone, you should check this show out.

Larry got his ‘new to him’ fully enclosed UTV yesterday. You remember what a fiasco last year’s experience was like. It did teach us that an enclosure is beneficial to us when we are a 12,000 feet metal detecting for gold and silver and it starts to rain. Not many places to get into shelter up at that altitude. This grandma needs a little more comfort now, so we found a great deal on a used Polaris that was enclosed. Yeah, I know. I’m a whimp. What’s your point? LOL!

I hear from around the web that we have people already coming our way from out of state to begin their summer prospecting for gold on the Arkansas River. Chad at Tin Pan Prospecting (LINKTHIS) reports that he is getting lots of calls for reservations this year, too, for the Fairplay area. Sounds like a busy season for gold prospecting.

I’ll post some links for you next week. The Gazette is getting pretty long and I want to get it out to you. International California Mining Journal had an interesting article on finding gold in Maine, if any of you are from that part of country, as well as what is going on with the dredging court battles in California. Always a good read for what’s current. That’s it for me, folks.

Until next week…….

Good Prospecting to You,

Shirley (MQS)

Google has begun running third party ads and is requiring adsense sites to include information about this change on their websites. You can read about this on our Privacy Policy page.

World Open Panning website has this year’s world wide panning competitions listed and they add more all the time. A great site to visit: www.worldopenpanning.homestead.com . If the links do not work, copy and paste them into your browser.

If you find a broken link, please let us know

THE ARKANSAS RIVER is now OPEN TO MOTORIZED EQUIPMENT until OCTOBER 1st.

http://www.hookedongold.com/

http://www.hookedongoldprospecting.ning.com/ A prospecting forum and social posting community

hookedongold@gmail.com contact us

PLEASE BE ADVISED: Ads that you might find on this blog or on a website using ads, may use cookies or other tracking means to track your movements on the web. Please read our Privacy Policy to see how this affects you and what you might want to do to prevent cookies being used to track you.

Hooked on Gold Gazette 4/09/10

Easter Sunrise in Salida, Co.


• Gold Spot Closing Price for Friday: $1162.20

• Spot price last Gazette:     $1108.00
________________
Gold ‘N’ Store
Calendar of Events
APRIL
• 1st Happy April Fool’s Day
• 2nd Good Friday
• 4th Easter
• 14th GPOC meeting
• 23rd – 25th Denver Gem, Mineral, and Fossil Spring Show
_______________________________________
NEWS

It’s not my fault! I TRIED to publish the Gazette last Friday/Saturday, but Google’s silliness for April Fool’s Day must have messed up bloggers interface. I was not able to publish anything. It kept giving me an error message that would not resolve or go away. So, I will attempt to publish this week, and try to find the time to put up wordpress. (sigh).

April. The sounds of birds and the smell of daffodils blooming are in the air. We have had our first 70 degree day and the air at times smells like freshly sun dried sheets. We did take off last weekend to investigate Fairplay (which still had about 8 inches of snow) and Salida. We found our first gold of the season, too, although not much. However, any gold is good gold. :>D The days would have been pleasantly warm if not for the 30 mph wind.

The news out of Point Bar changes regularly. Those who have been in the area report that there still are no markers, (nor did we find any) and I understand that a third revision of the claims there has been made. I’ll keep you posted as I get information. Point Bar is still getting some use and those in the area tell me the river has begun to rise. Looks like we are in for another long runoff season, so be careful near the water.

This weekend we are looking forward to some more prospecting closer to home so we can enjoy the warmer temps, not drive most of the weekend, sleep in our own bed without noisy neighbors keeping us awake all night, and still find some gold in our pans. That also means I’ll have pictures to publish here, on FB and twitter.

Check out these links for some interesting information

http://www.outdoorchannel.con/Adventure/GoldPropsecint.aspx

http://goldsearch.blogspot.com/2010/03/going-for-gold-with-vision-backpack-few.html

Until next week…….

Good Prospecting to You,

Shirley (MQS)

Google has begun running third party ads and is requiring adsense sites to include information about this change on their websites. You can read about this on our Privacy Policy page.

World Open Panning website has this year’s world wide panning competitions listed and they add more all the time. A great site to visit: www.worldopenpanning.homestead.com . If the links do not work, copy and paste them into your browser.

If you find a broken link, please let us know

THE ARKANSAS RIVER is now OPEN TO MOTORIZED EQUIPMENT until OCTOBER 1st.

http://www.hookedongold.com/

http://www.hookedongoldprospecting.ning.com/ A prospecting forum and social posting community

hookedongold@gmail.com contact us

PLEASE BE ADVISED: Ads that you might find on this blog or on a website using ads, may use cookies or other tracking means to track your movements on the web. Please read our Privacy Policy to see how this affects you and what you might want to do to prevent cookies being used to track you.

Here's to Gold and Sunshine Awards

Today's post is more about golden friendships than gold.  However, one is not as enjoyable without the other.  The blogger's sunshine award is circulating and I have my own winners to share.  The first goes to His Happy Apple, whose many blogs on several subjects spans many interests from photography to gold prospecting to home schooling.

"Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather". ~John Ruskin

More recipients will be announced as time allows.

Snow continues to be forecast this week and our gold pans and sluice boxes lay in wait for mud, dirt and water to be thrown into them.  Each weekend we hope for an outing and each weekend, are greeted with stormy weather and cold temps.  Still waiting, waiting, waiting.

I had several comments on the Montana video.  If you haven't seen it yet, get on it!  Almost as much fun and watching a baby giggle on youtube.
Good Prospecting to You,
Shirley
http://www.hookedongold.com/

What Are They Doing In Montana?

So, I finally get a gazette posted, and what do you suppose happens, but I find this video this morning on mining for sapphires in Montana. The video shows the process one mine is using there, but they are pulling out more than just sapphires. If you are into gold prospecting, you will really want to see the end of this vid. Oh, the sapphires are really nice, too. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJtp-so9uc4

Happy first full day of Spring to all of you. I DO hope your gold pan is full of gold this year, and you find some golden moments to cherish as well.

Good Prospecting to You,
Shirley
http://www.hookedongold.com/
hookedongold@gmail.com

Hooked on Gold Gazette 3/20/10

Just a reminder of what Summer looks like in Colorado

• Gold Spot Closing Price for Friday: $ 1108.00

• Spot price last Gazette : $1118.70
________________
Gold ‘N’ Store
Calendar of Events
MARCH
• 1st Motorized equipment season begins on the Arkansas River
• 14th Daylight Savings time begins
• 17th St. Patrick’s Day remember to wear your green
• 20th Spring Equinox
• 28th Palm Sunday
• 30th Passover

APRIL
• 1st Happy April Fool’s Day
• 2nd Good Friday
• 4th Easter
• 14th GPOC meeting
• 23rd – 25th Denver Gem, Mineral, and Fossil Spring Show
_______________________________________
NEWS

It's SPRING!  Can you smell it?  How is the weather in your part of the world? We are in our typical spring pattern with very warm days and then snow and 20 degrees. We have yet to officially reach 70 degrees, though, but the 68 was really nice.

Gold prospecting news is scarce and non existent, and so I have not had much to write about the past couple of weeks. As March comes to a close soon, we are still looking for weather good enough for our first weekend gold panning and sluicing trip. Birthdays and snow have been hampering our efforts to play in the dirt and water. The ice has a bit to do with it, too. LOL! With all this ‘time on my hands’ you would think I would make a bit more progress with website and blog changes, but, alas, time seems to slip through my fingers like sand through a gold pan. Perhaps I will find gold at the bottom like I do in my pan.

I hear via the grape vine that there is a lot of gold prospecting activity going on at Point Bar near Salida. The weather there should be rather nice right now between storms. I also hear that the new claimants of what used to be the ‘Star Jade’ located just north of the GPOC claim that is north of Buena Vista, are letting it be known that prospectors will no longer be welcome on that claim and to keep out. They are placing a notice in the GPOC Quill informing members that the claim is closed to all prospectors and that they must not look for gold on that claim. These new claimants are board members of GPOC.

The only news I found that was interesting enough to share with you in the past 2 weeks is this bit about another use for gold in the medical field.

http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2010-03/gold-nanoparticles-and-lasers-kill-crazy-cat-lady-brain-parasite Since we all know that we do not use up gold, I wondered after reading it how they removed the gold from the body.  If it was left in place, would too much sun on your head heat your brain up too much? LOL! That’s probably more from me than you want.
Until next week…….
Good Prospecting to You,
Shirley (MQS)

Google has begun running third party ads and is requiring adsense sites to include information about this change on their websites. You can read about this on our Privacy Policy page.

World Open Panning website has this year’s world wide panning competitions listed and they add more all the time. A great site to visit: www.worldopenpanning.homestead.com . If the links do not work, copy and paste them into your browser.

If you find a broken link, please let us know

THE ARKANSAS RIVER is now OPEN TO MOTORIZED EQUIPMENT until OCTOBER 1st.
_______________________________________
http://www.hookedongold.com/
http://www.hookedongoldprospecting.ning.com/ A prospecting forum and social posting community
hookedongold@gmail.com contact us

PLEASE BE ADVISED: Ads that you might find on this blog or on a website using ads, may use cookies or other tracking means to track your movements on the web. Please read our Privacy Policy to see how this affects you and what you might want to do to prevent cookies being used to track you.

Mining the Gem Show

It's Gem Show Weekend!  That Means Emeralds in 18K Gold For Me.

Well, this show has crept on me and now I realise I won't have a Gazette tomorrow or Saturday.  

For anyone that is going to be using the Point Bar area or Cache Creek for gold prospecting, I know of several people who have already gotten their notice level equipment packets in the mail they requested, and they say the new packets have a lot of information in them including maps to the Arkansas open public areas. 

Weather is starting to warm up enough that we may get out in the next two weeks.  We have family plans along with this gem show for the next few weeks, but by mid March we should be able to get once or twice......finally.  We have gotten out every winter before this to metal detect for coins before now, but this year the ground has just been frozen solid. 

Remember that Day Light Savings time begins Sunday, March 14th.....Spring ahead.  See you on the flip side.

Good Prospecting to You,

Shirley

http://www.hookedongold.com/

hookedongold@gmail.com