How — and Where — to Pan for Gold

The easiest way to look for gold is to pan for it by hand. Nearly all noncommercial techniques for finding gold rely on the fact that gold is heavier than most other gravels — or metals, for that matter. You start by putting some dirt into a gold pan and adding water. Because of its weight, gold will settle into the bottom of your pan.

The trick to panning for gold is to slosh out the lighter sand without splashing the gold back into the creek. It takes practice. “There are 100 different ways to use a gold pan, and there’s not one universal way, so you’ve got to find a way that works for you,” says Mischler, who lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

People who look for gold in parts of the West with little water can use the dry wash technique, which was invented by Thomas Edison. Instead of panning with water, dry washing involves blowing air over the soil, removing everything that’s lighter than gold from the gold itself. 

When you’re panning for gold, you quickly realize that there’s a whole lot more dirt than gold, so the calculation isn't complicated: The more dirt you sift, the more gold you’re likely to get.

It can take several hours to sift through 20 pounds of dirt by hand. You can speed up the process with a sluice, which is an open-ended box with vertical metal riffles spaced evenly apart along the bottom. The riffles disrupt the flow of water, allowing the heavier gold to fall to the bottom of the sluice, while most of the lighter sand flows back to the stream. “You can do 20 pounds in about ten to 15 minutes — as fast as you can shovel the dirt,” Mischler says.

There are variations on the equipment. A highbanker sluice, for example, uses a pump to force water through the sluice. You get a more even water flow than you would in a stream, and you can use it in areas away from natural waterways. You can also hunt for gold with a metal detector.

The more serious you get about finding gold, the more work is involved. When you start talking about highbankers and other equipment, you’re also talking about a lot of shoveling, particularly since gold will typically settle in the bottom of a creek bed. Panning for gold is another matter. “It’s not a physically demanding sport if you’re just panning,” Conway says.  

There are other risks beyond a sore back to consider, however, mainly because you’ll typically be panning in wilderness areas where you have to look out for skunks, snakes and bears. “It’s difficult when you have your head down and you’re concentrating on little flakes of gold in your pan,” says Mischler.  “You just always need to be mindful.”

Keep in mind, too, that you'll be in or near water, and wet rocks can be slippery. If you’re in a wilderness area, a bad fall can mean a tough hike out. “I don’t go by myself,” Mischler says. “I always take a friend or two.”

Where to search for gold

Gold tends to concentrate downstream from large rocks, and it’s often associated with large quartz deposits.  But those are just rules of thumb. “Gold is where you find it,” Mischler says. And old gold mining sites are often good for finding gold these days. “The old timers didn’t have the new equipment that we have nowadays, so we catch far more gold now than what they were catching way back when,” Conway says.

Even the old California gold fields still have gold, Mischler says. After all, gold washes down from the mountains periodically, and it’s been decades since the gold rush that started in the mid-19th century ended — during which time some streams may have changed course, opening up new places with so-called pay dirt that may contain the precious metal. In fact, the recent heavy rains in California have lured a new wave of prospectors to the region.

It does matter a great deal what stream you choose for your panning expeditions. Panning for gold is illegal on U.S. government property, which rules out streams in national parks. Some state parks will allow panning for gold, but many forbid using motorized equipment such as highbankers. If you’re panning on private property, be sure to ask the owner first.

Not surprisingly, some gold prospectors tend to be secretive. But many aren’t, and gold prospecting clubs offer a way to learn how to pan for gold. Conway’s gold fever started with a trip to his local gold prospecting club. “And so, you know, boom, I’m out on the creek … and, man, I think I’ve hit the mother lode,” he says. In reality, he had a panful of mica, which is worthless, but looks like gold on a sunny day. Undaunted, Conway has continued panning and was eventually inspired to form the Georgia chapter of the GPAA.

But even on days when you don’t find gold, panning can be rewarding. “It’s feet in the stream, hawks and eagles flying overhead … I’ve seen some really cool nature things,” Mischler says. “For me, it’s just getting out and being in the water and coming home with gold in my pocket.”