As part of the celebration of ESCONI's 70th Anniversary, here is Flashback Friday post #38. If you have pictures or stories to contribute, please send them over to [email protected]. Thanks!
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Rich Rock joined ESCONI in 1970. And, come on... could there be a better name for a member of ESCONI? He has served as Field Trip Chairman off and on for many years. By the pictures, stories, and conversations over the years, it's obvious he has an great and extensive collection. Just a few months ago, he spent a few days collecting Mazon Creek concretions from the Mazon River, as I was there, too. He has shared much information (even maps) about Mazon Creek collecting with ESCONI members over the years and his stories are always interesting! Rich has taken a few trips up to Alaska to find gold. He and his son gave an interesting lecture on Gold Mining for the in November 2007 General Meeting.
Gold Mining in Alaska
Gold Miners Philip Rock, Don Miner and Richard Rock
Planning a three month trip to the wilderness of Alaska is quite an undertaking – food, transportation, clothes, equipment, weather, etc. All that and more must be taken into consideration. The food for that period of time under those conditions is specialized – dehydrated and freeze-dried so that it can be mixed with water on site when needed. Richard Rock even bought a canning machine so that he could prepare some of it himself.
When they arrived on May 17 there was still snow! It lasted longer last year than usual. They headed up to Nome and to their hunting region where they set up their tents and camp. They used propane for heat. There were a lot of other prospectors there and after 6 weeks they moved to East Beach to get away from them. There are a lot of sources for information of gold prospecting –journals like Gold Prospectors Magazine and the Nome Nugget paper. There are also clubs and the Membership Mining Guide and, of course, you need an Atlas of Alaska. The claims office is also important so that you know what is legal.
There is some equipment you can use like metal detectors that can be helpful in finding gold. Some can find it when it is as deep as 20 inches and some when it is as deep as 3 or 4 feet. But as Phil mentioned you can also waste a lot of time digging and finding metal trash also. There is a lot of pollution, debris and garbage around, including bullets. He has found some platinum also. It can be helpful in finding artifacts though. Topographic maps are very important and they have 40-50 of them that they use. GPS is essential today to keep from getting lost. Classifiers are screen mesh on top of the pans used to find the gold in streams. Sniffer bottles are also used to help remove the gold from the pans. They have water in them and are used to squeeze the small pieces of gold into them. Sometimes they use magnets because some of the sand is magnetic and they can get rid of it that way.
There is also some inland gold and larger nuggets in concentrations along the creeks. There is one layer with overburden and bedrock beneath. Don told about their adventures with some of the wildlife that included bears, and moose. They did have shotguns to protect themselves but were fortunate not to have many problems. They showed many slides of the beautiful country and the equipment they used to find the gold. There are cabins at some spots that have been used by miners that they used periodically at some sites. Some had equipment that were left there as community property for others to use and return. There were old unused mining operations falling apart they visited. They also had several samples of the gold that they found on their Alaskan adventure.
The meeting was adjourned so that all could get a closer look at the equipment and maps the Alaskan gold diggers had brought.
Respectfully submitted, Karen Nordquist, Recording Secretary
