New Impact smashes preconceived ideas.

[oldtimerROB]

Just got delivery of the new Nokta Impact with the latest software last week.Took longer than I had wished and lost 2 weeks of primetime sunny May weather for detecting. Was very pleased with the stability of the unit in the Havelock wilds.Unit very easy to use in all modes as settings are preselected in each mode.For those who said the Impact is just another VLF,then I am sorry to disappoint you.In all the discrimination modes the mineralisation meter never went above 25%.In GEN mode it was 25-50%.It never overloaded.With Fe.Vol.down to 0 on DI2, it ran silent.and picked up a small piece of quartz with no obvious sign of gold or iron.Deep mode was a little more chatty than the rest with Fe.vol on normal.There was no need to use DI3 or VLX2 was there was very little trash about.DI2 was good on goldfields as I like to dig up all the non ferrous stuff. GEN mode was my favorite as the unit seemed to talk to me and pointed out small patches of highly mineralised soil.The unit is so advanced you only need to GB once and it automatically adjusts as you move about.I kept isat on the default setting of 1 and increased the gain from 70 to 85 as it coped very well in mineralisation.The area I wanted to go was impossible to find as the ground conditions and Geovic maps seemed to be at odds.Found a couple of gullies quite by accident along very fain tracks winding through the trees.Lots of spiderwebs with large spiders and mosquitoes covering my fingers which I constantly had to brush away.Next time will bring rubber gloves.Spent 3 days there and 8 hours detecting and mostly trying to find the right track.On the last day wandered a long way from the car and got lost for 3 hours. Walked up and down Slaughteryard Track looking for bearings and hoping to see a car for help but none came.In the end it was getting late and only luck saved me from spending the night outside and suffering exposure as the weather turned nasty Monday evening.Some sort of electronic beacon device I feel is mandatory for prospectors but I have to look into it.

 

[Pirate pete]

You were a lucky lad to find your way back to your car if I dont know the area I dont stray very far from the car as I have the ability to turn around twice and get lost in my own back yard lol dont know anything about your machine but as long as your happy with it thats what matters .good hunting.PP

 

[oldtimerROB]

Actually I am 72 and have to walk around the house with a stick cos I have no cartilage left in me right knee.Yes I was extremely fortunate under the circumstances. My wife was waiting at the camp and she would have been completely stuffed if I succumbed to hypothermia during the night as she is recently arrived from Russia and knows nobody and what to do.So I was more worried about her. I wonder how many skeletons are undiscovered out in the bush.So its an important lesson for all of us to be vigilant.

 

[7.62marksman]

Try one these works very good and does not cost an arm and a leg
BUSHNELL BACKTRACK

 

[LC76]

Or if you have an android phone...... I use Geotracker to record where I walk and let's me edit points of interest.
http://appcrawlr.com/android/geotracker

These days you have to try to get lost.
I always carry a compass though and make sure I know if I'm north or south ect of certain locations.

 

[Davent]

Bugger, app is no longer available.

 

[oldtimerROB]

In the end it was me ears that saved me.Slaughteryard Track runs parallel with the Maryborough Dunolly Road about 2 km away and I could hear the faint traffic and went down a track heading east.There I found the track that led to the camp. Ironically I have a compass in the house and meant to put it on the dashboard but never thought about carrying it.Two rifles would be fine but I was 3 km away at one stage.We have a smartphone with GPS but it was with my wife and I am more familiar with tom toms from Samoa.If you see a cranky old codger with a walking stick detecting,its me Rob. 8)

 

[LC76]

Bugger, app is no longer available.

Should be still there.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ilyabogdanovich.geotracker

 

[GypsyGoldAu]

In the end it was me ears that saved me.Slaughteryard Track runs parallel with the Maryborough Dunolly Road about 2 km away and I could hear the faint traffic and went down a track heading east.There I found the track that led to the camp.

Eerie that...i was driving down that track just last Tues....didn't see a sole. Area looked good, did you catch any Yella?
I'll be sure to stop if i i see you out there for sure....

If you see a cranky old codger with a walking stick detecting,its me Rob. 8)

Are you local to the area, or did you travel?...

Cheers

 

[oldtimerROB]

Re Gypsygold. We traveled from Sebastopol,Ballarat. Been to Havelock before but not for many years and found a 2 oz. and 3 oz. in the same area. Found a nice gully when I got lost but cannot retrace my footsteps.I think it was west of Slaughteryard Track fairly close to it,but nothing on Geovic about it. We camped near the intersection of Havelock Timor Road and Slaughteryard as it was only place we could find that offered protection against falling trees. The area North from there is pretty remote and rugged and off the Delhi Flat Track there are faint tracks leading East to some remote gullies.The whole area is eerie as we only saw one car in 3 days. We camped in remote bushland but wary of large nearby trees which are everywhere..Welcome the company if you see an old white Mitsubishi van give us a beep. Next time going for 2 weeks straight detecting and bush camping as we have bought a new detector. Cheers.

 

[Old Fred]

Re Gypsygold. We traveled from Sebastopol,Ballarat. Been to Havelock before but not for many years and found a 2 oz. and 3 oz. in the same area. Found a nice gully when I got lost but cannot retrace my footsteps.I think it was west of Slaughteryard Track fairly close to it,but nothing on Geovic about it. We camped near the intersection of Havelock Timor Road and Slaughteryard as it was only place we could find that offered protection against falling trees. The area North from there is pretty remote and rugged and off the Delhi Flat Track there are faint tracks leading East to some remote gullies.The whole area is eerie as we only saw one car in 3 days. We camped in remote bushland but wary of large nearby trees which are everywhere..Welcome the company if you see an old white Mitsubishi van give us a beep. Next time going for 2 weeks straight detecting and bush camping as we have bought a new detector. Cheers.

And a hand held gps be good . BCF has them for under $150 that will get u back to u car

 

[oldtimerROB]

Thanks for the info.I think it will be well worth the money.Cheers, Rob.

 

[madtuna]

An elderly couple lost on Erlistoun last night, No GPS but thankfully they had an EPIRB which they activated. A search party from Garden Well mine found them about 3klms from their vehicle.

 

[GypsyGoldAu]

Re Gypsygold. We traveled from Sebastopol,Ballarat. Been to Havelock before but not for many years and found a 2 oz. and 3 oz. in the same area. Found a nice gully when I got lost but cannot retrace my footsteps.I think it was west of Slaughteryard Track fairly close to it,but nothing on Geovic about it. We camped near the intersection of Havelock Timor Road and Slaughteryard as it was only place we could find that offered protection against falling trees. The area North from there is pretty remote and rugged and off the Delhi Flat Track there are faint tracks leading East to some remote gullies.The whole area is eerie as we only saw one car in 3 days. We camped in remote bushland but wary of large nearby trees which are everywhere..Welcome the company if you see an old white Mitsubishi van give us a beep. Next time going for 2 weeks straight detecting and bush camping as we have bought a new detector. Cheers.

No worries otR...if you enjoy company when out, PM me to sort something out....i was up there with a mate who knew about the burn-off (south of your 20) but as it was still being conducted we ended up running the tracks and ended up out that way... some encouraging looking ground.

Cheers

 

[Bjay]

A very not remote or rugged area,

 

[oldtimerROB]

Remote enough so RACV and ambulance won,t find you. Up those hidden tracks only police dirt bikes will.

 

[Matt80]

Lots of good options mentioned by others, but anyone with an Android phone can download the offline maps for Google Earth to cover any area you might need. Google Earth works surprisingly well with a decent phone, but is useless if you can't get an internet connection to update the map if you don't pre download them.

 

[Baldy]

Hema maps on a android phone works without phone service and internet..gives your position and even lays your track..and you can put a little yellow flag where you find your gold..it's a no brainier..

 

[Baldy]

Got to remember to put it in your pocket though..