Have you ever been panning for gold or mining for jewels?
By AmberLynn
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
United States
January 31, 2017 9:03pm CST
I have never been, but want to go. There are places around here that also combine camping into the experience. I've talked to my best friend and we're either going to make it a family affair or a girl's weekend type deal.
It will be later this year though, when the places start to open up. We have a friend who makes jewelry so I might have him make me a few pieces, or I might have a go of it myself. I prefer raw jewels anyway, nothing polished.
Have you been panning for gold or jewels?
11 people like this
16 responses
@much2say (55655)
• Los Angeles, California
1 Feb 17
Well, we have panned for fool's gold anyway . . . I'm sure it wasn't "real" gold. We've done it the Autry Museum out here and at a birthday party during a Fall Festival at a local college. Finding jewels - that'd be cool to do that!
3 people like this
@much2say (55655)
• Los Angeles, California
1 Feb 17
@ScribbledAdNauseum I would love to find a place that has real gold and jewels - that would be seriously exciting!
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
I never actually thought about "fools gold." That'd be disappointing.
I hadn't thought of it either but an ex boyfriend has gone before and told me about it. I think it'd be a fun experience with my extended family.
2 people like this
@infatuatedbby (94914)
• United States
1 Feb 17
I never have recently, but when I was young - as a field trip we did some panning for gold!
1 person likes this
@infatuatedbby (94914)
• United States
1 Feb 17
@ScribbledAdNauseum Oh! We went to museums often too!
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
@infatuatedbby Zoos and an old farm too? I remember the farm place once. I don't think we ever went back again, and I wasn't overly impressed.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
That is so cool! Our school trips were either sci works (a child's museum for science) or Old Salem (An old Moravian town here).
1 person likes this
@dpk262006 (58676)
• Delhi, India
1 Feb 17
I have no such occasion to go for panning for gold. There are no mineral or gold mine near our city. Mining gold or other minerals (even coal) without a valid licence and permission is considered illegal here in India.
1 person likes this
@dpk262006 (58676)
• Delhi, India
1 Feb 17
@ScribbledAdNauseum - Good to hear that I could make myself clear. Yes, may be due to time difference our paths do not cross. When it is night at your place, it is day time here.
By the time, my comments reach you, you would have gone to sleep. 
Great to hear that life is going on well
. I am doing good.
Great to hear that life is going on well. I am doing good.1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
Is it because those resources are very scarce?
It's been quite awhile since we've crossed paths here on mylot. You are not often on?
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
@dpk262006 Oh okay, I see. I understand a little more why it would be illegal.
I suppose our paths do not cross. I am here in the night hours of the US. I'm actually headed to bed now. Life is well, how has your been?
1 person likes this
@topffer (42156)
• France
1 Feb 17
Never, but there are several rivers with gold flakes not far from my area. In the past shepherds were putting a sheepskin in a river to collect gold flakes for their wedding rings. Now it is possible to be trained to gold digging in rivers during summer, and I suppose it is a lot of fun.
1 person likes this
@topffer (42156)
• France
1 Feb 17
@ScribbledAdNauseum They were putting it for several months on the bottom of narrow parts of small rivers, where there is more current, fixed by wooden pegs. The wool is trapping everything : the mud and the sand are staying at the top, while the gold is going at the bottom of the skin. It is a very old technique, known since the antiquity, and it has probably inspired the myth of the Golden Fleece.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
@topffer It sounds like a very good technique for capturing gold. I would have never thought to do it in that manner.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
How did they manage to keep the sheep skin tethered? I guess they'd put the sheepskin in the river and let it be for a few hours?
1 person likes this
@Poppylicious (11133)
•
1 Feb 17
I believe that as a child I did it as pretend, maybe at a museum or somesuch. I could have a go but I'm not sure I'd find anything but flecks of fossilised poo belonging to animals of yesteryear in my part of the world!
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
Eek! Though over there, you are also more likely to find relics of years past.
I'd hope to find THAT more so than poo!
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
@Poppylicious Wasn't it under a major highway there? I think I remember reading about that. Some aspects of history are so interesting to me, but to learn about how early inhabitants did everyday things like cook and mending, pretty neat.
1 person likes this
@Poppylicious (11133)
•
1 Feb 17
@ScribbledAdNauseum True. They do find oodles of ancient things around here. Recently they excavated a bronze age settlement which gave away a lot about the people who used to live here.
1 person likes this
@JohnRoberts (109846)
• Los Angeles, California
1 Feb 17
I have never done either. I did search for diamonds in Arkansas.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
@JohnRoberts They wouldn't be considered so precious if they were easily obtained, I suppose.
1 person likes this
@JohnRoberts (109846)
• Los Angeles, California
1 Feb 17
@ScribbledAdNauseum No luck finding a diamond. Talk about a needle in a haystack times ten. Diamonds are found sometimes.
1 person likes this
@katsmeow1213 (28716)
• United States
1 Feb 17
Technically no.. but there's this natural underground cave nearby, and they offer that as an activity. They give you a bag of dirt and you sift it over this running water thing and pull out gems and gold nuggets. I'm sure it's not really worth anything, just a fun experience. We did that with the boys over the summer. They've probably lost all the gems they found in their bags of dirt!
1 person likes this
@katsmeow1213 (28716)
• United States
2 Feb 17
@ScribbledAdNauseum Actually this place isn't extremely close by, I think it took an hour or 2 to get there... the tour of the underground cave is about $25 a person, it's always 50 degrees down there, and it was a 90 degree day! The bags of dirt start at around $5 and go up to like $20.. we just bought the boys each a $5 bag..
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
It's great that it's so close by though. I think there's gold panning about 25 minutes from me, but I've never been.
How much did it cost for the experience?
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
@velvet53 It would definitely be nice to make a trip across the country of it, I think.
I've done some googling, and even asked an old flame who has been a time or two.
1 person likes this
@velvet53 (22534)
• Palisade, Colorado
1 Feb 17
@ScribbledAdNauseum Colorado is a good place to try out. I have some other plans for this state while I am panning.
1 person likes this
@yukimori (10145)
• United States
1 Feb 17
Yeah, although not recently. I've been debating the merits of buying a small pan (or two, I don't think the kids would let me get away with not letting them 'help') and seeing what I can get out of the creek just for fun. There's definitely gold in the creeks around here, and the sediment in ours is right for there to be a few flakes at least.
Another fun thing we used to do was hunt for fossils. I used to spend afternoons combing the fields near our house. The local ones are really neat--they're kind of gold-flecked crystals in a white rock. I should see if I can find one of the better ones I found and photograph it. I know where the stone tools I've found are, but I haven't seen those fossils in ages.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
I remember as a child playing at find all manner of rocks. I remember crystalized rocks that were probably parts of some sort of mineral atleast. Now I wished I hadn't thrown them out when I "outgrew" it. It's been many many years now though.
I haven't actually thought to check the little creeks here. There is actually one called "little creek" but I am not sure how easy it is to get to now.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
@yukimori That would be a good "rainy day" sort of project. Well that is you had a closed in porch. You could keep the dirt covered and safe from the outdoors and when it's raining, bring it out on the porch and pan away while the rain comes down.
1 person likes this
@yukimori (10145)
• United States
1 Feb 17
@ScribbledAdNauseum You can even bring buckets of dirt home and pan them there. We've occasionally done that when the creeks were too low to actually pan.
1 person likes this
@jhechorain (1198)
• Susanville, California
1 Feb 17
I have never been panning myself. My grandfather made a great hobby out of it by making jewelry with beautiful rocks and gold that he panned through out the years.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
Did he give them as gifts to the ladies in the family then?
1 person likes this
@jhechorain (1198)
• Susanville, California
4 Feb 17
And men also. He made awesome belt buckles too!
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
It seems like it would be a lot of fun. I've seen a vlogger I regularly watch do it in California.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
@Plethos If not this year, then surely the next.
1 person likes this
@Plethos (13581)
• United States
1 Feb 17
@ScribbledAdNauseum - it would make a nice get away weekend, a lil jewelry making, a lil gold panning, it really does sound like a plan. I hope you do get to do it.
1 person likes this
@Happy2BeMe (99380)
• Canada
1 Feb 17
I have never done it but it sounds like a fun way to spend a weekend.
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
I think it's pretty reasonably priced as well. I haven't researched all the places around though. There's even a place (I can't remember it's name because I researched it a year or more ago) that does everything for you and can send you jewels if you'd rather not go do it yourself.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
@Happy2BeMe Very, but I'd still rather have the experience myself.
1 person likes this
@Happy2BeMe (99380)
• Canada
1 Feb 17
@ScribbledAdNauseum oh wow how cool is that?
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
Yes. gold nuggets can be very small, and it would be quite the process to make them into bands and necklaces and all sorts of jewels.
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
I think people here do as well. I am not much for the fancy jewelry. I like uncut jewels and raw pieces.
1 person likes this
@PatZAnthony (14749)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
3 Feb 17
Yes, for both and have what was found still in a bag!
Gold-you can dig for in NC and GA.
Gems: Arkansas, North Carolina and ?
Oooo, must do a post of the items.
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
3 Feb 17
Since you live in NC (like me) can you recommend any of the places in NC you can "dig" for gems and / or gold?
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104628)
• United States
1 Feb 17
I've never done it personally but I've seen a youtube video where a guy has. You don't get much, but the experience is well worth it I think.
1 person likes this
@paigea (36317)
• Canada
2 Feb 17
@ScribbledAdNauseum We enjoyed it. We learned a lot about prospecting for gold and the history of that area.
