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We jump at the opportunity to search for gold any chance we can get, no matter where.  Recently, the crew of Prospectors Radio had the chance to broadcast live at the American Mining Rights Association(AMRA) December Dinner Fund Raiser in Turlock, CA.  After the event, we got invited to explore and prospect with the crew of AMRA on one of their claims.  So, it is no surprise that I was over-the-top with excitement since all we ever do is prospect in the Midwest and East Coast.

Gone are the wild gold rush days of the expanding west where virgin land was readily claimed and worked to its potential.  Novels like Louis L’Amour’s  “Comstock Lode” give us a chance to imagine what being a prospector in the developing sometimes lawless west meant. There were men looking out for themselves and there were men fighting for justice, surviving to make a living much like today but on a different level.  

As I watched the countryside move past me in our travel up to the Sierra Nevada’s I felt the familiar twinge of yearning that ignites us all to dig and hunt for that yellow stuff; what we affectionately like to call “Gold Fever”.  When I used a simple pan to find pieces of gold where the 49ers prospected, the feeling was both exhilarating and humbling.  The work involved to reach good locations, search, and pan out material is not as easy, as I discovered.  We have more comforts and equipment today than what the old timers did back then.  You cannot help but have tremendous respect for this!

Prospecting in California is different from prospecting in Ohio for obvious geological reasons but also for the laws.  The disparity of state’s laws versus Federal Laws continues to be a source of concern and it is more evident out west than it is on the east coast pertaining to mining.  All of a sudden I wanted to be a part of this world and thoughts of simplifying my city life started to go through my head.  I imagine this was the same urge the pioneers felt to pull them westward.

This journey westward back in the 1800’s during the Gold Rush was a treacherous and unforgiving one, yet many prevailed while others did not.  Some of the small miners of today say “you have to be crazy to want a life like this” yet they still do it.  The drive is still there to mine for gold and the passion keeps them going. 

Though my livelihood does not depend on mining, I appreciate what the small miners are going through out west.  I respect AMRA’s mission to inform the public of the laws for use of public lands with integrity and honesty and defending the right to the end.   Sorting through all the “red-tape” of regulation is a task of itself and it is comforting to know there are experts who offer the time to make sure miner’s rights are protected.  Being able to be a part of the AMRA event this year fulfilled a sense of comradery within me with the small miners of today. I learned so much of the work involved to mine gold and what goes on behind the scenes as well as on the “front” lines.  I cannot wait to go back.  Keep up the good fight and believe in what you do!