Some Questions - Hanging Rock State Forest

[cronicbadger]

I'm stopping in at Nundle in a few weeks and want someone to verify or add to my basic plan.

I intend to go panning up in the state forest, and have checked maps and geological data sheets.
The documents I have used include:

1) Quarterly Notes No.37, 1st October 1979: "The Nundle Goldfield" - C.R. Weber
(NSW Dept Mineral Resources and Development)

2) Technical Paper 37. "Geology Of Hanging Rock And Nundle State Forests" - P.J. Ryan & P.J. Holmes
(Forestry Commission Of New South Wales)

3) Fossicking Area Map: Hanging Rock State Forest
(Forestry Corporation of NSW)

I think I should:

a) Stay to the creeks West of the fault line where the Serpentine Belt and Woolomin Beds meet, roughly a line slightly East of South, from Folly Creek Prospect through to Bonds Reef.

b) Test Nuggetty Creek along its length as this winds between the basalt that caps the underlying alluvium.

Most of the gold will be from eroded spoil from the old mullocks and open cut operations, plus the old alluvium eroding from under the basalt - so I will be wasting my time digging too deep for old layers of unworked wash (they won't exist).

Any comments?

[dreadnought]

I'd say yes to a and b, seem like best Au is to be dug up in the hills, best of luck.

[cronicbadger]

I spent two and a half days at Nundle. The first I did some reconnaissance, second panned the Peel, third tried my luck in the state forest.

Observations:

1) Swamp Creek Fossicking Area: Flogged to death. A few specks from some test pans and two 25-litre buckets worth of processing.

2) Battery TSR: Lots of sorted piles of stone and sand along the length of the river. It was evident that this had been worked fairly extensively since the last big flood. Most of the large rocks on the northern end of the East bank had been gone over, including cracks and crevasses. One crevice I tried yielded someone's leftovers, five small flakes.

3) Old Chimney Fossicking Area: The sign was missing from the gate. The banks showed little evidence of activity, but I didn't have time to try here.

4) Zircon Gully
It looks as if no-one has fossicked there for years. Overgrowth, small trees. I stopped and had a look around, but had no time to clear a patch and dig.

5) Burrows Creek: I test-panned a length of about 100 metres of creek at the northern base of Hardens Hill, just downstream where Nuggety Creek flows into it, near where gold was first (officially) discovered. There had been a lot of activity on this stretch. I got nothing until I tried a large pothole at the base of some small falls (about 50 cm in its drop).

The pothole under the falls was interesting. The edges of the falls were a thick grey clay rather than stone. I don't see how this could exist as surely it would be eaten away by the waterfall. Perhaps the clay started out as an extensive block and the falls are retreating upstream. I will check it out next time to see if there is any change in its position. The hole yielded one flake of gold and an odd little lead slug about 5mm in diameter.

The lead slug:
At first I thought it was an old home-made musket ball, as it was made in two hemispheres (ie, molded, not dropped). But the two halves don't line up, and inside is what appears to be a core of yellow metal. It is like a hard-boiled egg sliced through its centre and slide to reveal part of the yolk.

Mineshaft dangers:
While I was in the state forest I met some fellows who had been searching for old mine shafts. It was a timely reminder to be observant of the ground around that area for dangers other than snakes.

In Conclusion:
I'll be back. The town has plenty to see, and I met some great people. Peel Inn does some pretty good food too: Fish & chips, Pie, Mushy Peas and Chips, Garlic Bread. The cafe next to the art gallery also does a good bacon and egg roll. And of course there is the excellent mineral collection at the Tourist Information Centre.

[Ric]

Thanks for the report Cronicbadger.

Interesting observations.