This year's Gold Prospecting and Mining Summit will be at the El Dorado County Fa
irgrounds April 16-17 in Placerville, California. The event features 20,000 square feet packed with the latest in mining and prospecting equipment and expert instruction from the writers and staff of ICMJ's Prospecting and Mining Journal. Learn everything from gold panning, basic prospecting and metal detecting, up to advanced gold recovery and small operations. Lectures are free (see schedule below) and the speakers are true EXPERTS in their fields. Over 80 booths will showcase and demo the latest in prospecting and mining equipment.
Event admission is $5 and parking is also $5. Kids under 12 are free with a paid adult. Gold panning is available for children, as well as a free scavenger hunt. Food and drinks available for purchase. RV camping available at the fairgrounds or choose a nearby hotel.
In addition, there will be an Ask The Experts booth staffed with experts in panning, detecting and mineral processing. Bring your questions! There's a suggested donation of $2 (with all proceeds going to Public Lands for the People) but a donation is certainly not required!
Lecture Schedule:
| Saturday, |
April 16 |
| 10:30am |
How to Research a Promising Location for Gold Prospecting |
Don Robinson |
| 11:30am |
Staking and Holding Mining Claims |
Chris Ralph |
| 12:30pm |
Current Regulations & Permitting |
Charles Watson |
| 1:30pm |
Old Mines: Hazards & Benefits for the Amateur Prospector |
Professor George Wheeldon |
| 2:30pm |
Gold & Precious Metals Markets |
Leonard Melman |
| 3:30pm |
Basic Gold Prospecting Techniques |
Chris Ralph |
| 4:30pm |
Raffle |
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| Sunday, |
April 17 |
| 10:30am |
Mineral Identification |
Chris Ralph |
| 11:30am |
Retaking Control of Regulations Through Mining Districts |
Scott Harn & Clark Pearson |
| 12:30pm |
Metal Detecting for Gold |
Steve Herschbach |
| 1:30pm |
Gravity Separation |
Dr. Thom Seal |
| 2:30pm |
Ask The Experts: Question and Answer Session |
Chris Ralph, Scott Harn, Clark Pearson, Dr. Thom Seal, Pat Keene, Leonard Melman |
| 3:30pm |
Raffle |
Get all the details of ICMJ's 2016 Mining Summit here.
While in Placerville, you might also want to check out these other nearby activities:
- Gold Bug Park and Mine. Located just three miles from the Mining Summit, Hangtown's Gold Bug Park and Mine in Placerville includes two hard rock mines, a stamp mill, mining museum and blacksmith shop. This 1850 hard rock mine is well-preserved, with thousands of pick marks on the walls and ceiling, giving testament to the grueling, back-breaking life of a hard rock miner. Learn more about Gold Bug Park and Mine here or contact the park at (530) 642-5207.
- El Dorado County Mining Museum. The El Dorado County Mining History Museum will be open for the Mining Summit. The museum houses a large collection of mining artifacts and a wealth of information, including an extensive collection of digitized photographs and historical maps of mining claims. The museum will be open from 10am - 4pm Friday through Sunday, and it's conveniently located at the Placerville Fairgrounds, 100 Placerville Dr., Placerville. The museum requests a donation of $2.00 per visitor. Get info on the Mining Museum here.
- Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park. If you haven't been there before, no visit to the area would be complete without a stop at the site of Sutter's Mill where James W. Marshall discovered gold in 1848. The day-use areas are open from 8am - 5pm, and the museum is open 10am - 5pm. The park is located in Coloma, about 18 minutes north of the Placerville Fairgrounds on historic Route 49. Learn more about Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park here.
