Gold
Mining/Panning With Country Boy Mine
Gold Mining
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There are several methods for mining gold, but some of the most common include:
- Open-Pit Mining – This method is used when gold is located near the surface. Heavy machinery is used to remove waste rock and soil, exposing the gold-bearing ore.
- Underground Mining – This method is used when gold is located deeper in the ground. Miners excavate tunnels and shafts to reach the gold-bearing ore, which is then removed and processed.
- Placer Minin – This method is used to mine for gold that has been deposited in streams and rivers. Gravel and sand are washed through a sluice or a dredge to separate the heavy gold particles.
- Cyanide Heap Leaching – This method is used to extract gold from low-grade ore. The ore is crushed and placed on a lined pad, where it is drenched with a cyanide solution to dissolve the gold. The gold-bearing solution is then collected and processed to recover the gold.
- Amalgamation – This method is used to extract gold from ore by mixing it with mercury. The gold particles adhere to the mercury, creating an amalgam. The amalgam is heated to evaporate the mercury, leaving the gold behind.
All of these methods require significant investment in terms of money and equipment, and also have environmental and social impact.
Country Boy Mine, one of Colorado’s oldest goldmines and the only real gold mine you can visit in Summit County, is an underground mine.
Gold Panning
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To use a gold pan, follow these steps:
- Find a location where gold has been found before. This can be a river or stream with a history of gold mining. Country Boy Mine in Breckenridge, Colorado has a gold panning stream called Eureka Creek that comes straight out of the mine and is a good place to start.
- Scoop up a small amount of dirt and gravel from the area and place it in the gold pan.
- Dip the gold pan in water and swirl it around to wash away the dirt and gravel.
- Use a circular motion to shake the pan back and forth. This will cause the heavier gold particles to sink to the bottom of the pan.
- Continue shaking and swirling the pan until only the heavier particles of gold are left at the bottom.
- Use a small brush or your finger to remove any remaining dirt or gravel.
- Check the bottom of the pan for any flakes or nuggets of gold.
Note: Gold panning is usually done in the shallow water in creeks or rivers, and it is best to have a good understanding of the geology of the area you are panning in to have a better chance of finding gold. Country Boy Mine can provide you with gold pans and help in panning.
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Gold panning works by using the weight difference between gold and other materials to separate the gold from dirt and gravel. Gold is a very dense metal, so it is heavier than most other materials found in rivers and streams.
When dirt and gravel are scooped up and placed in a gold pan, the pan is dipped in water and swirled around. The swirling motion causes the lighter materials, such as dirt and gravel, to wash away and the heavier gold particles to sink to the bottom of the pan.
Gold Weight
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Gold is a dense metal with a specific gravity of approximately 19.3 grams per cubic centimeter. This means that one cubic centimeter of gold weighs 19.3 grams. To give an idea of how heavy it is, a cubic centimeter of water weighs 1 gram, so gold is 19.3 times heavier than water.
A coin-sized nugget of gold, around the size of a U.S. quarter, would weigh around 6.5 grams (0.23 oz) and a bar of gold that is around the size of a credit card, would weigh around 31.1 grams (1.09 oz).
It’s important to keep in mind that the weight of gold can vary depending on the purity of the gold. Pure gold, also called 24 karat gold, is the heaviest, while gold alloys, such as 18 karat gold, will be lighter. The heaviest metals are those with the highest density or specific gravity.
The top five heaviest metals are:
- Osmium is the densest naturally occurring metal, with a specific gravity of 22.59 grams per cubic centimeter.
- Iridium is the second densest metal, with a specific gravity of 22.42 grams per cubic centimeter.
- Platinum is the third densest metal, with a specific gravity of 21.45 grams per cubic centimeter.
- Rhenium is the fourth densest metal, with a specific gravity of 21.02 grams per cubic centimeter.
- Gold is the fifth densest metal, with a specific gravity of 19.3 grams per cubic centimeter.
Note: It’s important to remember that these are the densest naturally occurring metals. There are a few synthetic elements that are denser than these. For example, Hassium, Meitnerium, and Darmstadtium are some of them, but they are artificially created and they are not stable enough to be found in nature.
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Yes, gold is heavier than lead. Lead has a specific gravity of around 11.34 grams per cubic centimeter, while gold has a specific gravity of around 19.3 grams per cubic centimeter. This means that gold is about 1.7 times heavier than lead.
For example, a cube of lead measuring 1 cm on each side would weigh 11.34 grams and a cube of gold with the same dimensions would weigh 19.3 grams.
Gold Location
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Colorado has a rich history of gold mining and there are many places in the state where you can pan for gold. Some of the best places to pan for gold in Colorado include:
- Eureka Creek – On private property at Country Boy Mine in Breckenridge, this stream comes straight out of an old gold mine. You can book a gold mine tour (which includes gold panning) or just gold panning here.
- Clear Creek – This stream runs through the towns of Golden and Idaho Springs and is known for its gold deposits.
- South Platte River – This river runs through the Denver area and has a history of gold mining.
- Arkansas River – The Arkansas River runs through the heart of the state and has produced a significant amount of gold.
- Dream Stream – Located near the towns of Fairplay and Alma, the Dream Stream is a popular spot for gold panning and has featured in reality TV shows.
- Cripple Creek – Located near the town of Victor, Cripple Creek has a long history of gold mining and is still a popular spot for panning today.
- Animas River: The Animas River runs through the historic mining district of Silverton and has a good potential for gold panning.
Note: It’s important to remember that some areas may be restricted or private property, and it’s important to check the regulations and obtain permission before panning for gold.
Additionally, panning in designated areas of the national parks is prohibited.
If you want to experience gold panning, try Country Boy Mine or buy a copy of Kevin Singel’s awesome book – Finding Gold in Colorado. It is packed with places where you can pan for gold.
Gold Quantity
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The amount of gold that can be found panning depends on several factors including the location, the quality of the gold deposit, and the skill of the panner. In general, gold panning is not an efficient method for finding large amounts of gold but it is a lot of fun. Most of the gold found through panning is in the form of small flakes or even smaller pieces called “color”.
In a good location, with a rich deposit, and a skilled panner, it’s possible to find a few grams of gold per day. However, it’s more common to find only a few flakes or small pieces of gold per day. It’s important to keep in mind that gold panning is often done as a recreational activity and hobby rather than a means of finding large amounts of gold.
Note: Additionally, it’s important to remember that gold panning is not always a profitable activity as the cost of equipment and the time spent panning may outweigh the value of the gold found. Commercial gold mining is done on a much larger scale and typically uses different methods such as dredging, sluicing, or hard rock mining (like Country Boy Mine) to extract much larger amounts of gold.
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It’s difficult to estimate the total amount of gold that has ever been found as new deposits are discovered and mined constantly, and the amount of gold that has been mined throughout history is not well-documented. However, it’s estimated that around 165,000 metric tons of gold have been mined throughout history. There are 35,274 ounces in a metric tonne – so at around $1900 per ounce, that is around $11 Trillion worth.
This estimate includes both gold mined for commercial purposes and gold mined for personal or recreational use. The majority of this gold has been mined in the past century with around 2,500 metric tons mined annually in recent years.
Note: It’s important to remember that this estimate only includes gold that has been mined and does not take into account gold that is still in the ground or gold that has been lost or discarded throughout history. Additionally, the total amount of gold mined is subject to change as new mining technologies and methods are developed as new deposits are discovered.
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165,000 metric tonnes of gold would take up a relatively small amount of space as gold is a dense metal. One metric tonne is equivalent to 1,000 kilograms or 2,205 pounds. To estimate the space 165,000 metric tonnes of gold would take up, we can use the density of gold which is around 19.3 grams per cubic centimeter.
A cubic meter is equivalent to 1,000,000 cubic centimeters, and thus, 165,000 metric tonnes of gold would take up around 8,547 cubic meters or 8,547,000 cubic centimeters. To put it in perspective, 8,547 cubic meters is equivalent to around 300,000 cubic feet (if you put the gold in a solid cube shape). This is roughly a 66 foot cube. For perspective each side of the cube is around 3 ½ 1962 Cadillac Eldorados.
Note: It’s important to remember that this is just an estimate based on the density of gold and it’s only a rough approximation. The space occupied can vary depending on the form of the gold and how it is stored.
Gold Description
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Gold is a naturally occurring element that is found in the Earth’s crust. It is typically found in veins or nuggets and it is usually associated with other minerals such as quartz, sulfides, and silver.
Gold can be found in a variety of locations including:
- Igneous Rocks – Gold can be found in the form of tiny flakes or nuggets in igneous rocks such as granite and basalt.
- Sedimentary Rocks – Gold can also be found in sedimentary rocks such as sandstone and shale.
- Placer Deposits – Placer deposits are formed when gold is washed away from its original location and deposited in a new location such as a river or stream bed
- Lode Deposits – Lode deposits are gold-bearing veins or ore bodies that are typically found in hard rock formations.
- Secondary Deposits – Gold can also be found in secondary deposits such as in soil, gravel, or alluvial deposits.
Gold can be found in different forms from gold nuggets, flakes, dust, and veins of gold ore. The gold is usually found in association with other metals such as copper, silver, lead, and zinc.
The majority of gold that has been mined throughout history has been extracted from hard rock lode deposits and placer deposits. Most of the gold that is currently being mined is extracted using open-pit mining and cyanide leaching methods.
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In a nutshell, yes.
Gold, along with other elements and minerals, can be found in meteorites that originated from space. Scientists believe that the majority of the gold on Earth was formed in supernovae, massive explosions that occurred in the early universe. These explosions created heavy elements such as gold and scattered them across space. Some of these elements eventually came together to form meteorites, which then collided with the Earth and other planets.
​The gold present in meteorites is typically found in the form of small flakes or as small as a few micrometers, and it is usually associated with other elements such as iridium, nickel, and platinum.
Note: It’s important to remember that the quantity of gold found in meteorites is very small and it is not considered a significant source of gold for mining. Additionally, most of the gold found in meteorites is not pure, it is alloyed with other metals, and the process of extraction is difficult and not economically viable. The gold that is currently mined on Earth comes primarily from lode deposits and placer deposits that were formed by natural processes on the Earth’s surface.
Gold Colorado Geology
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Colorado has a diverse geology including a variety of rock types, mineral deposits, and gold. With a long history of gold mining that dates back to the mid-1800s, many of the gold deposits were discovered during the gold rush of the late 1800s and early 1900s. Breckenridge, and Country Boy Mine, were significant centers of the gold rush.
The mountains in Colorado contain many hard rock lode deposits which are gold-bearing veins and also ore bodies that are typically found in granite, quartz monzonite, and other igneous rocks within the area. These deposits are the result of the mineralization that occurred during the formation of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado.
Additionally, the streams and rivers in Colorado have also been an important source of gold. Placer deposits, which are formed when gold is washed away from its original location and deposited in a new location such as a river or stream bed, can be found in many locations in the state but particularly in the mountain regions.
Note: It’s important to remember that the gold mining industry in Colorado has evolved over time, and with the development of new mining technologies, it’s still possible to find gold in the state. However, it’s important to check the regulations and obtain permission before panning for gold in the state, as some areas may be restricted or private property.
If you want to experience gold panning, try Country Boy Mine or buy a copy of Kevin Singel’s awesome book –
Finding Gold in Colorado, written by Kevin Singel, is a great guide to where you can pan for gold in the state. If you are a beginner or just looking for a fun family day out, try visiting Country Boy Mine – we have a stream that comes straight out of the gold mine.
Gold Worth
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Although the price of gold varies, it is currently (Feb 2023) worth around $1900 an ounce.
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An ounce is a unit of weight and a troy ounce is the unit of weight that is commonly used to measure gold. A troy ounce is equal to 31.1034768 grams.
In terms of size, an ounce of gold is relatively small, as gold is a dense metal. An ounce of gold can be made up of a variety of forms from small flakes, to nuggets, to coins, or bars. A solid ounce of cold is the size of a die or a sugar cube.
A gold coin, such as a U.S. gold eagle, that weighs an ounce is around the size of a U.S. quarter. A gold bar that weighs an ounce can be the size of a credit card.
Note: It’s important to keep in mind that the size of an ounce of gold can vary depending on the form of the gold, as well as the purity of the gold. For example, a gold nugget that weighs an ounce would be larger than an ounce of gold in the form of flakes or dust. Additionally, the size of an ounce of gold can also be affected by the alloy it’s mixed with, as gold alloys are less dense than pure gold and will be larger in volume for the same weight.
Gold In Breckenridge
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Breckenridge, Colorado is a historic gold mining town and was one of the most productive gold mining regions in the state during the 19th century. The gold deposits in the area were primarily found in placer deposits, which are formed by the erosion and transportation of gold-bearing material by water.
The most productive placer deposits in the Breckenridge area were found in the Blue River and its tributaries, including French Creek (where Country Boy Mine is located today), Illinois Creek, and The Swan River. These placer deposits were mined using various methods such as panning, sluicing, and dredging.
Additionally, lode deposits (veins of gold in hard rock) were also found in the area and were mined by underground methods such as hard rock mining.
Gold With Gemstones
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Gold is often found in association with other minerals including gemstones. Some of the gemstones that can be found near gold deposits include:
- Quartz – A common mineral that is often associated with gold deposits and can be found in a variety of colors such as clear, smoky, and amethyst.
- Garnet – A group of minerals that are commonly found in metamorphic rocks associated with gold deposits.
- Topaz – A mineral that is found in granite and granite-related rocks, also associated with gold deposits.
- Emerald – A green variety of beryl which is commonly found in association with gold in certain areas such as Colombia.
- Aquamarine – A variety of beryl that occurs in granite, also found associated with gold.
- Tourmaline – A mineral that can be found in many different colors and is found in granite, also associated with gold.
- Ruby & Sapphire – These are varieties of the mineral corundum and can be found in association with gold in some areas such as Montana (USA) and Madagascar.
Note: It’s worth remembering that gemstones are not always found in close proximity to gold deposits and the presence of gold does not necessarily indicate the presence of gemstones.