Gold in Dry Areas

Finding gold in areas that do not have water is definitely more difficult but just because there is not water in an area does not mean there is no gold there. Panning with water is definitely an easier way of separating gold then dry panning and dry panning light gold is almost impossible without water in it to that it creates some suspension. Gold is not usually big enough for people to see in dry placers unless it is found in the form of nuggets.

It is also easier to find small flakes of gold in ore as well, that is, unless it’s wet. Little flakes and teensy nuggets can be obtained by dry panning or dry washing methods, but they are not as easy to see when they are dry and will only become more evident when they are cleaned of light dust. In the past the old timer prospectors who used to work dry country, used to use a bucket of water so that he could dip his ore while he took care of sorting out the high-grade gold pieces. However, there are moments in which it is not necessary to do this and there are other times in which it is impossible to do. It is true though that in many cases water can help with the process of identifying gold.

Unless gold, especially that which is found in placer form, has been found in a dry area, a lot of the search for it was specifically done by looking for veins. As a matter a fact, working on placer areas where there is not any water is not something that is done that much even to this day. Processing the ore (which is a process that involves milling and crushing) has to be done by using great amounts of water in order for the concentrates to be separated. There are other ways of separating it though however, using water is the easiest and most economical way.

All right, we have gone out of our way to talk about all the ways finding gold cannot be done; we are not trying to discourage anyone here. However, just keep in mind that there are peopled that have come across gold nuggets etc that had a worth of thousands and millions of dollars just laying around in undiscovered areas and dry mineral areas that have not been worked on.

There are some areas you should not go to though. If you are in the desert avoid light sand that is easily blown by the wind because these places rarely have gold. For those that are going after fine flower gold, keep in mind that this is not usually present in large amounts that will bring about highly paid amounts. There are some states in which certain formations of rock and mineral zones are usually unproductive. You can learn to identify these by studying local geological reports. If you find an area that has black muddy soil in farming areas, there is normally no gold to be found, however this type of soil might have some magnetic iron oxides in it.