Tomah Wisconsin GPAA Chapter – March 2020

Welcome

Welcome to the 2020 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.

 Do not forget the Newsletter and pictures can always be found at:

President’s Message

There was good interest in the rocker boxes at the meeting. No one has any experience with using one so they were eager to see how they worked. My side to side box needs some carpeting or matting to complete it. I think some silicon matting would work wonderfully.

 Gary is doing well after his surgery, he is staying with his daughter Emily as his driveway is very icy! He want to thank everyone for the card and thinking of him.

 Anyone who know of a business that would be interested in setting up at the gold show should have them contact me or call the GPAA direct and have them indicate they are associated with the Tomah chapter. We will get points towards purchasing supplies from GPAA. I have a hotel room at Days inn in West Allis/Milwaukee area.

I also have site #51 for the June 26-28 Nugget Lake outing. And a hotel in Sturgis for the June5-7 outing in South Dakota.

See you at the meeting Mike Fait

Upcoming Events

Planned Outings:

-       March 21, 2020 – Tomah Club Meeting

-       April 18, 2020 – Tomah Club Meeting

-       May 1-2, 2020 - Central Wisconsin Rock and gem show Marshfield

-       May 16-17, 2020 - GPAA gold show Milwaukee Wisconsin at the state park fairgrounds

-       June 5, 2020 -  Lacrosse rock and gem show

-       June 5,6,7, 2020 -  Black Hill south Dakota outing (Wausau Chapter)

-       June 26,27,28, 2020 - Tomah chapter outing to Nugget Lake

-       July 17,18,19, 2020 - Wausau outing to Snyder  county Park

-       July 24,25,26,2020 - Midstate metal detectors club 24th annual open hunt Nekoosa

-       Aug 25-30, 2020 - GPAA diggers party in Athens Michigan Wausau/ Tomah

-       Sept 18,19,20, 2020 - Wausau outing to Nugget Lake - this is Tomah’s  weekend so we will join them       (individual dig  for  yourself)

-       somewhere this summer we will try and squeeze in a metal detecting outing

Tomah Club Meeting - Town of LaGrange Town Hall. 22731 Flint Ave. Tomah WI. 54660 - 1.8 miles west of the 12/21 Hwy intersection in Tomah. – At 1:00 pm on the following dates, speakers will be announced as they are scheduled:

Tomah Wisconsin GPAA Chapter Minutes

February, 2020

Club Business:                                                                                                                                                              

Pledge to the Flag was said, and finances were reported. 15 members present.

Mike talked about the three different styles of rocker boxes he had available to him. You can run three times as much material with a rocker box and it is easier on your back. You either have to take your water with you and recirculate or have a puddle or slow flowing stream present to make the rockers work.

 A card was signed for Gary Morrison who had his hip replaced after a fall on the ice.

 Ted Ehrhardt talked about Judy’s Alaska gold says he gets real good prices and gold from her.

Donations from Larry Bender, Jeff Hasting, Merlin Meyer, Richard Niemyjski, Ted Ehrhardt, Barb Bublitz, and Diane Kollins.  If I missed anyone I’m sorry I get to talking with other members and distracted.

50/50 Raffle Ted Ehrhardt

Gold Nugget Larry Kollins

Gold Concentrates Ken Olp

Tourist gold vile Larry Bender

March meeting is on the 21st Kurt Bublitz and Mick Whalen will be talking about reading a river to find more gold.

Gold Price on 03/03/2020 was $1,644.70              Silver Price on 03/03/2020 was $17.21

Respectfully submitted by Diane North – Newsletter Editor

 Finding Gold in a River  

Published by www.goldfeverprospecting.com

Excerpted from "Let's get Physical", by James C. McNeill (copyright Š 1995)

Gold is found in lode deposits, residual deposits, alluvial deposits, bench deposits, streambed deposits, ancient rivers, and flood layers. A lode deposit is a crack or fissure in hardrock that's full of gold. This is the original source of placer deposits.

Residual deposits are pieces of ore that have eroded away from a lode. They are usually directly under the lode that they broke away from.

Alluvial deposits are pieces of ore that have eroded away from a lode, but haven't been deposited in a stream. The hill that they came from may no longer exist, or may even be further downhill.

Bench deposits are found on the banks of a stream, and streambed deposits are found under the water. You can start your exploration in the streambed. If you don't see any signs there, chances are that the entire basin is bare.

Look for cracks or crevices in the rock at the bottom of the stream. Gold will settle into them. Any rough or irregular bedrock surface will act as a gold trap. Potholes in the bedrock will trap gold, so dig until you find the hard edges of the hole. Smooth and polished surfaces don't trap gold well.

Dikes in the bedrock will trap gold in different ways. If it angles downstream, gold will to collect on the downstream side. If it angles upstream, it will tend to collect on the upstream side. Rock outcroppings from the stream sides work about this same way.

Any sudden drop-off into a deeper and larger volume of water is a good place to look. Boulders at the base of a waterfall will protect gold deposits from being boiled away by the falling water. Sometimes the gold will settle out just beyond the boilout point. If the slope of the streambed lessens and smoothes out, there may be a good sized deposit there. Look on topographical maps for places where the grade levels off and check it out.

Gold tends to follow the shortest route between bends.

Boulders in the stream may trap gold on the downstream side. Of course, if they are in the shortest path, they are even more likely to do so.

During the Tertiary period, about 2 million years ago, the mountains underwent a lot of twisting and faulting. Many streams were formed, most of which ran in a South-East direction. The benches of these ancient rivers and streams are well known for the rich deposits they contain. These deposits often have a deep blue color, and are called 'Blue lead', which turns a rusty reddish brown after being dug up and exposed to the air. They are often very hard and compacted.

Flood gold can be found at the bottom of flood layers where heavy storms with enough force to move large amounts of gold will produce concentrations. Watch for layers of differing color, hardness and consistency. Some hard layers may masquerade as bedrock, so don't give up if the going gets a little hard. The shortest route idea applies here, also. Sharp bends may show good return in the inside edges quite far from the normal water line.

Officers – elected for 2020.

President – Michael Fait (mgfait@charter.net) 715-384-9265   (Cell phone to be used only on meeting days = 715-305-8319)

Vice-President – Gary Morrison 715-316-2555

Secretary – Jeanne Morrison 715-316-2555

Newsletter Editor - Diane North (dbnorth@centurytel.net) 608-635-7031

Treasure – Gayle Fait (mgfait@charter.net) 715-384-9265

Outing Chairman – Jeff Hastings (monkeyhast@frontier.net)  (608) 637-3097

Claims Director – Richard Niemyjski (richnski@frontiernet.net) 608-637-3295

State Director – Mick Whalen mj-whalen@hotmail.com  715-612-2800

APPROVED DEALERS:

Deer field Detectors.  Dealer for Whites, Fisher, Garrett, Minelab, Bounty Hunter, Detector Pro Detector & Pinpointers, Sunray Detector Accessories, & many misc. detecting accessories.  Deerfield Detectors, N3091 CTY Rd. B, Hancock, WI 54943 (715) 572-1845 or e-mail stmill@uniontel.net or http://www.deerfielddetectors.com/

Wisconsin Area Clubs

The Kettle Moraine Prospectors of Wisconsin – We still meet in the Community Center in Plymouth, Wi.  on the second Saturday of the month, providing the church doesn't have something else on their schedule .- 1:00 PM Meetings  Contact: Chuck Riel – 414-328-3194 or visit wisgold.org/index.html

Midstate Metal Detecting Club – meets every 3^rd 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 1^st Saturday of the month at 11:00 am at the Village Town Hall in Brokaw Wisconsin. Address is: 218 2^nd St., Brokaw, WI. Take US 51 north of Wausau and take exit 197. Then go east on county road WW. At the 4 way stop in Brokaw take a right. You are there (just past the Credit Union).  Contact:  Kurt Bublitz 715-340-2831 or e-mail lizzy101@charter.net

Wisconsin Michigan Prospectors.GPAA Chapter – holds their meetings on the 3^rd Saturday of every month at 11:00 am, at meeting location for the next few months at Newinghams Supper Club at 722 Main St. Wausaukee, WI 54177. Contact Ron Smith.