A large number of lands are still open to mineral location, but you should know where to find them.

If you’re a citizen of the United States, a corporation, or even a non-citizen who has declared your intention to become one, you can locate a mining claim.

A mining claim gives the holder the right to mine on federal land, while a patent gives him outright ownership of mineral-rich land that belongs to the federal government.

Federal lands can be determined from maps, however there are no maps representing mining claims.

A mining claim can be located on these lands which are open to mineral location. If you have a specific piece of land in mind and no active claims are shown on the county’s records, the land may then be open for staking.

Here is a pretty good Ebook put out by the Bureau of Land Management that will explain things better: BLM Mining Info.

As many of you know I’m a big believer that most of the significant gold is actually found during your research and museums are an often overlooked place to do research, particularly if you are stumped.  I have found that looking at museums often give me a better feel for a project than say just reading or searching for information online, because the museum displays give you both an overview of mining in a given region, but also specific details about mining techniques, equipment, and production that you may not have known.

photo credit: nerdcoregirl

More importantly, even if you know all of the information in the exhibits, seeing the information explain in visual form may help spark some ideas you had never considered about where you might want to prospect and other research ideas.

Also, some of the old gold mining equipment might really be useful to you, because the old timers used a variety of methods that we no longer use for a variety of reasons.  However, you might be able to use your equipment a little more effectively or perhaps decide to build a piece of your own gear.  Most of the old stuff tends to be heavier and harder to use, but it depends on your situation.

Anyhow, here is the link for Mining Museums

Strike It Rich!

Like most grizzly bears this time of year I am slowly beginning to come out of my long winter hibernation.  I will be posting more gold treasure maps and other good information.

I think 2010 is going to be a good year for all of the part-time gold miners, because the price of gold has stayed high.

I’ll be posting something every week or two until I get tired or strike it rich.

If you have any specific things you want me to look into let me know.

Good Luck!

The death toll at an illegal gold mine in South Africa has now reached 76 and it is a reminder that it simply isn’t safe to venture into old mine shafts without the proper training and mining equipment.  Actually, even that is dangerous and amateurs should just not risk it.  After all, finding a hundred pound nugget would be pretty worthless if you got killed in the process. 

Furthermore, there are simply much safer ways to mine than venturing into crumbling mine shafts, especially in the US where most of the mine shafts were dug by self taught mining engineers better than a century ago. 

Strike It Rich!

Charlie

This week I am posting the 2008 edition of the BLM’s pamphlet Mining Claims and Sites on Federal Lands, which every serious gold miner should read. 

It contains the information about how a gold miner goes about filing a claim under the Mining Act of 1872.  Remember, there is a move afoot in Congress to change the 1872 Act which could be great for the small gold miner.  I would like to see the Mining Act re-worked so the small gold miner could still work a claim, because today most of the claims are held by big multinational companies.

Frankly, I think it has a shot, because an individual gold miner has very little environmental impact compared to the strip mining operations of the big boys and it allows a way for millions of average Americans to benefit from the mineral riches of Federal Lands.  So, any change that makes it easier for the solo gold miner to have a shot has my support. 

So, here’s the link on how to File A Mining Claim

Strike It Rich!

Charlie