Principles of Lode Prospecting

Looking for lodes goes along with a lot of the universal rules of placer prospecting nevertheless, because of the fact that this kind of search is done on dry terrain; there are a few other things that need to be pondered on.

There are three different ways in which lode searching can be divided into and these consist of: making a decision on the localized area or starting point, doing a tracking search, and finally doing the lode search or source search.

The first thing that needs to be done is to make a decision on the localized area. After this has been accomplished the prospector will then begin the search for signals or pointers that there are without a doubt precious metals such as gold in this area. Coming to a decision on the localized area can be done in a few different ways. On some occasions the area that has been picked out will be a stream that has been a good region for placering for instance. In some occasions a gold dredging operation will result in the finding of other valuable minerals such as precious stones or platinum and the prospector will want to locate the original source of this find and when this takes place, the stream then turns into the beginning point.

There are also other occasions, even though it is not all that widespread, in where the trip will be made to a localized area because it was thought that there would be valuable minerals in a determined area. This assumption could have been acquired by a study that was made that involved source books, geology maps, past mining history of the area etc.

In the second kind of situation the prospector does not have any sort of launching point and will need to look for the first suggestion that there are valuable minerals or gold in a certain area. The most imperative thing to keep in mind in this kind of search is to look at the lower elevations of the drainage system where there might be valuable minerals since this is on average where they are projected to be located in.

One other way a localized area can be located is the one that generally causes the most amount of enthusiasm and the most amount of frustration. This one generally takes place when the other types of searches have been ruled out and the prospector has come across a rich piece of float. In some cases it is the discovery of the prospector himself nevertheless in most cases another person finds it and passes the information on to another person. The main thing here is to find the exact location where the float was found. It does not help at all when things are generalized and the description of that it was located “near the boulder mine” is not a good way of being able to find it; in fact you just won’t be able to find it this way. If you have found out about an area where a rich float has been found you will need to try to get the precise location or area. The best way is to go to the actual place with the person that found the rich float to begin with. If the person is not able to go with you, try to get the person to map out or point out where the location is as accurately as possible on a topographical map. Then the place that has been pointed out will be your beginning point.

Before you are able begin to search it is vital we first define what the word float means because it is a word that applies directly to prospecting. Float is considered any isolated piece of mineral or ore that has broken off of a body or off a vein or outcrop and it has been carried by natural geological means at a distance from its original source. One of the main problems or issues in finding the original source of float is that it in some cases can travel at great distances depending on the force of geological agents of nature such as the weather etc.

This has been seen in some of the rich pieces of gold that have been found in the desert of California. In the history of this area, it is known that the native Indians used to pick up rich pieces of gold from outcrops that had been weathered just because these pieces looked pretty and they probably wanted them to be able to make jewelry out of them. Then possibly when they were traveling for a long distance, they would throw these “rocks” out for the reason that they were too heavy to carry along with them. These pieces of float have been revealed by prospectors and have resulted in prospectors spending many hours of searching to find the original source when they may have very well been looking in the wrong area.