Interesting pics

[Sniffy]

Here's a spot in a known gold bearing river system. Its in an area where the valley opens out and the river has changed course over time, exposing this bank. My question is why did the oldtimers not dig this all out. There's extensive workings all through the area. Its VERY tough hard packed on top of bedrock. Seriously the stuff is like cement, but it must be full of very old gold deposits right? There's alluvial gold all through the area and it's downriver from known reefs and mines.

I tried breaking a deposit off still attached to bedrock in the river itself (where a tree used to be) but it was just so hard I gave up.

https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/img/member-images/5571/1462263674_capturehhh.jpg

Hi mate you can put money on the fact that the oldtimers would have had a look at it 4 sure. Jemba

Maybe it wasn't worth the effort to break it up at the time (when 600 men were averaging 1 ounce/day/man in this area for a number of years). My estimation of it is that its way older than 100 years since it was laid down. this stuff is seriously hard.

I'm just curious. I guess at some point I'm going to have to get back there and spend a weekend breaking it back to bedrock and smashing it up.

 

[Tathradj]

Sniffy,
I nearly killed myself on the hard pack at Tuena. LOL
There is some gold in it but not much.
If you want to have a crack at it, pick some with a lot of iron stone in it.
And have a pretty good arsonel as in pick, crow bar, sledge hammer, you name it.