Once you get down to the black sands or a few tablespoons of material, the technique changes dramatically.

Solar energy can be used for any size placer or hard rock mining operation. It is most practical for small and longer-term operations provided your mine is not located in a dense forest.

Before going into an analysis of the ore composition, two other major factors will affect the result. These are the accuracy of the assay and the effectiveness of the mill for the gold recovery.

I understand that a person without geological knowledge could be daunted reading a geological publication. You can pick out the good stuff from a geological publication without a lot of geological knowledge.

Some ask if a prospector can collect an entire ounce in a day. It is possible; I’ve done it before.

Now it was time for the nerve-wracking part of the job: actually removing anything from the hanging wall we deemed to be in need of removal because it was either loose, could be loose, looked loose, or we felt it was just downright dangerous