The pleasure and reality of prospecting....

Creekside... no way!  Deep hillside diggings.

    We seem to be experiencing a little winter… temps hover around the 20s and 30s for a high each day.  We’ve also been getting a little snow here and there… not enough to really slow things down but enough to make you shiver when you go out to run errands!

        Here and there on the internet and among friends we see explanations of “why we look for gold.”  The consistent thread seems to be a difficulty of expressing the why… it’s not for money, it’s not for fame.  It’s like playing golf, or gardening, or hunting.  All I can contribute, I think, is that it’s for the experience!

        My sister, who doesn’t prospect, expresses the feeling of us who enjoy being here and "experiencing" life or even a visit to the Hills.  She refers to the simple pleasure of,“a beautiful view each day of God’s magnificent creations, the Black Hills, the South Dakota prairie and the sun rising beside Bear Butte.” A special hug of appreciation for this sister who lost her husband the past weekend.

         A friend and customer of our website and blog reminded me this past week of something I want every Black Hills prospector to think about. We were discussing an available claim that has limited creek access but some really promising hillside diggings. This person is not a veteran prospector but has read enough information to respond: “Your find is exciting, having enough of the creek for sluicing would be great since it sounds like there is plenty diggings and gravels to work with. And as you have mentioned in your blog and I have read in old books about placer mining, a big section of creek is not always where it’s at.”

        We understand a beautiful, gurgling creek as a backdrop for a wonderful weekend in the Hills.  However… the creeks have been worked repeatedly, by each generation since the gold rush.  The really good gold was “picked” out of the creek by Johnny and like gold rushers who were the first to work a creek.

        Throughout our research we find reference to dry diggings, diverting water, hauling gravel to creeks.  These guys were using donkeys, carts, digging ditches and still felt the gold justified the work!  The modern day prospector in this age of 4-wheel drive, 4-wheelers, established roads and trails, recirculating equipment such as highbankers, spiral panners… has no excuse to sit on a worked-out creek and complain of no gold!  Like our friend said… that’s not where it’s at!

        There are acres and acres of dry diggings out there, many documented as serious finds… think about it!