Gold Fever !!!
Tomah
Wisconsin GPAA Chapter – October, 2014
Welcome
Welcome to the 2014 GOLD FEVER Newsletter.
Another year, another gold prospecting opportunity.
If you have not tried to find gold, you need to give it a try.
Let us know if you need help to get started, there are many people with
experience that the help you.
The Tomah, Wisconsin GPAA Chapter newsletter is your newsletter, please let me
know what you would like to see in it, we hope to bring you more information in
the coming year. I hope you enjoy
the information and articles included in this newsletter.
You can receive this Newsletter by
mail, by either attended a meeting, or sent a book of stamps for postage.
We are also always looking for speakers, we need to help out our great president
(Mike Fait). He has been putting
the programs together with very little help.
If you have taken a trip or just have a story about somewhere, we would
like to hear about it. You do NOT
need to be an expert speaker; everyone likes to hear about what other members
are doing.
Do not forget the Newsletter and pictures can always be found at:
www.huntforgems.com/gpaatomahwi/
President’s Message
What a surprise to see Richard Hanson again, he was the president before I took
over. He has been traveling with the GPAA Gold Expos for several years. He is
now a dealer for the gold cube. If you are interested in one give him a call a
(608)498-2237 for a price and/or demonstration. He will be traveling to various
gold shows in the northeastern part of the US.
I went to the
environmental committee meeting in Marathon County last month. They are the only
county I know of in Wisconsin who have outlawed panning in the steams on county
property. The committee put off making any decision on whether to allow panning
or not until the October meeting. I don't know if I can make that one as I am
getting short on vacation days this year. I don't even know when the next
meeting is yet! Most of the board seemed to listen to us, but one member is dead
set against it and no matter what we said he had something to say against it.
The board had a biologist there to report to and he seems to back up the one
member that is against us. He told the committee that it was illegal to prospect
on any state owned land which he knew to be false. You cannot pan in state parks
or scenic waterways but you can pan in state forest, he didn't mention that
until I talked to him outside where the others couldn't hear him.
I went to the Wausau outing in
Clack County and found gold in two different creeks over the weekend. I am going
to the fall Parish outing later this week. It will be over by the time you read
this. Dennis Lauberstien is having a metal detecting dig on his property. There
is also gold in two of the area creeks.
October is elections month I hope
we have volunteers for all the offices.
See you in the creeks Mike Fait
Tomah Wisconsin GPAA Chapter Minutes September, 2014
Old Business:
The September meeting was held at the Town Hall at the Town of Lagrange, 22731
Flint Ave. on Route #21 west of Tomah Wisconsin on September 20th, 34
members and guests attended the September
meeting.
Mike Fait and Richard Hanson were the guest speakers.
Mike brought some of the black sand he collected on Lake Superior, to
demonstrate how to pan the black sand.
Richard Hanson demonstrated his Gold Cube that he is now a dealer for.
This is something that everyone do not get a chance to see and learn
about the process. That is because
if you do not go to the GPAA Gold Shows, more than likely you have not seen this
tool before. Thank you very much
for the demonstration.
Also at the meeting Mike Fait brought many pictures with Capt. Bob Minshall in
them, and Diane North had a slide presentation of the many faces of Capt. Bob.
New
Business:
October’s meeting will be on the 3rd
Saturday of October on the 18th at 1:00 pm at the Town Hall at the
Town of Lagrange, 22731 Flint Ave. on Route #21 west of Tomah Wisconsin.
Please bring a dish to pass for lunch.
At the October’s meeting the 2015 elections will be held.
Raffles:
Donations to the raffle were from:
Dave Bender, Mike Fait, Robert Wysocky, Richard Powel, Val Thompson, Diane
Kollins, Mike Flint, Gary Morrison, Richard Niemyski, Jack Jasinski & Diane
North, hope I didn't miss anyone.
Raffles:
50/50
raffle winner – John Schwingle
Gold raffle winners: John Schwingle and Richard Niemyski
Gold
Price on 9/23/14 was $1,222.90 Silver
Price on 9/23/14 was $17.78
Respectfully submitted by Diane North –
Newsletter Editor
MAY THERE BE GOLD IN EVERY PAN !!!!
What is Black Sand?
From http://www.hookedongold.com/black_sand_what_is_it.htm
All throughout placer mining history,
from the great Egyptians, to the Spanish in South America and the Forty Niners,
gold prospectors have had a love hate relationship with black sand. They
look for it, and once they find it, do everything possible to
remove it from the heavy metals they know are associated with it. Some black
sands separate reasonably easily from the heavier metals, and some do not.
Anyone who has been a gold prospector or knows someone who is, also knows that
black sand is the one thing placer prospectors are the most concerned with,
other than heavy metals such as gold.
Placer mining
depends on this relationship to separate lighter materials from heavier ones.
Black sand is one of the materials that is heavier and in abundance, so a
prospector for gold looks for the abundant black sand knowing that heavier
metals will also run along with it in rivers and streams.
Black sand
has a specific gravity of from 5 to 11, or 5 to 11 times the weight of water,
depending on what is in the black sand. Gold, on the other hand, has a specific
gravity of around 19 and platinum around 21.
Specific gravity is the wet weight relationship of everything to water,
with water being zero.
So we return to our original question, "Black Sand, What Is It?" It
contains many heavy materials including hematite, magnetite (which, by the way,
can be magnetic, but gets its name from the area it was originally found in
called Magnesia, bordering the ancient district of Macedonia) iron, iron pyrite,
and sheelite, to name the most common.
Finding black sand is usually essential in finding heavier minerals and
gemstones when placer mining, which are not as readily seen as black sand.
So, the next time you see that line of black sand along the shore of a river,
lake, stream or ocean, you have a better idea of what it is..... and also what
might be found along with it. Then, maybe, you can spend time being frustrated,
like the rest of us, with finding ways to separate black sand from the more
valuable minerals and gemstones often associated with
it.
Officers
– all officers were re-elected for 2014.
President – Michael Fait (mgfait@charter.net)
715-384-9265
Vice-President – Gary Morrison 715-316-2160
Secretary – Jeanne Morrison 715-316-2160
Newsletter Editor - Diane North (dbnorth@centurytel.net)
608-635-7031
Treasure – Gayle Fait (mgfait@charter.net)
715-384-9265
Outing Chairman – Richard Niemyjski (richnski@frontiernet.net)
608-637-3295
Claims Director – Richard Niemyjski (richnski@frontiernet.net)
608-637-3295
State Director – Mike Flint (mwink12@excite.com)
608-372-0694
Upcoming Events
Sept, 26 – 28, 2014 - Fall in Parrish (Dennis Laubenstein outing)
Oct 4th, 2014 - Wausau Prospector Meeting – Highway 29 & County Road
X – 11:00 am
Oct 18, 2014 -
Tomah
Club Meeting at Town of LaGrange Town Hall – at 1:00 pm
Nov 15,2014 - Tomah Club Meeting at Town of LaGrange Town Hall – at 1:00 pm
Wisconsin Area Clubs
Greenbush Wisconsin GPAA Chapter – holds their meetings on the 2nd
Saturday of each month at 3:00 pm in the Greenbush Town Hall, N644 Sugarbush Rd,
Greenbush Wi. – Contact: Ron Smith 920-207-4092
Midstate Metal Detecting Club – meets every 3rd Wednesday at 7:00 pm
at Shooters Bar and Restaurant at the intersection of Hwy 39 and 54, next to the
Shell Station. Contact: Steve
Miller 715-572-1845
Wausau Prospectors – meets the 1st Saturday of the month at 11:00 am
in the community room at Cedar Creek Mall next to I-39 just north of Gander
Mountain. Take I-39 exit 185.
Contact: Kurt Bublitz
715-340-2831 or e-mail
lizzy101@charter.net
Wisconsin Northwoods Adventures GPAA Chapter – holds their meetings on the 2nd
Saturday of every month at 11:00 am, at Rice Lake
Regional Airport located west of Cameron and west of hwy53 on 19th St.,
Rice Lake, Wi. Contact: Mike
Wiersma 715-833-7603