-- secret map page --
 wyoming gpaa "carol" gold claim
From a satellite photo.


*YOU MUST BE A GPAA MEMBER TO GO ON THIS CLAIM*
*YOU MUST HAVE YOUR CURRENT MEMBERSHIP CARD AND MINING PERMIT*
*FAILURE TO PROVIDE THESE TO THE GUARD DOGS WILL GET YOU KICKED OFF THIS CLAIM*

THIS MAP IS WORTH IT'S WEIGHT IN GOLD LETS KEEP IT A SECRET OK.


_______MAP TABLE____________
Purple lines ==  roads
Green lines ==  foot trails
The red dots == The EXACT place where gold is located.

AREA #1: This spot annoys me a bit. In one pan i get 4-6 colors tiny to medium, and the next few pans nothing. I finally gave up on it but i suspicion if somebody took some time they might find the right layer consistently. This is also very near where Perry Massey found the small nugget metal detecting during the prospecting america show they filmed on this claim. If you want to know the exact spot he found it check back again I might add that to the map when i update it.

WHAT TO EXPECT: This spot is for those who love a challenge you may find a gram or two or even a few pickers but you may also get skunked.

WHERE TO DIG:: dig at the most northern part of the sand bar on the east side of the stream right before is makes contact with the bushes and cut bank
you will see fist sized rocks at water level or a bit below. Also at the very western tip of the sand bar in the middle. where it sticks farthest out in to the stream.
*note* If you find where the gold is coming from or find the consistent layer would you please e-mail me or tell me when you see me thanks.
this would greatly help to ease my curious mind. 


AREA #2: This spot is dear to my heart. This is the first place I ever found gold. This spot was found by the hard prospecting work of bruce and corrette. I owe them a huge debt of gratitude for holding my hand and showing me the ropes. This is one of my favorite spots to take newbies cause you got to do a bit of work to get the gold but it's always there.

WHAT TO EXPECT: This spot is great for families or newbies. It is right next to the camping spots and with a bit of work running a sluice box or, high banker a days work will net you 1/2 a gram to a gram or more depending on how lucky you are. I have also found 1 small picker from the eastern spot.

WHERE TO DIG: At this area you will notice two different spots. The spot to the west is located on an inside bend sandbar. This sand bar has been worked but still has consistent gold. The pay layer is located 4 to 6 inches down. Sample as you dig down your pan will be barren till you get to the pay layer. After you get down to the pay layer the gold will stay consistent as you go deeper. The eastern spot is located on the other side of the creek in the bank between the stream and the rock cliff. This area is where I found the small pickers. I didn't get nearly as much gold as the sand bar but the small picker was nice. Is it worth digging a day for a small picker and very small amount of fine gold. This is for you to decide. The sandbar has consistent gold and the bank has a chance for pickers.


AREA #3: This area is another spot that needs a bit more prospecting. It is located around the remnants of an old beaver dam. It is also located near a pinch in the stream. I may work this spot more if i find time as i thing there is a hot spot here that i haven't pinpointed yet.

WHAT TO EXPECT: This spot seems to be a hit or miss area. It is next to camping spots and would be a great spot to prospect. I haven't found color better than 1/8 gram a day but I think there is a hot spot I haven't dug into yet because above and below the dam you find small pockets of colors.

WHERE TO DIG: dig in the gravel upstream right in front of the beaver dam. It seems to be on top because as I dug down I ran out of gold. also dig in the flat area down stream from the beaver dam. If you do enough digging in this area you will find a pocket of color. maybe you will find the spot where all these little pockets are coming from.


AREA #4: This is a VERY NICE area. This spot is one of the best examples of the "red/orange" layer people often tell you to look for in the wyoming area. It is a nice place to take people to find gold. located in the second meadow on a bank the stream is continually cutting exposing fresh layers. This is the area i was working in the pictures of "the carol" in the picture gallery.

WHAT TO EXPECT: This spot has very good gold some pans have 6-10 colors in them average is about 1-2 colors. access is very easy and if you wanted you could camp right next to this spot. You can get 3/4 gram a day or better depending again on luck and staying in the right layer. The colors here are medium to large and seem to be a bit bigger than other places. The orange layer is like concrete I suggest a very stiff wire brush to clean off the rocks.

WHERE TO DIG: Dig in the bank at or near the water level. You may have to move some overburden that the creek has sluffed off from the bank. You know you are in the right layer when you get rocks that are fist sized and are covered with a thick rust like coating. if you scrape this coating and break it up it will stain your fingers orange. This is where the gold is coming from. At first digging is fairly easy because the water has softened the "concrete" layer. but after working the layer for a while it will get very hard to dig and you will have to just scrape the top layer off a bit at a time. This layer is a great example of what to look fore else where. It seems anywhere you find this orange layer with big rocks in it you find gold.


AREA #5: This is the BEST area and the hardest to get to. It has lots of material with nice consistent gold. .It is located in front of a huge beaver dam. In fact the beaver dam is so big it has completely diverted the creek making it cut a whole new channel. This makes the old channel dry and a great place for prospecting. But the best place i've found is right in front of the dam. The bad part about this spot is you have to walk into it. you can drive to the edge of the willows but from there you have to take a foot path about 1/4 of a mile to the area. My favorite thing to do is hike my kids in to this place with a sluice box. There is water for them to play in that i don't have to worry about them being in deep or fast moving water. Plus its easy for them to find gold here and practice their panning.

WHAT TO EXPECT: This spot has very consistent gold, colors in every pan when you dig in the right place. On average you get 3-4 colors per pan. The gold is in a sand bar so its very easy digging. The gold is fine so a beach box style should work great. Some times the trickle of water running down the old stream channel isn't enough to run a sluice box. When this happens i put the box up to the edge of the water pools and knock the dirt in front of the pool to make the water run enough. A pack in high banker should work great. I played around with my kids a couple different times and took around 1/2-1 gram leisurely running a sluice box for a day. A newbie I took to this spot used a pan only and had a small pile of gold in his snuffer by the end of the day.

WHERE TO DIG: you will be walking the foot path between the willows and the edge of the hillside. About 1/4 mile down the foot path you will go between a small point of rocks and the beaver pond. Then to your right a large beaver sits back in a nook between the banks of the old stream channel. directly in front of the beaver dam is a pool of water and sand bars. There are two sand bars the one closest to the beaver dam with the big rocks in it (fist sized) is the place with the gold. You will notice some orange coloration to the sand in places. I believe that the gold was put here by an orange layer that was eroded away and then the stream blew off all the light stuff leaving the gold and heavies. You'll notice that there is a huge amount of material to work here. it seems to be fairly consistent at least a foot down. I don't know if it gets better deeper the deepest i went is a foot. There is one thin layer of gray sand that doesn't have gold. Dig in the tan and orangeish sand with the rocks in it. That is where the gold is.