Archive for February, 2009

H. Metcalf

I had given everyone terribly bad directions. Lack of preplanning on my part had the TVP’ers looking for the Barstow exit, but there wasn’t one. I was half right about the gas station… there was one but it wasn’t a Chevron as I had told everyone. We planned to depart for the claim at 8:15 am but waited ‘til 9. A lot of people had found me, actually us, as a group had assembled. As we left the station I saw Mark Weaver, getting on the freeway going in the opposite direction, at least I thought. Mark was in the passenger seat. Driving was his old friend Red, someone I had never met. I tried to call them via cell phone, but it was off in the back of the truck, reserved for emergencies.

What should I do? Would my friends get lost? I was supposed to be leading a group of prospectors to the claim. They all wanted to look for Gold, so we set out for Coolgardie Road. Mark and Red would do whatever.

After heading out north toward the diggings on Copper City Rd. I saw a truck in a cloud of dust ahead of me. It was going slow so we gained on it quickly. At the top of the grade the fellow in the truck pulled to the side, I slowed and to my amazement it was Red and Mark. Somehow in their detour the “Wrong Way” they had managed to get several minutes and many miles ahead of the caravan. “Is this the way to the claim?” Red asked. I had never met him but somehow I knew he already knew the answer. “I think so,” I replied. Red smiled and said “Well… we’ll follow you.”

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February’s outing will be at the East Fork (GPAA Site CA-71). Some fellow TVP’ers have a spot they are going to show me where they have been finding quartz with gold inside. They crush the quartz and pan out the gold, how neat! I am looking forward to seeing this spot.

We will meet Saturday morning (2/21/2009) at 8 AM. The weather has been cold so be prepared for rain and cold. The river has got a good flow going with the recent rain, so I am looking forward to good digging. If you have been up there with us before we will meet at a place called the vortex in the past. It is just up the road from the cattle crossing bridge, it’s the parking area on the right side of the road (uphill) with a trash can.

There is good prospecting there and up stream as well. The terrain is steep so be forewarned. I will be at the February meeting on the 14th for questions or if you want to call me, I can be reached at (909) 821-0979.

Hi Everyone,

I just wanted to let you know that we have added email notification to the new website. What that means is that you can get an email letting you know that a new post has been added to the site. This is a great way to keep up to date on everything that is going on at TVP.

To get on the TVP email list, just put your name and email address in the Email Notification form and click the Subscribe button. The form can be found in the left sidebar under the Subscription section.

Once you have clicked the Subscribe button, you will get a confirmation email to validate your email address. Simply click the link in the email and you will be all set.

This list is 100% controlled by TVP and is not available to any commercial or 3rd party groups, so you don’t have to worry about getting a ton of SPAM as a result of signing up. What you can expect is to stay connected to everything going on at the new site. If you ever change your mind and no longer want to be notified about new posts, there is an unsubscribe link at the bottom of every email.

I hope you get signed up and enjoy the new site.

Happy Prospecting!

Tracy

Just a reminder that we are having our February meeting on Saturday the 14th.  Come and join the fun. All are welcome. If you are new to prospecting, this is the perfect place for you to come and meet lots of people that share the same interests in looking for the elusive yellow metal.

Tracy will be showing us more about the new website, how we can use it to the fullest and what we are planing for it in the future.

We meet at 9:00AM at 26201 Ynez Rd Building #102, Temecula, CA 92591

Can’t wait to see you there.

Josh

Other than a gold pan and a shovel,  a simple bucket  is a prospector’s best friend. It never fails, whenever I need an empty bucket I can never seem to find one that is not already full of concentrates or dirt from a past expedition. I had a four foot stack of them thinking that they would last me a long time, but I am already having to hunt for a empty bucket.

Lucky for me, and for you, my wife works at a cake shop that gets loads of buckets that they don’t use. They have so many buckets right now that I can’t even use them all. The have about eighty or more  four gallon buckets and around thirty or so one gallon buckets.  The buckets are free to anyone who wants them. The buckets were used to carry frosting and will need to be cleaned out.  A little vinegar in some soapy water will help cut the oil. There are lids for all the buckets.

If you want some free buckets just head over to  Pila’s Pantry at  28061 Jefferson Ave. #9, Temecula, CA 92590.  Tell Paul or Vanessa that you are with Temecula Valley Prospectors and you would like some buckets.

You can call ahead at 951-695-0665.

Our January outing, on Saturday the 17th, was to the Warrior Claim near Julian, CA. The weather was good with blue skies and a temperature around 40 degrees when we got there in the morning but warmed up to about 80.

When we arrived, Jay was scouting out the area. My wife Sue and friend Steve and I had a great time on this trip. We were only there for a few hours but all the fun with fellow prospectors and meeting new friends made this a great day.

Poison Oak Leaves

The steep climb down to the creek was a little tough, but with small steps and taking our time we were soon down the hill. I thought there was poison oak down there and talking to Mike he confirmed it.

Hiking down the creek was an adventure. I haven’t had so much fun since I was a kid. There was a little water flowing but we only took our shovel and pans to prospect and sample with. We didn’t find any gold in the creek but we worked some pockets on the banks about 6 feet above the water level and picked out a total of 6 small flakes. Not a lot of gold but it was there.

After we came up the hill we had lunch and talked with Ken a bit. My wife and I then did some hiking on the trails that are up that way.

Since the Warrior Claim is so close with a picnic area, nice bathrooms, and hiking trails we will return to this claim again.

Alex