Since the days of the California Gold Rush in 1849, persons intent on mining, prospecting and panning have flocked to California to hunt for gold. They use gold pans, sluice boxes, metal detectors, dredges and dry washers in their prospecting efforts. Rockhounding is done in the gold producing areas.

A simple gold pan is effective in detecting and recovering gold from a streambed. Recreational gold panning is a popular hobby in California and is enjoyed by California natives and visitors, alike. If you want to find some gold and have fun doing it, gold panning will suffice and will provide many happy hours of outdoor activity for you and your family.

Inexpensive light weight sluice boxes are often used in flowing streams to increase the amount of material being washed for gold. Metal detecting is done to detect nuggets in streambeds, dry washes and arid areas.  Dry washers are also used to recover gold in arid areas. 

The great California Gold Rush in 1849 was of such importance, and has received so much publicity, that many people are not aware that the California Gold Rush was preceded by gold rushes in the Southeastern States. Nor are they aware that much gold mining was done to the south in what is now Southern California long before the discovery at Sutter's mill that set off the 1849 gold rush.

The first documented discovery of gold in the United States was in North Carolina in 1799 and gold mining started there in 1803. A major gold rush took place in Georgia in 1828 and a lesser rush occurred in Alabama in the 1830's. Most of the gold mining districts in the West were located by pioneers, many of whom were experienced gold miners from Alabama and Georgia. 

Gold mining, prospecting and panning locations in California extend from the Mexican border to the Oregon state line and eastward to the Arizona and Nevada state lines. Both Northern and Southern California provide ample prospecting and panning locations where you may find gold.

Knowledge of places where gold has been found in the past is useful in searching for more gold. Big Ten's six California Gold Prospecting and Panning Maps show those locations.

Prior work by geologists of the U.S. Bureau of Mines, the U.S. Geological Survey and the California Division of Mines and Geology is acknowledged. Of special mention is the prior work of William B. Clark and Ralph Loyd of the California Division of Mines and Geology and that of Waldemar P. Lindgren of the U.S. Geological Survey. The excellent California Division of Mines and Geology Bulletin 193, by William B. Clark, was drawn upon for details of specific gold districts throughout the state and for text regarding the Klamath Mountains region of Northern California.  Lindgren's work published in the year 1911 as regards the ancient Tertiary Rivers is considered a classic.

Note: The above paragraphs are common to each of the six (6) California gold regions. If you should read about gold mining, prospecting and panning in the other California gold regions, just scroll down to the point in the text where the particular region is discussed and continue on from there. The numbers of the California Gold Prospecting and Panning Maps correspond to the numbers of the California gold regions.

WHERE TO LOOK FOR AND FIND GOLD IN CALIFORNIA MOTHER LODE GOLD REGION 5

Big Ten's California Mother Lode Gold Prospecting and Panning Map 5 shows places where to look to find gold near 

Arnold, Auburn, Benton, Bodie, Bridgeport, Carmichael, Carson Hill, Chinese Camp, Citrus Heights, Coarsegold, Columbia, Copperopolis, Coulterville, Downieville, El Dorado, El Portal, Folsom, Grass Valley, Incline, Ione, Jackson, Jacksonville, Jamestown, Lee Vining, Lincoln, Lodi, Magalia, Mammoth Lakes, Mariposa, Marysville, Moccasin, Nevada City, North Highlands, Oroville, Paradise, Placerville, Plymouth, Portola, Quincy, Roseville, Sacramento, San Andreas, Shaver Lake Heights, Sonora, South Lake Tahoe, Sutter Creek, Squabbletown, Tahoe City, Tahoma, Truckee, Tuolumne, Valley Springs, Volcano, Yosemite and Yuba City.

It shows three thousand (3,000) gold mines and gold prospecting and panning locations from official geological records of the State of California and the federal government. Locations for finding gold are shown within 15 miles of each of the above listed places. These gold deposit locations, which show where gold has been found in the past, are clearly marked. Christmas gift.

The map is done in color. The margin of the map has text that tells where to look for gold in a streambed, how to tell "fools gold" from real gold and gives step-by-step gold panning instructions. You can quickly learn to pan by following the instructions on the map.

GOLD MINES, PROSPECTING AND PANNING IN CALIFORNIA MOTHER LODE GOLD REGION 5

California Gold Region 5 extends from about 40 miles south of Yosemite National Park, northward to about five miles north of Quincy, in Plumas County. It extends  eastward from Sacramento to Lake Tahoe and the Nevada state line. 

Because of the proliferation of gold deposits here, California Gold Region 5 and part of California Gold Region 6 is known as the California Mother Lode. There is no fixed definition of the boundaries of the "Mother Lode", and actually no true "mother lode" exists. Some geologists define the boundaries as extending further southeast into California Gold Region 4. In any case, this is a very gold-rich area that has drawn worldwide attention and stimulated migration to California. Discovery of gold in this region at Sutter's Mill in 1848 led to the great California Gold Rush in 1849. Pioneers flocked westward across the U. S. plains in covered wagons and people came from Germany, China and other countries to find gold by prospecting and panning here. 

California's largest true gold nugget weighed 54 pounds troy. It was found in California Gold Region 5 at Magalia, in Butte County. (Butte County's gold mining, prospecting and panning locations are shown on Big Ten's California Gold Prospecting and Panning Maps 5 and 6.)

The dry remains of the ancient rivers of the Tertiary Period are shown on California Mother Lode Gold Prospecting and Panning Map 5. The ancient rivers are discontinuous today, with some parts of them being in the sides of mountains and other parts buried under lava flows from the volcanoes that erupted in the past. These ancient rivers were a major source of gold in the present-day rivers. According to Lindgren, some gravel deposits in the Tertiary  rivers were 250 feet deep, with gold occurring at various levels within the gravels. Remains of the ancient rivers are actively prospected and mined. To read of California's Ancient Rivers of Gold, please go to the link at the bottom of this page.

Many people have long harbored a desire to find California Mother Lode gold. People are now able to fulfill that dream.

Gold mining and prospecting locations continue on adjoining California Gold Prospecting and Panning Maps 4 and 6.

The economical and popular set of Northern California (Mother Lode) maps includes Maps 5 and 6.

To request gold prospecting and panning maps, please go to "REQUESTING GOLD MAPS", below.