nero_design
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[size=small]I coated my 6" coil with black electrical tape to protect it against damage from rocks etc[/size]
Well, I took the shortcut on making a coil cover (skid plate) for my 6" DD HF coil and taped it up to prevent damage when
detecting on sharp, rocky ground. The tape is thin and has no effect on the signal yet cushions the blow and any damage from
minor abuses when scanning the edges of holes or hopping over rocks.
[size=small]The road between the city of Orange and the small township of 'Stuart Town'[/size]
The journey from Orange to Stuart Town was a slightly lengthy drive although the road is well sealed.
The geology of the location mimics the gold bearing regions further West and evidence of ironstone and quartz
reefs can be seen alongside the road most of the distance.
[size=small]Old buildings still standing from the days when the town was known as 'Iron Bark'[/size]
Stuart Town marks the extreme North West corner of the Hargraves Gold Fields in New South Wales, Australia.
The town was originally called Iron Bark after the particular type of Gum/Eucalypt Tree that covers the region.
It was also named in the Banjo Patterson poem/story; "The Man From Iron Bark".
I found the old abandoned buildings and shops to be of considerable interest. There's a modern edge to the town
yet it retains much of its original natural charm. The locals did watch my arrival with interest... and a beer in hand.
[size=small]The Macquarie River. Deep Lead Gold Mining occurs on both sides of the river.[/size]
[size=small]Here's where we tested the topsoils for panning. We used the new Blue pans.[/size]
This is the Macquarie River which runs most of the way south to the famous gold mining town of Hill End.
This river is entirely gold bearing in rather unusually strong concentration. My friend and I dug simple shovel fulls of sand
from the topsoil around the riverbank and every panload had a few flakes of gold in it. The gold was too
fine to photograph but had a coarse texture to much of it. The flakes were very bright and metallic and tumbled when the
tailings of the pan were reduced. Easy to see and suck up with the snifter bottles. Much of the better panloads were from
cemented alluvium which I crushed with the shovel before panning. Other panloads which were interesting consisted of
single shovel loads from where silt and gravel had run off from water erosion. We spent two hours panning before
moving off to try our hand elsewhere with the detectors.
[size=small]Digging targets on a dried-out riverbed with the X-Terra 70[/size]
The creeks had completely dried up when I visited. We found two specimens which were quite small and therefore had evaded detectorists
who might have scanned the riverbed in recent years. The 6" DD HF coil found them easily sitting on the surface. Some large
animal had been defecating on the larger rocks which stuck out of the riverbed. Every so often I would want to sit down on a rock
but found a little (large) present waiting for me there. We suppose it may have been (formerly domesticated) feral cats marking territory.
[size=small]Numerous Old Timer diggings cover much of the region.[/size]
There were plenty of shafts sunk down to the bedrock which dotted many areas of the region. Most were shallow but some were deep enough
to pose a threat if one was inclined to try to climb down into the deeper shafts. These were mostly dug around the 1870s with some going back to the 1850s. Plenty of Targets showed up for the X-Terra but most were shotgun primers and scrap iron. Plenty of signals in the +4 to +22 range
which meant plenty of digging. We did pretty good although my friend walked straight over a half gram specimen nugget (5% ironstone) winking at him in the sunlight and only the X-Terra picked up on it. His detector identified the nugget as a 'Nickel'.
[size=small]My X-Terra 70 with a chunk of gold (nugget or smelted remnant?) beside the shaft[/size]
Here's my X-70 alongside the shaft where I found a nice slug of gold near the edge (might be a nugget or a smelted remnant).
I'll take a closer look later as it's still soaking. You can see it resting on the X-70 arm rest strap. It's about 20 grams.
[size=small]Closeup.[/size]
[size=small]An ENORMOUS Golden Orb Weaver spider which I almost ran into.[/size]
This was probably one of the largest Golden Orb Weaver Spiders I've ever seen and she had made a web right between two trees which I almost walked between. It was about 4 inches across from legtip to legtip. I really am sick of spiders. These ones are harmless although I was once bitten on the neck by one which was less than a 1/4 inch wide and it was like being stung by a bee. The web of this spider is actually stronger than steel per diameter.
[size=small]A Kangaroo bounded past as we examined a target on the creek bed.[/size]
I watched this Kangaroo approach as we dug my friend's target on the creek bed. It bounded past us and went straight up a nearly vertical incline without a pause! Nearly ran over two of his buddies when I was leaving the region in my car. Much of the area is private property which meant we had to pay attention to the "Trespasser's Will Be Prosecuted" signs on many of the fences. I'm guessing these were the consequence of past transgressions by idiots seeking gold. There were enough 12 guage shotgun cartridges and larger caliber impact holes (in cans) scattered about to make me think carefully about where I could Prospect.
[size=small]Gold in the hills. And steak. Steeeaaak.[/size]
On the way home again. Those hills look inviting from a Prospecting Point of view. So do the steaks.
The trip was very informative for a number of reasons and I can now move further north to sample areas of the Hargraves Gold Field located further to the North East. Will report back in with a new post when I'm done there.
Last week, a 19 year old man was teated for serious knife wounds up at the Lightning Ridge Opal fields. Bottom line; it pays to be cautious.
wouldn't finding something like that, just make your year. Good on 'em. That's what gets folks addicted.