Reading a Stream

[gcause]

This is an extract from a book written by Matt Thornton. It is really informative and covers just about everything you could think of about reading a stream.

 

[Jaros]

Thanks gcause.

 

[gulliver]

This is an extract from a book written by Matt Thornton. It is really informative and covers just about everything you could think of about reading a stream.

Was this book called Gold dredging?

 

[gcause]

Hey Gulliver,

Yes its Dredging for Gold by Matt Thornton, this rare book shop has photos from the book:
https://www.morgansrarebooks.com/products/dredging-for-gold-by-matt-thornton
Cheers,
Grant

 

[Tiber]

Bewdy mate. Thats the last (cave-less) waterfall I check! (Fig 32)

 

[Nicholas69]

Hey Gulliver,

Yes its Dredging for Gold by Matt Thornton, this rare book shop has photos from the book:
https://www.morgansrarebooks.com/products/dredging-for-gold-by-matt-thornton
Cheers,
Grant

Hi. My first post here, but seeing that dredge - I just had to! My mate and I used an imported dredge identical to that on the Walsh river in 1972 (for alluvial tin - I understand we were the first to have imported this from California), and then in 1973 on the Palmer river for gold - prospecting all the deep water holes (and exactly 100 years after James Venture Mulligan found payable gold on the Palmer).
We found that the sluice was too short and the riffles not high enough, so we had a much larger sluice box made at a metal workshop in Cairns and floating on 6 x 44 gallon drums.
We tested it with lead buck shot (lead having roughly half the SG of gold), and made an angle on the sluice by letting in water in the lower drums.
I managed to sink it at the first attempt, but we managed to refloat it after much work!
Not a lot of gold - but wonderful memories of wonderful country. Also helped out mustering cattle for King Junction station then owned by Ray Piggott.
I've lived in Poland for over 30 years, but my wife and I still travel to Cape York at least once or twice per year pre Covid (and stayed for 6 months because of Covid in 2020).
I've given my photos to Cooktown Historical museum. I've downloaded a couple here - the first being on the Walsh, and the second where we're loaded up to go to another location on the Palmer. Sadly, I lost over half of my slides in a flash flood in November '73 on the Palmer ( I have photos of before and after!!).
I'm on this site to see what's happening in the World of Gold prospecting in Australia (and you're making me very jealous) - and maybe one day my wife and I will have a little fun with a dish for panning. Good prospecting everyone! Nick Evans

 

[gulliver]

Thanks Grant. I found a copy at abebooks.com. It appears to be one of the best descriptions of stream flow and sediment deposition, because it has the illustrations.

 

[Barry Mefinger]

Thanks gcause, I need some fresh, old reading.

 

[Jaros]

Thanks for dropping in gcause-been a while.

 

[user 4386]

Bewdy mate. Thats the last (cave-less) waterfall I check! (Fig 32)

Yes but a good description overall. I have looked up a few records on waterfalls and the general rule is that it has taken a lot of preparation to be able to excavate them, and then they prove disappointing (when I started I assumed the opposite). An example is Mac Mac falls where I worked in northeast South Africa. I think the old records say the same at Beechworth,,,not sure. But no doubt there is the occassional exception!

 

[Capertee gold]

Looks very similar to the illustrations in this book I have

 

[Mackka]

I saw this diagram on FB and thought i would share it. Cheers Mackka

 

[20x]

Mod Edit:
Source https://opentextbc.ca/geology/chapter/13-3-stream-erosion-and-deposition/