Sluicing around Cairns Area

[Glendale]

G'day Lads

I am an engineer on a Yacht that has no home, we've been sailing the pacific and landed up in Brisbane last year, I bought a sluice and off i went to Gympie and fished up a small amount of colour over the 6 months I was there. I really had no idea how find good spots but still fun none the less, I gave my findings to a local gold company in Brissy. And now we are about to embark from the solomon Islands(gold Heaven) back to Cairns. I want to be more prepared as I only have a few weeks there so if any of you fellow prospectors would be kind enough to share some local knowledge, it would be much appreciated.

 

[Simmo]

Welcome mate. You have a great job!!
This may help?

CAIRNS AREA

The only relatively important gold prospects were at the Clohesy River and at Kamerunga, eight miles north-west of Cairns .

Between 1894 and 1898 attempts were made to mine low-grade quartz lodes at the Clohesy River, and a battery was set up. One shaft was sunk below 100 feet, but ore averaged only oz per ton, and the prospect was abandoned. Similarly, at Kamerunga in 1933 and 1934 a shaft was sunk to 135 feet, with a 50-foot drive at the 100-foot level, in a persistent 4-5 foot quartz reef. Values ranged from less than 1dwt to 2oz, but water in the shaft was always a problem, and the mine was soon abandoned.

A little gold, manganese, wolfram, and tin have been found at White Rock, south of Cairns, and in the hills south-west of it.