Gold Panning Northern California

What kind surounding rocks should I look for when looking for gold?

I live in northern california and I just want to take a day to dig for gold? Is it best to pan for gold? Or should I get some dynomite? Anything will help! Thanks.

Gold is found in two general settings. The most common for panning is to look for placer deposits, which are either consolidated or unconsolidated sedimentary rocks. In streams you will look for a place where water slows down and will drop heavy materials like gold.
Here are some diagrams to explain this:

http://www.e-goldprospecting.com/html/gold_step_by_step.html

Placer deposits are often preserved in sedimentary deposits of sandstone and conglomerates. These are ancient stream beds that have been buried and preserved. As they outcrop and weather out there is often gold released from these.

The other place where gold is found is in hydrothermal deposits. These are most often quartz filled veins in igneous rocks like granite or a porphyry, but can be in almost any type of rock. Pyrite, marcasite and other sulphide minerals are commonly found in association with gold. Silver is often associated with gold, and can be alloyed with gold making electrum. These are often in hydrothermal veins of quartz, carbonates, and fluorite. In areas close to these sorts of deposits the streams are more likely to have gold in them. Take a look through this web page for more information:

http://www.e-goldprospecting.com/index.html

Also keep in mind that any gold nuggets, or even dust you find is probably more valuable if undamaged and sold as a collectors item than it is for its gold content. Most collectors will want to know the provenance, that is the area and maybe even the river where it was found.

Gold Star Mining 2007 part I

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