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I get the same questions about 100-times a week.. "So how do I get started in gold prospecting? What kind of tools do I need? Are there particular rocks or plants I should be looking for that will point me to gold? How do you sluice? How do you pan? Yadda, yadda, yadda..."

I bought a case of Chris Ralph's book, "Fists Full of Gold," when it was published, and have used them ever since as text books on the ride out to the claims, in motel rooms at night, and sometimes out in the goldfields - especially when we explain basic geology and rock formations to the newbs. Over the last couple of years more than a few have gone home with guests, and I will have to buy another case pretty soon.

That got me to thinking about how much I personally learned from "Fists Full of Gold." I also thought that, if everyone who asks me these same questions every week knew about the book maybe they would stop calling me!

I wrote a short piece on the book for our AGA Facebook page, and I would like to share it with you as well. Looking forward to your comments. - Props to Mr. Ralph!

Gold Prospecting 101: Where do I start?
By Terry Soloman

So, you want to be a gold prospector but you aren’t sure how – or where, to get started? No problem. At Arizona Gold Adventures http://ArizonaGoldAdventures.com we start our students’ search for gold in the library!

The first book AGA recommends to all of our “Greenhorns,” is “Fists Full of Gold,” by Chris Ralph. In his book, Chris explains the basic tools for gold prospecting - from the shovel and gold pan, to High Banking, Suction Dredging, Sluicing, Dry Washing, Metal Detecting, and even small scale mining equipment.

Chris then introduces the reader to basic geology for the gold prospector including minerals; common rock types; plate tectonics; hard-rock and placer gold deposits; recognizing and understanding rock formations; and the geology of placer gold formations.

Chris also writes about techniques for finding and working placer gold deposits, researching and sampling promising areas, and how to stake a gold claim once you have made a discovery. In the appendices you’ll find a glossary of gold prospecting terms, and lots of useful info on the 1872 Mining Law; clubs and organizations; gold prospecting magazines and online forums; how to estimate the gold content of specimens; hazards of gold prospecting; and much more.

Fists Full of Gold – By Chris Ralph – Goldstone Publishing – ISBN: 978-0-9842692-0-4 – Soft Cover, 361 pages - $29.95