My name is Mark and I hunt for gold. I’m 18 years old and I’ve been doing this for several years now. When I found out about gold hunting I got very interested in it, so I started learning how to pan. I watched videos; it’s all over YouTube, so I just learned by seeking out information on how to gold pan. I told my dad about it and he got very interested in it too. We started with just gold pans — that’s how I got into it. I’m very outdoorsy. On weekends I take my dad out. I have an SUV and I can haul a trailer. I shove everything I can in there and then just head out. It is fun to be outside and do stuff like this and enjoying nature. And being next to running water is very relaxing, so I take my dad out and we pan for gold. Playing in the mud is half the fun!
I got a job working for GPAA (Gold Prospectors Association of America). Once I was working for them I wanted to learn more about gold prospecting so I could become more proficient at my job. I did a lot of reading on it to see if I could understand how to read streams to see where you can find the gold in them, and understand where the different locations are where you can look for gold. I also got interested in learning how to use a sluice box. So slowly we started to build up our reservoir of equipment. Now my dad is anxious to get out there every chance he can go. He loves this stuff. I always take him out there when I go out, but he makes me do the heavy work! I’m the one with the shovel digging down to bedrock in the creek and he’s the one feeding the sluice box with the spade while he’s sitting down drinking a beer!
The most gold I found at one time in one day is about $100 worth of gold. That’s because I’m usually really not focusing in on it, I’m really there to help my dad out and talk with him. I’m really not digging 24/7, I’m relaxing and having a good time. I consider it just a hobby because I just want to enjoy myself and enjoy nature, but there are a lot of people that take it really seriously.
Once I find gold, I prefer the small little plastic bottles to keep gold in rather than the small glass ones, because the glass ones can break or develop a crack and the finer gold can go right through that crack. And if it’s cold out they can break by freezing. I am speaking from experience on that one! I hate working all day for gold and losing it all again! I have found silver but it’s not as shiny and it’s not as fun to show off as gold. Also the gold is much more valuable so you can get a better profit out of finding gold.
Pretty much every kid that I’ve talked to about gold panning is really interested in it. Like my niece and nephew, they really love it too. Sometimes I bring up a pan and I seed the pan with whatever gold I have and then I teach the kids how to pan for gold. My niece and nephew – their eyes are glued on it! They will stare at that pan all day looking for gold. I can’t do it all day but they can! It’s a lot of fun for them. It’s good for the kids as well as it gets them outside and away from the TV and computers.
So gold hunting is still alive and kicking! It gets you outside and away from the TV! Couch potato watching TV or go gold hunting – not much of a question for me! I’m going for the gold!
Next week, I’ll tell you what a good day prospecting is really like!