On The Gold with GPAA'S Kevin Hoagland

Kevin and Kevin talk about the 2023 Gold Rush in all of the Western Mining States. 
What it is like now and the opportunities that massive rains storms, flooding, and a record snowpack are creating, and how to take advantage now and later on visual prospecting for the best gold recovery seen in over a decade.  

There is a lot that goes into a Miners Recognizing real opportunities and not just in equipment. 
Looking at the ground with fresh eyes offers great opportunities that may be missed if a Prospector puts on the blinders and stays hype focused on only that ground in front of him. 
A Prospector looking for a spot to become a Miner starts with visual prospecting.   

We all have a comfort zone, how we pan, sluice, or detect. It's time to think about the comfort zone and if it has become your rut and how to keep it from hindering your gold recovery. Expand the possibilities with practical ideas to keep you moving forward. 

Kevin B asked me "What is the one tool in your kit that you will not leave home without?" This is beyond the normal things like pans and classifiers and digging tools.  
There are two must haves one is for detecting and the other, well I take it with me no matter what I am doing. 

If you had asked me in 2004 if there was a good cross over detector for gold and CRT, I'd said no. Today not so much so. There are a few viable X-over detectors out there but make sure you are choosing what you need. DO not go detecting wondering if you made the right choices especially when your in the field. That is not the time to be questioning your detector.
THIS IS A NEW Podcast. Sorry for the confusion in the episode numbering,  Mr. zero and one's Producer had his zero and one sensibility rattled that I changed the episode number to match the QT and not the layout. :-) He won.   

Lots of questions about trusting factory presets over creating hunt programs from the start. I have some pretty strong opinions about this topic and I have seen a lot of new Detectorists make a few mistakes in setup over go with. 
 Sorry for those of you that came back thinking this is another Podcast. The Mr. zero and one's Producer had his zero and one sensibility rattled that I changed the episode number to match the QT and not the layout. :-) He won. 

Heading back to Alaska with Professional Prospectors Chris Ralph and my Producer Kevin Bell. Join us as we sit down with Kib Canyon, owner & operator of Gold King Creek Alaska Mine and Adventures for a long but informative podcast. 
You can also watch the Webcast on the Gold Trails YouTube channel at goldtrailstv.  If you haven't been to Alaska give it some thought and join Chris, Kevin, and I for 2 weeks in the middle of nowhere where the gold is plentiful but you still have to work for the shinny in the pan. 
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/c/GoldTrailsTV/videos 

Hey Prospectors,  
It's been a while. Over the last few months, we have received a huge amount of great email questions about everything. KB and I decided to take a lot of these and turn as many of these as we can into short-format Podcasts to help you become a better Prospector and Miner.  This quick tip talks about those elusive detector signals that May be either VDI or Audio and why is it is important not to trust just one or the other. 
If you would like to watch the Webcast it will be available after 1/12/2021 on the Gold Trails TV YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5_w1T9VRTnF88GDGGJQBgA 
Please like, subscribe, and ring that bell. There will be a lot of visual tips on the Webcast.  

Over four decades ago I stood on a ridge overlooking a huge Desert and suddenly felt overwhelmed. I had only been out a few times on my own and honestly, they were not the most successful trips I had made. 
I decided to create a box in my mind's eye with compartments and each compartment was a step to the end goal of mining all the while building confidence. These steps have saved me hundreds if not thousands of hours aimlessly wandering looking for gold, over getting on the gold with less effort. 
Today the box is a spreadsheet and before going from one the next, it has to be checked off and complete. 
There is a sense of pure accomplishment when you work a plan and it ends in not just gold but really really good gold measured in dollars per yard over specks in a pan. 

Putting the puzzle pieces where they need to go is a prospector's life. And sometimes you have to chase that one piece that got stuck in the box or fell on the floor to finish what you started and see the even bigger picture.
Rules of Thumb revisited with a fairly new prospector that almost walked away from a 7gm pocket cause the gold was not where it was supposed to be. And now that he knows where to not look, he's finding more gold. 

S2:E7

What prompted this podcast is that I'm often asked if I believe in paydirt, and yes I do. I occasionally get in the mood for a bag or two and it all adds up. Sometimes in only fluctuating my cost per ounce up. When that happens, I mine. 

For decades I have kept expenses vs.return logs. These logs have helped (and sometimes  driven) me to be a better Prospector and Miner. 

I'ts works for me, hopefully you will use some of the processes I share to lower your overall cost per ounce, even when buying paydirt. 

My gold cost today 5/2/2020 average is $351.00 per troy ounce, what's your gold cost? 


S2:E6

Kevin Bell gives a big "Thank You" to a prospector for not prospecting and leaving some of the best gold that they have found on their Thursday Mining Day under his tailings. 
Of course, this leads to training about trending, $$$ per yard, visual prospecting above and below the ground level and the failings of us old-timers for letting new prospectors follow some of the rules of thumb. 
 S2: E5

In December 2019 Kevin and I shared the prospecting that you could do within the 300-foot buffer in selected California waterways. This time we open up the rest of the land with the opportunities awaiting all prospectors at 301 feet. 
Along with offering tips on maximizing your gold recovery when and where drawing water is not the best option for recovery. 

Isolation and separatism is not healthy for either your overall physical or mental health. 
Kevin and I discuss the standards for physical protection along with not shutting yourself in your house and shutting out the world around you. 
The World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended for mental health: Only check the news once or twice daily. 
A very powerful statement and one that should not be dismissed. Get out, prospect practice social distance not isolation.

The first 3 GPAA Gold & Treasure Shows were a great opportunity to introduce show goers to some new equipment and some equipment that has come back onto the market for prospecting. 
Kevin Bell and I talk in depth about new and old gear designed to help you find and recover more gold. 

After a move of the studio and the Human (me) we are back up and running with new equipment, dedicated connection and server access. 
Thank you to the over 5000 listeners to On the Gold for your patience and more importantly your support. 
Let's kick season 2 into high gear.   

With the new email addresses pending KB and I invited listeners to send in their questions and comments. The response to the invitation generated a lot of questions and one very frustrated new to detecting,  Detectorist. 
I cover my thoughts on his detector and what I believe may be the problem and answer a couple of other great questions from prospectors about recovery methods and detecting soreness and fatigue. 
Plus a special announcement about the future plans of the On The Gold podcast. 

Over the last four months, the On The Gold Podcast has grown faster than I ever expected. The listeners and subscribers have far exceeded what I even conservatively estimated and for that, I say Thank You.
2020 Will be the Year of the Prospector. KB and I drop a couple of hints as to what to expect. We have two more Podcasts to see 2019 out and bring 2020 in then it is time to buckle up. 
Have a safe and enjoyable Christmas with family and friends. I'll be heading out early for my yearly Christmas day prospecting adventure. Looking for another Christmas Nugget to add to the poke. 

I spent a week in the GPAA-LDMA office and around all of our extremely busy schedules,i cornered Dominic to talk "what's Up 2020" within the LDMA. Lot of outings, hunts and just all around great prospecting and fun for EVERYONE. 

Production Panning is about using specialized gold pans that allow you to move great amounts of material in a quick efficient manner creating more concentrates in less time. 
Gold is forced downward and trapped in a closed system where it is virtually impossible to lose. 
This 5N5 is not really structured, more of a conversation where I hit the record button and let it go where it wanted.