Randy Sluicing Cache Creek -- 4 July 2015

[C-17A]

Hey there Gold Dredgers...

First, I hope everyone had a HAPPY 4th of JULY!!!

Second, I hit Cache Creek early to beat the sun, the heat, the bugs............and get to diggin' and sluicing before most folks were even out of bed...

I arrived Cache Creek about 6:50 AM and unloaded my equipment and hit the creek. My plan was to dig in the dry gulch, carry buckets, sluice. I'd coordinated to meet up with several folks...........Brian out of Leadville and maybe Josh and his brother driving in from New York...

The day was mostly clear, cool, about 53 degrees and awesome all the way around.......with mega wildflowers blooming all over the place.

I set up my trusty Le Trap sluice, chair and went up the gulch to survey the place, run some sample pans. Looks like ALL the folks lately hittin' the gulch have really excavated the left side bank by the big elbow bend. I sampled several layers and decided to run material at the lower end of the excavation, right above the bedrock up to the first gravely layer...

My Le Trap setup in the now crystal clear water:





So, away I went...........diggin', sluicing and repeat.

Most the snow is now off the top of Quail Mountain, the headwaters of Cache Creek:



Shortly after starting James from Georgia showed up, got his sluices going... The, Brian from Leadville showed about 10 AM and got his new Tee-Dee mini sluice going too. Nice........3 of us all diggin' and talking and sluicing...

I ran numerous sample pans and was happy with the color I was seeing............mostly fine flakes and very fine specks. Nothing really big or chunky. Oh well...

Here's my dig spot for the morning:




So, as the clouds slowly built up I worked the gulch, dug in my spot, sluiced away. About noon I cleaned up, did a quick look of my cons...........nice..........a few bigger flakes and fines, so I didn't get skunked.

Unfortunately, Josh and his brother never showed. Maybe they worked the other end of Cache Creek, up at the placering area.

Anyway, I panned out my cons at home...........ended up with .27 grams for the morning's "hard fun". Not bad...




So, great fun once again. Hope "you all" get out soon, find some wild gold of your own, create yet another "Gold Adventure" memory!

God bless,

Randy "C-17A" www.goldadventures.biz

[russau]

must be nice!!

[Jigsallot]

Hey Randy ! went up there yesterday with Matt. first time I had been there. lots to learn about a new area... well, as long as we have it. saw some guys get some good gold out of some clay they were digging and met lots of people. would like to hook up with you and Matt on the Ark. sometime... that looks like some nice flake gold !

[C-17A]

Jigsalot,

Well, if you hang out with Matt.............mine with him............you won't get skunked, that's for sure!

Matt's got a good gold nose and is a HARD worker...

Yep, washing Cache Creek clay is hard work, BUT can give up some nice gold from time to time. I was below the cemetery with a couple of guys on Saturday.

Always fun.

Heavy pans,

Randy "C-17A"

[nebraskadad]

Randy,

Dumb Question, but where at Cache Creek is the water running like that?? Are you near the cemetery?
When we were there we were south of the parking area and there was a trickle.

rex

[Hoser John]

My heart skips a beat every time I see that righteous green Le Trap, great scenes and MUCH appreciated in very trying times-John

[C-17A]

Rex,

Ha. Yep.......... I was sluicing at the lower end of the valley right below the Granite Cemetery... By that point all of the water flow and percolation joins up and one has a LOT of water to work with... One of the reasons I like that spot, because even when the upper end is too low, like in October/November, the lower end is still good to sluice.

FWIW, we've has soooooooooooooooooo much rain and thunderstorms lately, and some of the last snow melt, that feeder creek by the placering area parking lot has been flowing water again....naturally. Was up there several times in the last 5 days and folks are sluicing again right by the parking lot. NO idea how long it will last...

Remember, up at the placering area parking lot the REAL Cache Creek channel is about a 1/4 mile walk out into the valley. That water flow by the parking lot is NOT Cache Creek, just a seasonal feeder stream...
Randy C-17A