Sluicing in central Vic any suggestions?

[Big bryza]

Hi ya all,
Am planning to make a sluice over summer and hit the creeks and gullys around castlemaine in winter or when we get enough rain just to get a little colour, while I save for a pi detector.
Any suggestions where would be a good spot with enough water?
Has anyone done any sluicing around bendigo or castlemaine?
Don't tell me your favorite spot just point me in the right direction!
From what I can tell as long as your not using a mechanical device you can sluice anywhere in Vic with A miners right? Is that correct?
Sorry for all the questions, appreciate any feedback, much thanks

 

[Tige]

Hi , there is a pretty big list of exempted rivers, creeks that u can't prospect on, type in exempted rivers in Victoria for prospecting

 

[Big bryza]

Thanks tige,
Just checked the list, looks pretty cool where I am going, thanks for pointing out the list! Cheers

 

[Beagleboy]

You can prospect in state parks but not national parks. You should be able to find few possible spots if you dig around this forum. I usually prospect around Gippsland so I am not familiar with that area. I think I read somewhere that you can sluice and use high banker at Dolly's creek. I think that's in the general area. Try googling it. Good luck and post some pics of your contraption.

 

[loamer]

Central Vic? Try winter - there is next to no water about at the moment and it is only going to get worse this next week. Some water was being released from the Laanacoorie reservoir a couple of months ago, but thats probably stopped. (Fishing below the dam wall was great by the way). I don't know if Slaty Creek at Creswick has any running water though - the Ballarat/Creswick crew may know.

 

[Teemore]

Water, what's that ..... Nothing around the Creswick region at the moment except for a couple of mozzie breeding mud holes.
Northern Vic areas may have a little but doubt it,
Time for some beach combing till the spring rains bring enough to get the sluice back into action
It's a problem the old timers had as well hence the remnants of water races through most of the goldfields, some enterprising souls sold it by the bucketful, not .cheap either.
Cheers Tom

 

[bobcat]

try crystal brook can find gold and agate there

 

[bobcat]

follow the river near the cross over other side of creek from the caravan park and post office hope that helps mainly small nuggets small nail size and old bullets made of gold by the old prospecters of the early days plus relics of the gold rush era good luck hope you find something worth while I've allways done well their when I lived in vic
plus the odd funder egg

 

[Goldtarget]

Hey mate brand new first reply. We are in the same neck of the woods so i look forward to any replies. As for me i have a couple of decades of on feild knowledge of the rushworth area with a couple ofnice spots .. Be delighted to show you around some time. Just got my sluice going with some positive results.

 

[Big bryza]

That would be great mate,
Am up for that, much thanks, will keep in touch, welcome to the forum, good luck with that sluice! Look forward to hearing your results! How long have you been prospecting?

 

[Redfin]

I came across what looked like to me some classified ground near a dam not far from Dunolly yesterday.
There were four distinct piles of aggregate, diminishing in size, all next to a water scource
so guess a highbanker?

 

[Marked]

You can prospect in state parks but not national parks.

I thought State Parks were a similar deal to National Parks? State Forests on the other hand, I know are ok - as long as you observe the exempted rivers list.

 

[RottenRon]

Water, what's that ..... Nothing around the Creswick region at the moment except for a couple of mozzie breeding mud holes.
Northern Vic areas may have a little but doubt it,
Time for some beach combing till the spring rains bring enough to get the sluice back into action
It's a problem the old timers had as well hence the remnants of water races through most of the goldfields, some enterprising souls sold it by the bucketful, not .cheap either.
Cheers Tom

Sailor's Creek near Daylesford has just enough flow for a sluice ATM, (where it's narrow) but I use a battery pack and bilge pump for my hi-banker, so as long as there's a reasonable puddle, I'm good to go.
I reckon you might have useful flows for a sluice in there for another one or two weeks, maybe more.

Cheers, Ron.

 

[V_8]

Hi Bobcat, where is this Crystal Brook? Can't seem to find it on the map.

Cheers, V_8

 

[Goldtarget]

Hey bryza inrend on doing some test panning in Ascot Huntly where a few good pockets have been found, in fact I'm in location as i write this. There's a small flow i found not to bad for sluicing. If you ever wasn't to team up let me know I'm always keen.this heat will be oppressive, but I'm out in it while the shade is about. Happy hunting.

 

[elbowgrease]

Hey mate brand new first reply. We are in the same neck of the woods so i look forward to any replies. As for me i have a couple of decades of on feild knowledge of the rushworth area with a couple ofnice spots .. Be delighted to show you around some time. Just got my sluice going with some positive results.

Hey Goldtarget

You say you've had some experience in the Rushworth area, any luck with alluvial type gold or anything you can prospect with a highbanker running from a dam or running a recirculating setup?

I tried digging over there a couple of times and processing a couple bucket of material at home but never did any good.

Cheers
Adam

 

[Big bryza]

Yep looks that way redfin! Hope they got some good colour! Enjoy yourself out there it's getting hot, good luck

 

[Goldtarget]

Hey Adam, id be happy to provide some general places, after all its my childhood backyard. I'm sure the oldfellas and not so old fellas did quite well out there, mostly alluvial but some good gains can be made nugget hunting. The trick is to find the places where perspiration meets opportunity. What I mean is like all gold fields is finding places that aren't so well worked. So can I tell you where to set up? Id be happy to offer directions. I can even tell you where I've had luck and others have guided me. I have a feeling that one day soon it won't just be the locals and the odd detector running around, as evidenced by my outings here in bendigo. I personally believe they get the volume of prospecting because A. there's tonnes of info out there, and B. Its well serviced in the surrounds.

 

[elbowgrease]

Hey Adam, id be happy to provide some general places, after all its my childhood backyard. I'm sure the oldfellas and not so old fellas did quite well out there, mostly alluvial but some good gains can be made nugget hunting. The trick is to find the places where perspiration meets opportunity. What I mean is like all gold fields is finding places that aren't so well worked. So can I tell you where to set up? Id be happy to offer directions. I can even tell you where I've had luck and others have guided me. I have a feeling that one day soon it won't just be the locals and the odd detector running around, as evidenced by my outings here in bendigo. I personally believe they get the volume of prospecting because A. there's tonnes of info out there, and B. Its well serviced in the surrounds.

Hey Goldtarget

I'm definitely interested and your offer of information is greatly appreciated. I'd send you a PM but until you hit 10 posts that option isn't available.

I do most of my prospecting up at Beechworth \ Eldorado where gold is small but relatively easy to find and there is generally an abundance of blacksand but I'd exxpect trying to prospect Rushworth \ Whroo will be vastly different.

I've had a poke around Rushworth \ Whroo area (a mate of mine use to have bee hives over there) and tried digging a few buckets of material from what I think I identified as an old river course or at least a path water would take after rain. Not luck unfortunately. Lots of clay which was very hard to break up, and no black sand, but from what I've been told since, there isn't really much black sand there anyway.

In the past when I've asked questions 99% of the response I get is, no water, pretty well a detector zone not really any good for running a highbanker. So to hear that there is a chance to run a highbanker or re-circ is really encouraging. I understand there are damn's and stuff throughout the forest that could potentially be used as water supply.

When you reach 10 posts send me a PM

Thanks
Adam

 

[Goldtarget]

From all accounts I'd much rather the easy abundant type! I'm currently working on a new high banker and fully intended to feilds test it, but the weather is oppressive at the moment, i went detecting yesterday and I'm feeling it today. There are two places i know where black sands occur in the area, one with a water supply one you have to take home. I hear"oh the gold is not there everybody had been there" but still its there to be found, after good rains you can have some luck. I think patience is the key, otherwise we would all be in wa. Best time is winter, no snakes, good water, and every new season throws up something new. There was am article not long ago on detecting in the area in one of the high profile gold magazines, thus proving good gold can be found. detecting nuggets of up to 3 gs is worthy i would think of saying there's still gold to be found. There would be thousands of mullock heaps out there i guess it depends on what you consider worthy. In my time I've panned detected and used sluices with some result. Don't get me wrong abundance isn't in tall order, but as I've heard before gold is where you find it! The appeal lies in the fact there is still much under worked real estate. The Olds 8.( puddler i know of still had its inner boards up to10 years ago, original, with the hitch point still having the steel attached. I've been down shafts over 60 metres deep that you would never know where there until you're on the edge of them, and even balaclava mine at whroo was a complete disaster and under worked at the end. Due to the eagerness of overusing explosives. It won't be to long and please pm me, I'm more than willing to point you in the right direction.