Remote Prospecting?

[Geowizard]

Easy,

As you know, we have to go where the GOLD is.

Nuggies are most frequently found in the least glamorous places.

(Edited for less graphic content)

- Geowizard

[Joe S (AK)]

Yes Jim, "Never say Never" -- however, to repeat for emphesis -- "I never forgot anything behind that I need to go back to Nome for." In addition, suffice to say, my hand made "Nome Beach Box" is now a lawn ornament and will never, ever, ever-under-any-circumstances be used again, EVER, Ever, ever, ever.

It is true that all the new products that have come out since I was there at mile 7 on West Beach would now make Gold recovery, especially the micro sized Gold with the circumstances of the time, much easier and not nearly as arduous and time consuming. Yes, I now have the newer "stuff" and it's sooooo much better, easier, lighter, faster, more accurate and less demanding than those older styles of "stuff".

Yeah, I'm 15 years older now, too.

All things being equal, today, a hard-working, young-yet-seasoned miner could probably make enough money to offset the summer's incredibly high cost of Nome living. Of course, to do that you have to completely disregard transportation to and from their home to Nome, enjoy living on the beach (if that is even allowed any more), being totally at the mercy of the weather, having to overcome no availability of easy transportation and being systemically dependent for all supplies on the sporadically scheduled barge shipment arrivals.

Excitement, Independence, Self Reliance, and all those other inspiring things that "... and there I was, minin' on the beaches of Nome" conjures up in your day dreams can all be found in many other places in this world - and under much better conditions.

Mentioning "at the mercy of the weather" is actually much more than a little more important than it might seem in passing. I was there for the end of May and the month of June in, I think it was ‘05. When I arrived there was snow and ice everywhere with the Pack-Ice was still covering the beach. Of course, since it was “Spring”, the weather started off with brutally cold rain and strong winds almost all the time. In a short time the ice mostly melted, the beach sands thawed - and then - The Mosquitoes and the deer flies. They were bad if the wind was from inland (I think the bugs all drank heavily and partied all night so as to not freeze) OR, if the wind was from the Bering Sea, stand by for fierce, cold rain with (knock you over) high winds. That weather came from not too far across the water in RUSSIA, and it's really cold there, right?

Just remember, STORMS = very high wave action = no pumps anywhere near the water = no mining at all. Those conditions, combined with long hours, not-so-good nutrition, accidents, sickness, constant repositioning of pumps due to tides and many other factors make beach mining in Nome rather “Challenging”. Oh yeah - once a Polar bear, swimming around the noise and excitement of Nome walked on through. I did say rather "Challenging" didn't I?

I believe I also mentioned that recovering the "Talcum Powder" sized Gold from high banker concentrates was character building and a technique enhancing exercise - right?. Panning Technique Improvement Retraining (PTIR) was humbling. Maybe it would be more succinct to say that it was an infinitely difficult, tedious, inexact, frustrating, nerve wracking, repetitive, time consuming, exhausting, mind numbing task that had to be done for hours EVERY DARN EVENING. In addition, the mostly, difficult new thing to learn was working with the incredibly small sizes of paper thin or spherically shaped Gold. No Verne, it can't be panned like you're used to "back home", you have to relearn everything all over again. Why??? - " 'Cause you're in Nome now" and it's different now. "

As an example, a "properly filled gold pan full" of the tightly pre-classified beach concentrates start out as about 2 or 3 heaping tablespoons worth (or 4 or 5 or maybe even 6 if you took twice the time to work them ). The various 'cuts' of concentrates have to be panned at least 3 or 4 distinct times, until NO Gold is seen at all. Since the Gold was so small it was really hard to completely separate it at that point, so just super-super "Sluice Juice" concentrates (about 50-50% Gold and other heavies) was sucked up. Re-pan, Re-pan, Re-pan until there were no more "Golden Smiles to be seen. As I finished the day's meticulous panning, and knowing that there STILL was Gold in those sands, I would put them aside and save them to be thrown into the equipment first thing the next morning. Day after day after day after day.

Of course there were unexpected things as well, like finding a pristine human molar tooth in the box's clean-out one day. It was returned to the sea where it belonged. A much more common thing was to sometimes find liquid or amalgamated Mercury in the beach concentrates. The turn of the century guys would pour inexpensive quicksilver on the freshly turned and leveled black beach sand and roll it around, I guess with their shovels. Then they would gather all that Mercury and amalgam that they could find. Next, they retorted it, over a driftwood fire. That produced "sweetened" Gold while making the liquid Mercury ready for the next day's use. I knew one young, "Proud to be just like my dad" fool (the son of an older REAL fool) who would empty their vials of Mercury "Soured Gold" into a small frying pan and 'cook off' the Mercury every few weeks. He did the open vaporization of the Mercury and amalgam over a driftwood fire, away from their camp on the beach. I didn't spend much time at all observing him or his dad's taught technique.

A natural tendency for exhausted miners is to simply defer the end of the long day panning drudgery for "the next rainy day". They just store the concentrates in a bucket, or two, or three, or ..... and then eat or sleep, to do the now learned 'trick' the next day - WRONG! At the end of their stay there were buckets and piles everywhere. The next thing they did was dry the concentrates they now never could possibly process and then, boxing them up, would go visit the post office. Just imagine how heavy just 5 gallons of fine, dried concentrates weighs. Now imagine mailing it 'back home'

Without dependable refrigeration (after the snow and ice melted), trips to town for camp food and gasoline at the NC (and "in town" water where we could get it) took much higher priority on "the next rainy day" (usually there were 3 or 4 in a row). My water was stored in a found and then washed, 10 Liter Soy Sauce container. It had been discarded and subsequently drifted onto shore from some Japanese fishing ship in the past and the salt in the soy sauce stopped the disagreeable possibilities from happening. It was a lucky find and still have it.

Rain water, if it can be caught, is also ever-so-precious for your drinking and cooking needs. The problem there is that catching rain water is time consuming - like frantically chasing cats. Just try it sometime - using a small tarp makes it a lot like "Catch and Release".

With no trees or bushes of any size on the tundra, the only fuel for burning in camp is driftwood from the interior, stacked up into very spread out, tangled and intertwined heaps by past storms. SOMEONE has to gather it for heating and cooking - and there you go - something to do in your spare time. The wood dries quickly in the constant wind (And, OH YES, it gets to be very irritating). The ever present drifting sand pretty much all shakes off without too much effort (unless it's raining again, of course).

To sum it all up I guess being in Nome is a lot like being stationed somewhere with the Army - "It's not just an adventure, it's an adventure and a hassle."

Hooah! (for the Army guys who "Beenthere and knowbout ...".

Hey easy goer - were you at the GPAA camp? If so you passed right by where I was in '05 - West Beach, Mile 7, 1/2 way point from Nome to the GPAA.

- Joe -

[easy goer]

Jim, Geo and Joe,

Yes I hate it. Yes I want nuggets. No on the GPAA camp.

I am the moron who owns 4 1/2 miles of claims a 100 miles North of Nome. So getting your gear up to Nome isn't enough, the last 100 miles requires a reliable truck and a decent sized trailer to get everything up the river in only two trips.

Living on the gravel bar was by far the best part of the trip. Dealing with the public my whole life and then essentially being alone was a pleasant change. Some days didn't really even see any contrails, no horns and no beeping.

The only question is "is it enough sugar for a dime". To do it right, significant expense to start, is it realistic to expect to recoup your money? I won't call it an investment. This is more like bass fishing or deer hunting. In the South we say Red Snapper is $34 per pound in a seafood market. Its about $350 a pound if you get a boat and go get it yourself. Gold is cheap at $1700 an ounce for a majority of people who look for it instead of just buying it.

The experience is what you do it for, hell I can stay where I am and make money day in and day out, pandemic or not, till they carry me out. All I hear from my customers is "you have a gold mine here", if most of them only knew.

Valentine's Day weekend so off to the salt mine, I mean Gold mine. I know where I will be physically but mentally I will be getting my ass chewed by mosquitos and dreaming of piles of gold.

Sorry Geo,

Stay tuned!!

Easygoer

[Geowizard]

Challenges represent opportunities;

From the experiences shared by all of you, and having shared most of them personally, I would submit that each of the overwhelming challenges offer interesting opportunities!

I remember discussion on this forum almost a decade ago about the issues of dealing with life on the beach at Nome.

Now that we have all survived having been there and done that, and are now in a better place where rational thinking is possible, we can ask; What are the solutions?

Having lived in Alaska through summers and winters and initially having been there and done that in a military setting, I was able to experience a different experience. Why was the experience different?

Knowing that an adverse condition is present, we can engineer solutions that make the adverse condition go away.

Living on Mars;

We aren't talking about a mission to Mars. This mission (on earth) has been done by others with appropriate planning and forethought!

A few points have been brought up about the basics. Water, food and shelter. Transportation is a requirement to be able to get food and water. The cost is an issue. The fun part of the off season is having the time to brainstorm about the challenges and practical solutions!

"Don't bring me problems, bring me solutions!"

Stick around! I have some solutions.

- Geowizard

[Geowizard]

Sand in my spam;

Ever try eating a spam sandwich in a sand storm?

Connex shipping containers offer a solution to several problems. One of which is sand in your spam! A little planning in the form of shipping freight in shipping containers on a barge to Nome offers a solution to shelter, security and environmental control.

I'm proposing a discussion on Remote Prospecting that involves rational problem solving.

I have shipped freight by ocean going barges. I used a company called Alaska Logistics. I shipped two skid steer loaders from Seattle to Anchorage. I flew them from Anchorage to McGrath on a 737 freighter operated by Northern Air Cargo. I barged them down the Kuskokwim River to Sterling Landing and drove them 40 miles by road to the mine.

I have a mining expedition planned to Nome with a $250K (monopoly money) budget;

My plan is to load three, 40 foot shipping containers in Seattle and barge them to Nome in 2021. The cost of barging to Anchorage and Nome is charged by the square foot. One 8 foot by 40 foot Connex (today) will cost about 100 x 8 x 40 = $32,000. I estimate three Connex's will be about $100,000 landed at Nome. I will get a quote and get back on that.

The Connex's will be completely loaded with everything needed to explore for, mine, and recover GOLD.

Let's do a pre-feasibility Study.

Stick around!

- Geowizard

[Geowizard]

Everything runs on gas;

Nome gas prices dropped this summer!

http://www.nomenugget.com/news/nome-gas ... ore-dollar

Pre feasibility - A mining plan:

Nome River Plan:

40 Acre mining claim.
Gold values average $20 per cubic yard.
Use one Bobcat Skid-steer loader.
Load wash plant at the rate of 10 cubic yards per hour.
Operate on a 10 hour per day schedule.

Revenue:

$200 per hour x 10 hrs = $2000 per day.

Operating Cost (year 1):

Unleaded fuel: $100. per day.
Diesel Fuel: $100. per day.
Labor: $500. per day.
Misc. expenses: $300. per day.
Net Revenue: $1000. per day.

Year 2 add one skid steer loader and wash plant.

Operating cost (year 2):

All in cost: $2000. per day.
Revenue: $4000. per day.
Net Revenue: $2000. per day.

Disclaimer:

The success or failure of a mining operation depends on GOLD in the ground. Proper management of mining operation, cost controls and conservative planning. Risk factors include variations in the price of GOLD and variation in the costs of mining.

Stick around!

- Geowizard

[Jim_Alaska]

I developed a fool proof plan for keeping sand out of Spam. Early on in my life I determined to never, ever buy or eat Spam for as long as I lived. SPAM INGREDIENTS: Pigs toenails and belly buttons along with a healthy dose of floor sweepings.

There are just too many other options for meat or fish, both canned and freeze dried. If your operation consists of more than just you, refrigeration should be part of the necessities. To spend many thousands of dollars on a mining venture and skimp on food is foolish and unhealthy for both owners as well as employees.

Any river or creek in Alaska can and has served as adequate refrigeration for perishables. Properly packaged perishables will keep under those conditions just as well as at home. In places where Perma-Frost is prevalent, a hole in the ground and an adequate container will serve as both refrigerator and freezer.

I once lived remotely for two years using only a Perma-Frost refrigerator/freezer.

[Joe S (AK)]

Jim,

I spent my early, pre-Alaskan, life in Eastern Pennsylvania, in the used-to-be-back-then farm area just north of Philadelphia. We grew up frequently eating a very mild, soft, German in origin, pork breakfast type of sausage called Scrapple. The block of Scrapple was refrigerated to stiffen it up just a little, cut into (at your mom's discretion) 1/4" to 1/2" thick slices and then prepared in whatever way your mom felt like cooking it. Fried, baked, fried then baked, soft to crispy it was cooked many ways as a very common accompaniment to a full fried egg breakfast - (with or without catsup, of course).

Why do I mention it? Well, "the standard saying" was that it had all the parts of a pig --- except the squeal.

I really like it - and even though it's hard to find I do, sometimes find some for sale in my travels.

A slice of my youth, you might say.

- Joe -

[Geowizard]

Jim,

I've heard that too. So, I looked for a reference.

All sources I can find are consistent with the following:

Pork with Ham. SPAM uses two cuts from the pig. Hormel introduced SPAM in 1937 and the The Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America states that the product was intended to increase the sale of pork shoulder which was not a very popular cut.
Salt. Salt plays a crucial role in maintaining human health. One reason our bodies need salt is to help maintain the right balance of fluids in our bodies. In normal life situations we typically don’t need to think about getting enough salt in our diet. We do that naturally by what we eat. But, in a survival situation, when food is scarce, you need to make sure you are getting enough salt. With 1 serving of SPAM you can meet your daily requirements.
Water. There is not enough water in SPAM to survive on.
Potato Starch. Commonly used starch in recipes. In SPAM it helps keep the moisture inside the meat.
Sugar. SPAM uses real sugar. No imitations or chemical substitutes.
Sodium Nitrate. Some people frown when they see sodium nitrate listed as an ingredient because it is thought that sodium nitrate may damage your blood vessels. It is used in processed meats like SPAM to retain freshness. You’ll also find sodium nitrate in the bacon you eat, jerky, and most lunch meats.

There are way too many food watchdog groups out there analyzing food products like SPAM. With 90 percent of the lunch meat market, SPAM gets exceptional culinary scrutiny.

- Geowizard

[Jim_Alaska]

No amount of justification would ever convince me to eat Spam. They can watchdog it till the cows come home and it is still Spam and I won't eat it. Add any amount of good things to it and it is still Spam and I won't eat it, especially when I can choose real food for myself, not something doctored to look like food.

There is one thing that I have seen that I would consider worse than Spam and that is a knock-off that is labeled simply; "canned meat", Here is a picture of me eating that stuff...

But I think I have hijacked this thread with my rant against Spam, I am going to stop and let this thread get back on the topic of "remote prospecting".