Picking up nuggets

[Bonaro]

I listened to an old miner tell a story the other day. He was talking about gold mining in his favorite spot and how you could just walk along and pick the gold nuggets up off the beach like picking strawberries. I think I would like to try this. Does anyone know how to tell when the nuggets are ripe?

[CalGoldDredger]

Yeah when they start jumpin up and down and calling out your name.

John

[Leonard]

I saw a hardball sized piece of quartz on the Yuba that a friend had picked up off of the top layer of a gravel bar that when you turned it over, there was a 1/4" seam of solid gold that was about 2" long. Not a nugget but close. I guess it was "ripe".
Leonard

[CalGoldDredger]

Leonard - my dad told me he knew a guy who was dredging over on the Yuba and this guys wife who was walking up a gravel bar on the Yuba while he was at it hard dredging and she looked down and there was a softball size and shape quart/gold piece, he had appraised it for them back in the day. I can't recall the exact weight of the gold but it was a big quartz ball. I don't remeber it that well so I must of been pretty young (and I still am ).
I wonder if this is one and the same????

John

[Leonard]

It was a guy named Herbie. He wasn't married as far as I know. I have a picture of it somewhere. It wasn't a good picture but but you sure could see the gold.
Leonard

[Leonard]

After a PM, the first of the new forum as far as I know, I looked and found the picture. The guy was Herbie Herbertson. The picture isn't very good but you can definately see the gold. I would crap my pants if I picked up a rock and it looked like this. It was found below Union Flats on the Yuba.

Leonard

[Gold Seeker]

I listened to an old miner tell a story the other day. He was talking about gold mining in his favorite spot and how you could just walk along and pick the gold nuggets up off the beach like picking strawberries. I think I would like to try this. Does anyone know how to tell when the nuggets are ripe?

You can tell when they're ripe, they get a golden yellow color and when you squeeze it with a pair of pliers it will leave a slight depression.


Skip

[CalGoldDredger]

The guy was Herbie Herbertson

Yeah good old Herbie Herbert one of the nicest guys that I happened to just bump into by chance.
He was quite a witty character and we shared many a stories & beers over a campfire along the banks of the Yuba.
The good old days.

[russau]

if i found a peice like that, id have to look around and see whos messing with me,or see if Leonard has his video camra on tapeing me! id be really embarassed cause my britchs would be loaded and drooping from the rear!