dgd gazette - desert gold diggers · thomas & rosane adkins p ... the e-gazette or...

1 DGD Gazette—MARCH 2012

Attendance—March 2012 MEMBERS—154

GUESTS—24

Next Meeting April 3, 2012

Be sure and check out

page 7 for all of the events that are coming up!!

Check out page 19 for the Claims Status Update.

Bring in those canned goods for the Tucson Food Bank.

All the claim maps can be yours—in laminated form—or on a DVD -see the Club Store

See PAGE 9 for names of those members nominated for office. ELECTIONS HAPPEN AT THE APRIL MEETING—PLAN TO COME EARLY TO VOTE.

Spring Picnic coming on April 14th. Details on page 11

Outing at Placer Pond—map and directions on page 20- 7 AM meeting time.

Membership Meeting 1st Tuesday of every month

7:00 p.m. V.F.W Post #10188

345 E. Roger Rd Tucson, AZ 85705

Visitors ARE Welcome!

Official Publication of Desert Gold Diggers, Inc.

Desert Gold Diggers, Inc., is a non profit Arizona Corporation, exempt from Federal Income Tax under Section 501(c)(7) of the Internal Revenue code.

www.desert-gold-diggers.org Dues are $30.00/year/family when the Gazette is sent via e-mail and $35.00/yr/family if the Gazette is sent via

regular mail. Dues should be paid within 30 days of your anniversary month of joining Desert Gold Diggers. Check your mailing label for the date, or e-mail [email protected] and request your due date. Dues should

be mailed to the Membership Director, Maria Hansen 14967 S Theodore Roosevelt Way; Sahuarita, AZ 85629-8995

Business Meeting 3rd Tuesday of every month

7:00 p.m. Denny’s Restaurant

3655 E. Speedway Blvd.

Any MEMBER is invited

Printed by: AlphaGraphics 7306 N Oracle Rd Tucson, AZ 85704-6336

MARCH 2012 Volume 39 Issue 3

DGD Gazette

April 3rd—Membership meeting—VOTE for your new club officers and Board Members. The list is on page 9

April 7th—Outing at Placer Pond—7 AM—meeting place at mile marker 41.5 on State route 83.

April 14th—Spring Picnic-Kennedy Park—Ramada 33….details on page 11


DGD Would like to WELCOME the following folks

Make sure you pick up your badges at the meeting!!!

Thomas & Rosane Adkins P. Michael & Peggy Carter

John & Lucy Casey Mark T Colbeck

Paul & Frances Dommel George & Bonnie Dudelston

Jonathan & Jessica Foster Lloyd & Catherine Gould

Harold & Sharon Greschwitz Gerardo & Betty Guillen

Hilton & Becky Higginbottom Russell & Regina Howell

Curtis & Denise Kacin Kevin & Evelyn Kendall

Michael & Gloria Klinicki Jerry & Angela Locke

Larry & Mary McCracken Thomas & Sigrun Smorra

Jim Snyder J.D. & Brett Walker

Robert & Lorraine Yuhas Jr

Make sure you find these new folks and give them a DGD Welcome!!

Remember to check your mailing label—check the date on your membership card—or you

can e-mail Maria at [email protected] — for your membership expiration date. Dues can be mailed to Maria Hansen at

14967 S. Theodore Roosevelt Way, Sahuarita, AZ 85629-8995

You can also pay your dues at any membership meeting. Dues are $30.00/yr/family for the e-Gazette or $35.00/yr/family to have the Gazette mailed to your home. Prices are

higher for those folks outside the USA.

Contact Maria for those prices.

Please make your check out to Desert Gold Diggers, Inc.


Plan on coming to the Spring Picnic on April 14th—Kennedy Park—Ramada 33. There will be raffles for

prizes—games for kids and adults—good food and fun for all!!

Carla is still looking for volunteer's to set up, cook and clean –up.

Details on page 11

March 2012

Dear Members,

Election time has fallen upon us! Don't forget to show up to vote! I will be on vacation. Sadly, I will miss the elections. It has been a true pleasure and an honor to serve you this past year. It does not

seem that long ago. Time flies when you are having fun. This was a great opportunity to get to know my fellow members much better and help out the club. I didn't run for reelection, not because I didn't want to, but because life

threw me a curve ball. I am still in the game, but I need to change my lineup. I am reducing my responsibilities to just being webmaster for a time. The website

has been languishing and now I will be able to focus on it. This club is truly amazing and I look forward to the chance serve it again in the future.

May all your fine be 0.999,

Mark Hinkle DGD President

MARK HINKLE

The President’s Corner

Fred Schuster, our new Claims Director, gave a talk at the March meeting on how gold was de-posited. His notes can be read on page 6 and 13 in the General meeting minutes section.


DGD Business Board Minutes Due to a change in board policies, the business board meeting minutes will be published the

month following the initial meeting.

February 21, 2012

Mark Hinkle, sitting in for, Board Chairman Randy Cook, called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm. Linda Reuter, Interim Club Secretary, read the January 17, 2012 Business Meeting minutes. Under New Business: Shed Organizing, John Christensen indicated he did NOT say anything about either having or not having a key to the shed for the Shed Cleanup. John Christensen made a motion that the Desert Gold Dig-gers Business Meeting Minutes for January 17, 2012 be amended to reflect the change discussed then be accepted as amended. The motion was seconded by John Snow and the motion was passed as proposed. Gazette Report: Laurie Cook was not present, so there was no Gazette report. Webmaster’s Report: Mark Hinkle indicated there was nothing new to report with regard to the web-site. Dean Queen stated that the dates and times for the March outing were still wrong on the site. Membership Report: Maria Hansen read the names of the 22 new membership applications. There were 10 from Tucson; 2 each from Sonoita, AZ and Vancouver, WA; and 1 each from Marana, Benson, Pima, and Sahuarita, AZ, Houston, TX, Seattle WA, Herman, NM, and Dayton, OH. Linda Reuter made a motion that all 22 new applications be accepted. The motion was seconded by John Christensen and the motion was passed as proposed. (The list of names of new applicants is attached to these minutes.) Mark Hinkle requested that everybody please turn in all their club-related expenses to him and a check would be sent as soon as possible. Treasurer’s Report: Bill Eisley, Club Treasurer, was not present so there was no Treasurer Report. Gold Master’s Report: Lou Bolino, Club Gold Master, reported that the Club had a total of $16,927 as a dollar-amount in gold, or 9.6 oz. He indicated the Club could use more Regular-size nuggets. Maria Hansen said she had purchased 12 flats of the small display cases the Club uses to hand out the nuggets, at a price of $7.00 per flat. Lou also wanted it known that Club members can, for the time being, sell the nuggets they have won in the past back to the Club at the current Spot Price. The Spot Price for the day of this re-port was $1,753.00. John Snow suggested perhaps changing the price of the raffle tickets to $2.00, since the price of gold has risen so much. This suggestion was discussed somewhat and general Board consensus was against raising the price of the raffle tickets. John also recommended readjusting the formula for determining number of nuggets given out to raffle tickets sold when gold hits $2,000 an ounce. It was decided to revisit this idea when or if the need arises. Social Director’s Report: Carla Eisley, Social Director, was not present so there was no Social Director’s Report. Outings Report: Dean Queen, Outings Director, reported that 56 people showed up to the Reklov #2 outing in February. He said there were people finding gold, and there were a lot of older people there, some in their 80’s. He said the weather was good and it was a great outing. Dean noted the next outing, in March, would be to Empire Ranch. It would be more of a cook out and nugget shoot than a regular outing. He said he might even have a panning competition. He said everyone would meet on Sunday, March 11 at about 10:00 am. You should go to about Mile Marker 40-41 on Hwy 83. At the Empire Ranch sign posts, turn left and meet at the Information Center with the maps. If anyone wanted, they could bring a side dish to go along with the Hot Dogs. He also indicated that some people might possibly go out earlier to some of the other Greaterville claims nearby and do some cleanup. He said this time they would be using the DGD coins for the nugget shoot instead of the gold dollars. Dean also noted that the April outing would be to Placer Pond.

(Continued on page 5)


Check out the web site at www.desert-gold-diggers.org and find out what you need to do to keep our prospecting opportunities from being taken away!

Claim Director Report: Fred Schuster said he had called the BLM and would be talking to them. He also indicated he would like to give two talks at the general membership meetings: One on Mining Law and the other on How Gold was Deposited. He said he would need a Dry Erase board for his talks. John Snow inquired about the Club possibly buying a patented claim so we could avoid all of the paper-work and hassle we’ve been going through with the Forest Service and BLM. There was some discussion re-garding this, but no decision. Fred Schuster encouraged everyone to attend the public meetings for the Rosemont Mine to learn as much as possible. Fred indicated he had his letter out to the BLM, and would need a copy of it when he sends out his let-ter to the Forest Service. There was some discussion as to what address the Club should use as its official address. For the time being, it was decided to use Mark Hinkle’s U.S. Post Office Box as the Club address for letters. <At this time, Maria Hansen mentioned that someone had contacted her about a show they were doing on Detecting in America. She asked Mark Hinkle if she could refer them to him, and he gave her his email address ([email protected]) to use.> Claim Steward Report: No Claim Steward Report. Historian’s Report: Ernie Beason, Club Historian, stated there was nothing new to report. He said he still doesn’t have the VHS tapes to get them converted. John Snow reconfirmed that the tapes are in the shed. Appreciation Gifts: This discussion was tabled for the time being. Old Business: Shed Organizing: Bill Ward wanted to set up a confirmed date to work on cleaning out and organizing the Club shed. He, Dean Queen, Mark Hinkle, John Snow, and anybody else that was interested were to meet on Sat., Feb. 25 at the shed. They decided that any big stuff to be the thrown out would go into Dean’s truck to be taken to the dump. The smaller stuff could go into the dumpster. New Business: March Outing: Dean asked Mark Hinkle to try and get the correct date and time for the March outing up on the website. Mark agreed. Gazette: Mark Hinkle asked what anyone wanted to suggest be done about the Gazette being put out late on several occasions. He thought maybe a substitute or backup editor may be needed. Mark indicated he would check into the situation himself. Elections: Maria Hansen brought in the pictures she had taken of the nominees for the different posi-tions for the upcoming Club elections. She explained how she wanted to mount them on a large board with each of their names and the position they were running for, so people could actually put a face to a name when they cast their ballots. Officer & Board Member Socializing: There was some discussion that perhaps it would be helpful if all the Club Officers and Board Members would mingle with the rest of the Club membership before the gen-eral membership meetings and during breaks, and also at the various Club functions, to encourage more interest in serving on the Board. Mainly, this will be just to let them know how easy it is and what is in-volved. MASH Cards: Karen King-Smith offered to continue sending out the get-well cards to anyone who is on the MASH list. James Smith made a motion that the meeting be adjourned. The motion was seconded by Bob Melzer and the motion was passed as proposed. The Desert Gold Diggers February 21, 2012 Business Meeting was adjourned at 8:13 pm.

(Continued from page 4)Feb Business Meeting Minutes


Keep Mark & Judy Paris in your thoughts and prayers

Sam & Debbie Angell-Debbie has MS and is now in hospice.

DGD “MASH” REPORT

WANTED—YOU! To keep the Gazette coming to you, WHEN YOU MOVE, you must send a change of ad-dress (e-mail addresses, too) to the Membership Director, Maria Hansen—who will pass that informa-

tion on to the Gazette Editor as well. Maria can be reached via e-mail at [email protected] or by mail at

14967 S. Theodore Roosevelt Way, Sahuarita, AZ 85629-8995

As our “snow birds” start to head back to THE NORTH—make sure you let us know what address to send your Gazette to. The post office does NOT forward this nor will they hold it for you. Thank

you, in advance, for keeping the Gazette coming to a mail box near you!!!! Thank You!!!

If you know of other club members that should be on the MASH report or if you know of anyone that has passed away—please call our Public Relations Director, Karen King Smith.

She can be reached at 520-790-5785

Our prayers are with each & every person & their families. May you

find comfort in His grace & strength in His Word.

DGD Membership Meeting Minutes

March 6, 2012

Mark Hinkle, Club President, called the meeting to order at 7:07 pm with the Pledge of Allegiance. Mark started the meeting by asking if there were new members to the Club at the meeting that night,

and acknowledged three from Tucson, and one each from Oracle, Catalina, Sonoita, San Manuel, AZ, and British Columbia.

Mark acknowledged the six birthdays that were happening in March, with the oldest being 76 years (You Go, Bill!!) and the youngest at 60 years.

There were five anniversaries to acknowledge, with the longest being 53 YEARS!!. The others were 50, 49, 35, and 3 years. Congratulations to all of them!

On the MASH list, Mark was again surprised that NOBODY was going on the MASH list for the second month in a row. Let’s keep it going that way, everyone!!

Social Director’s Report: Carla Eisley, Social Director, reminded everyone about the Club Spring Picnic coming up on Saturday, April 14. The Picnic will start about 11:00 am, with lunch beginning serving about 12:00. The Picnic will be at Kennedy Park (3600 S. La Cholla Blvd., entrance off Ajo, just west of Mission), Ramada #33. Carla asked that all volunteers be at the Conex (the shed at the VFW Hall) at 8:00 am to help load up the supplies for the Picnic. She also requested the assistance of 2 cooks.

Claims Director Report: Bud Little, Claims Director, introduced Fred Schuster, who was going to be taking over as the new Claims Director from Bud. He stated that from now on, all Claim Steward pa-perwork would be going to Fred, and that he and Fred would be getting together to go over all the regular claim paperwork.

Claims Steward Report: None Guest Speaker: Fred Schuster, our new Claims Director, planned to give a talk on “How Gold Got

Here.” He described, in a nutshell, how the tectonic plates meet and how one slides over the other,


Jerry Ray’s sister—who has pancreatic cancer.


June 2012

Sun Mo Tu Wed Thur Fri Sat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

May 2012

Sun Mo Tu Wed Thur Fri Sat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

April 2012

Sun Mo Tu Wed Thur Fri Sat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Regularly Scheduled Meetings

The Membership Meeting is the FIRST Tuesday evening of every month at 7:00 p.m. It is held at the V.F.W. Post # 10188, which is located at 345 E. Roger Road, Tucson, AZ 85705.

The Business Meeting is the THIRD Tuesday of every month at 7:00 p.m.. It is held at the Denny’s Restaurant, which is located at 3655 E. Speedway Blvd., Tucson, AZ. Any DGD Member is invited to attend.

The Outings are on the FIRST weekend following the membership meeting. They begin at 7:00 a.m. during the summer months (April—October) and 8:00 a.m. during the winter months (November—March). They also alternate between Saturdays and Sundays—every other month. For exact dates and times as well as the location of the outing, please see below or check out the web at www.desert-gold-diggers.org under Club Claims

DESERT GOLD DIGGER’S CALENDAR OF EVENTS 2012

Wear your badge, a DGD hat AND a DGD Shirt and you will get THREE (3) FREE chances to win!!!!!! Pick up your tickets at the raffle ticket table!!!! Remember—we respectfully ask that you purchase the hat and shirt from the DGD club store, not just the

patches and sew them on your own hats and shirts.!

April 2012

Tuesday, 3rd—ELECTION NIGHT!!!!

Membership Meeting—7 pm Saturday —7th—Placer Pond -7 AM meeting time Saturday,14th—Kennedy Park—Ramada 33—Spring Fling Picnic—starts at 11 am

June 2012

Tuesday, 5th—Membership Meeting-7 pm Santurday—9th—Outing—TBA—7AM meeting time Tuesday, 19th –Business Meeting @7 pm

May 2012

Tuesday, 1st —Membership Meeting—7 pm Sunday—6th—TBA—Outing—7 AM meeting time Tuesday, 15th -Business Meeting-7 pm


For Arizona Gold Miners, Even a Speck Is Worth the Hunt

On a typically bright winter day — blue sky, light breeze and just enough warmth — 50 people spent a Sunday on their hands and knees, scouring dirt and rocks scattered across Stevens Shadow, a mining claim 50 miles west of Tucson. Their methods varied but their desire was the same: gold. These are the Tucson Desert Gold Diggers, a 30-year-old club dedicated to recreational prospecting and the min-ing of claims throughout southeastern Arizona. Monthly outings take them to 24 claims, from the mines of Oracle to Las Guijas Mountains, where they share a hobby that will never make them rich.

Marion Vittetoe, a retired factory worker, hunched over a stack of 5-gallon buckets, with a 9 mm handgun strapped to his right hip and a 32 mm handgun holstered on his left side. The weapons weren’t to protect him from robbers;

they were to defend against mountain lions, Gila monsters or snakes. “This is not a place you come to without being armed,” said Vittetoe, who has been digging for gold since his retirement a year and a half ago. He panned for gold using a bucket fitted with three layers of screens to filter the rocks and dirt. He shov-eled a mound of dirt into the top screen, gripped the sides with his calloused hands and shook. He re-peated the process three more times, his eyes scanning every inch of the grate. After the final layer of dirt reached the bottom of the bucket, he transferred the grains to what looked like a deep cake pan. He scooped a handful of water into the pan and jiggled it until the dirt particles separated. Gently brushing aside some gravel, he pointed to a shiny flake, no bigger than a grain of salt. Vittetoe had found a speck of gold. The tiny discovery was barely worth a dime. (An ounce of gold is worth around $1,600.) He smiled, grabbed his pan and padded over to his truck. Dean Queen, the outing director for the club, watched as Vittetoe safely put his gold into a pouch. “We’ll spend all day doing that for one little piece,” Queen said. The practice of gold mining spans centuries, but its popularity in Arizona can be traced to the Gold Rush of 1858, which started near the Gila River. Barbed wires now surround the remnants of an old mine shaft at Stevens Shadow. A rusty ladder leads straight down into the darkness, where gold deposits are buried within the earth. “The old adage is: You go where gold has been found,” Queen said. “There’s still gold down there.” He estimated that the mine is a couple of centuries old. The original prospectors didn’t have any special technology, so gold unable to be seen by the human eye was thrown aside in dirt piles. “We’re basically digging through their trash,” Queen said, pointing to a large mound made by past pros-pectors. Diggers use metal detectors to find the gold the original miners missed. Advanced prospecting tools make modern searches easier, but they’re not something everyone takes advantage of. “The majority of equipment here is handmade of household items,” Queen said. “The tools that they come up with are ingenious.” The satisfaction of using a self-made mining tool and the excitement of searching for hidden treasure are worth more to some prospectors than the gold itself. Glenn Snider, a retired General Motors supervisor, sat on a tiny folding chair, tucked away behind some trees on the grounds of Stevens Shadow. He smiled, mesmerized by the dirt that swirled through the grooves of his homemade electric sifter, a rotating green pan with a series of screens. Snider scanned the


By: Lisa Maria Garza January 11, 2012 – 5:54 –reprinted with permission from the NY Times—Student Journalism Institute article

After sifting and panning dirt, Marion Vittetoe, a member of the Tucson Desert Gold Diggers,

finds a speck of gold no bigger than a grain of


Name Position

Choose ONE name for each position

Mike Boggs President

Bill Eisley President

Bill Ward Vice President

Donna Hackett Secretary

Bill Eisley Treasurer

Bud Little Treasurer

Carla Eisley Social Director

Kathy Murphy Social Director

Jason Lewis Outings Director

Mark Sullivan Co-Outings Director

Choose 5 names for each year/position below

Richard Busser 1-year Board

Bob Golder 1 year Board

Beverly Holmquist 1 year Board

Louis Pill 1 year Board

Karen King Smith 1 year Board

J.R. Smith 1 year Board

James Smith 1 year Board

George Bobak 2-year Board

Alan Fertig 2-year Board

Bob Melzer 2-year Board

John Snow 2-year Board

Bill Ward 2-year Board

Lou Bolino 3-year Board

John Christensen 3-year Board

Howard Cooper 3-year Board

Dean Queen 3-year Board

Wally Sobel 3 year Board

Club Historian

April 2012 Desert Gold Digger Candidate List.

DGD Voting Rules

1. Membership Dues must

be current—both to vote and to run for office.

2. Only ONE vote per fam-ily membership. If you and your significant other want to vote for different people—each of your ballots will count as 1/2 vote. Please let the person at the table know you are taking two ballots for your member-ship so that they can be marked as such.

3. Write in votes are wel-come

4. Once you have com-pleted your ballot, fold it and place it in the ballot box.

THANK YOU for taking the time to vote for your 2012-

2013 Club officers and board members


DGD CLUB OFFICERS 2011-2012

Office Name Phone E-Mail

Club President Mark Hinkle [email protected]

Club Vice President

Club Secretary Linda Reuter 520-609-6759 [email protected]

Club Treasurer Bill Eisley 520-731-1401 [email protected]

Outings Director Dean Queen 520-745-1866 [email protected]

Social Director Carla Eisley 520-731-1401 [email protected]

Claims Director Fred Schuster 520-204-6818 [email protected]

Chief Claims Steward

Public Relations Director Karen King Smith 520-790-5785 [email protected]

Weigh Master Allan Fertig 520-297-5671 [email protected]

Web Master Mark Hinkle 520-546-7053 [email protected]

Gold Master Lou Bolino 520-370-7003 [email protected]

Gazette Editor Laurie Cook 520-514-8889 [email protected]

Membership Director Maria Hansen

DGD Club Store Helen Wruble or John Snow

Club Historian Ernie Beason 520-294-7612 [email protected]

[email protected]

DGD Board Members Board Chairman—Randy Cook

Linda Reuter—1 yr Board 520-609-6759 Lou Bolino—2 yr Board 520-370-7003

Ken Arnold—1 yr Board 520-241-5697 Howard Cooper—2 yr board 520-887-5788

Bill Eisley—1 yr Board 520-731-1401 Bob Melzer—2 yr Board 520-327-0977

James Smith—1yr Board 520-790-5785 Laurie Cook—2 yr Board 520-514-8889

Bill Ward—1 yr Board 520-624-7725 John Christensen—3 yr Board 520-498-2178

Wally Sobel—2 yr Board 516-241-8919 Randy Cook—3 yr Board 520-514-8889

Dean Queen John Snow Allen Fertig

WE NOW HAVE WINDOW/BUMPER STICKERS for$1.00 EACH


Reporting Your Finds Everybody is excited when they find something!! We want you to tell us your success story so that we can share in your excitement. Here’s how you do it:

Find the Weigh Master—Allan Fertig who is located at a table to left of the room.

Present him with a DRY find (gold) that was found in ARIZONA during the past 30 days

Tell him if your find was done with a metal detector or by panning, dry washing or sluic-

ing.

Allen will weigh the finds and report them—with the one who finds the most getting the

gold nugget that month.

Good Luck—may there be LOTS of yellow in your future!!

terrain, abundant with cactuses and shrubs, before zeroing in on the distant mountains. “The search for gold brings me here, but the view …” he said, trailing off with a contented sigh. Snider removed the pan from its spindle, sorted through the sifted dirt, then shook his head. He didn’t find anything. He reached for the small shovel to begin again. “When you finally pick up a piece of gold, you’re the first person that’s seen it — ever,” he said. One day, Snider, 65, won’t be around to reminisce about his panning adventures. He didn’t hesi-tate to predict that his two sons would cash in his gold after his death, even though it’s not enough to make them rich.

“I’ve never sold anything,” he said. “That’s not what matters to me. It’s being out in the open air and the thrill of hunting for it.”

(Continued from page 7) Reprint of NY Times Article on Desert Gold Diggers

Spring Picnic – Saturday, April 14,2012

It’s that time of year again for our spring picnic. We will have the picnic at Kennedy Park, Ramada #33 and will start at 11:00 a.m. We will have games, prizes, food and lots of fun for everyone. The directions to Kennedy Park: Go west on Ajo Way, past Mission. Continue to La Cholla Blvd and turn north

on La Cholla Blvd. Watch for the DGD signs. The Ramada is on the east side of La Cholla Blvd. Still need volunteers to help set up, meet at the conex (located at the general meeting place on Roger Rd) at 8 am. I still need one more volunteer to help with cooking the hot dogs and hamburgers. All assistance will be greatly appreci-ated. We have a beer permit but NO GLASS containers are allowed. The Ramada has limited tables and seating so if possible bring your table and chairs. A-M should bring side dishes and N-Z should bring a desert dish. Please try to bring dishes that will feed approximately 6 or more people. We will have games for the children and hopefully be relatively successful in keep-ing them entertained. Of course, we will have our adult games and competitions. I am looking forward to seeing you there.

Carla Eisley, Social Director


Remember to have your badge—your Plan of Operations—and your membership card with you when you are on the claims. Take plenty of water—and drink at

least 8 oz every hour—if you wait until you feel thirsty, then you are already dehy-drated!

Thanks for helping keep the claims clean and filling in the holes that you see.

OUTING DIRECTOR’S REPORT

Empire Ranch Road

March 2012

Great coin shoot and cook out!!!

As always, the desert gold diggers members came out in numbers. There were about fifty nine people that showed. There was lots of food and I believe that if any-

one was hungry it had to be there own fault. Thanks to all the folks that brought out the side dishes and desserts.

I would like to thank everyone that has made my last year as Outing Director a very interesting experience that I will never forget - and trust me - that is in a good way - especially the people!

Anyway back to the outing. I went out the day prior and planted all twenty Half dollars that, when found, you could get you a gold nugget in return. This time I placed the coins in a lot of different locations and the area was large. But with a lot of perseverance all but one was found.

Congratulations to all the following people for find coins, Bill, John, Steve, Wayne, Bob, Donna, Bill, Dick, Jerry, Neal, Hank, Floyd, Kevin and Evelyn. Even though there only fourteen names some had found two with one left over for turn in.

Everyone please give the new Outing Directors the same great attitudes and help you did with me.

Life is golden—Dig It DEAN

All the gold which is under or upon the earth is not enough to give in exchange for virtue.

Dean Queen Outings Director


Dean Queen held his last outing in style! A coin shoot and cook-out!!

He hid the coins over a W I D E area (see the picture of the people spread out) and all the coins but one were

found!!

Then there was food for all.

Thank you, Dean, for a GREAT year of outings!!!!

A child learns how to load a sluice

Yes—th

ese are folks out th

ere lookin

g for coins to tu

rn in

for a gold

nugget!!


Dean gives di-rections for the

coin shoot.

David Hansen shows

folks how to put the dirt in the

sluice.


NOW—at the DGD Club Store…. All the maps on DVD!!! For the small price of $5.00—you can take home a DVD that contains the color

topo maps, GPS coordinates, directions to the claims and other useful information. You can print out what you need, when you need it!!

We also have more laminated maps back in stock—$2.50 for each map or the complete set of 8 for just $16.00. These have the color maps on one side and the GPS, directions, etc on the other and are 3 holed

punched ready to put into a binder.

with the one folding underneath basically heading downward and melting into magma. This magma, in turn, erupted from volcanoes. The magma from these ancient volcanoes in the Southwest contained basalt with a mixture of various metals. This basalt was also high in sulphur. When that sulphur mixed with water from the marine deposits of the Pacific plate being forced down under the American plate, it turned into sulphuric acid, which dissolved the different metals in the basalt and carried the dis-solved metals up through fractures and fissures in the rock. When the acid came in contact with the limestone it was neutralized and as the limestone was dissolved it was replaced by the metals, which could not remain in solution. These different metals became the mineral deposits we look for today, either as large-scale mines or individuals. And he noted that where there is limestone, there is a good likely hood of finding gold.

He noted that the new mine probably going in up in Superior, AZ, the Resolution Copper Mine, is supposed to be the 2nd biggest copper deposit in the world. Fred opened the floor for questions and received a number of them: Q:If eaten-away limestone causes a cave, then taking Carlsbad Cavern into consideration, wouldn’t you think there would be gold nearby? A:You would think so, but so far that has not been the case. Q:If caves are caused by limestone erosion, then what causes sinkholes? A:Rainwater is usually what causes the limestone deposits to dissolve. With a sinkhole, what usually hap-pens is the limestone has been dissolved by carbolic acid in rain water and formed a cavern below ground. When a small plug in the upper portion of that cavern gives way, then the cavern caves in becomes the sinkhole. Q:Can you get black sand from basalt? A:Yes, many black sands are made up of Hematite, Magnetite, Tourmaline and other dark minerals as well as some rare earths. Fred noted that Pyrite, Galena and Quartz are associate minerals often found with gold but their presence does not guarantee the presence of gold. At this point, Fred described the unique plate action that has occurred here in the Southwest that is differ-ent than in other parts of the world. In other areas, when two plates collide, one plate slides, albeit with great gnashing, over the other, causing earthquakes and, in some cases, tsunamis. The plate that slides underneath, follows a somewhat downward, sinking path. In contrast, the plates here in the Southwest have formed more of a sandwich structure, with one plate resting atop, and parallel to, the other. This is one reason we have some of the great deposits that we do have here. This unique plate system covers pretty much the Southwest and central area of the U.S and is what caused the Rocky Mountains to form. In closing, Fred wanted to make note of a comment made by the speaker at the last meeting. He said that speaker made the statement that going into the old hard rock mines he had purchased was not dangerous. Fred was very emphatic in stating that was NOT TRUE. He said only engineers can make a determination if a mine is safe or not, and that nobody should go into an old mine unless it has been professionally deter-mined to be safe. And on that note, Fred indicated he had some Rosemont Mine bumper stickers for anyone who wanted one, and thanked everyone for their time. Outings Report: Dean Queen, Outings Director, announced that, for his last outing, in March, they

would be going to Empire Ranch. It would be more of a cook out, with hot dogs, beans and chips. There would be a Coin-Shoot for 20 nuggets, using the DGD Brass Chips this time instead of the gold dollars. He said everyone would meet on Sunday, March 11 at about 10:00 am. You should go to about Mile Marker 40-41 on Hwy 83. At the Empire Ranch sign posts, turn left and meet at the Information Center with the maps. He also said people would also be able to see the different types of equipment used for prospecting.

(Continued from page 6) Membership Meeting Minutes—March 2012


Hang Over Drawing

T-Shirt Winner

John Czapko Finds—Digging—Dry/Wet Washing

Lou Bolino, 2.1 gm

Finds Metal Detecting

J.R. Smith, 1 gm

DGD Winners—Congrats to all! The following folks won nuggets at the March meeting. Come and join us at the next meeting

and you, too, could be a winner!! Come early and get your tickets—Special Raffle ($2.00) - Nug-gets ($1.00/buy 20 and you get an extra ticket for the 20:1 Nugget drawing for ‘free’) and

just wear your hat, shirt and badge and get 3 FREE chances!!!! When the raffle is over—DON’T throw out those tickets! Sign the back of the tickets and put them in the HANG OVER Nugget Jar! (located at the front of the room) Once a quarter we

award 3 more nuggets drawn just from that Jar. So—you get another chance to win!!

Lucky Shirt

Sharon Flake

Gayle Snider

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL!!!

Lucky Badge

Lucky Hat

20:1 Nugget

Don’t forget to report all your finds and turn in any coins that you found at the Outing . See Al-len Fertig at the Weigh Master Table to the left

of the room. Remember that your “Finds” MUST be from Arizona - DRY — and found in the

last 30 days to “count” !

Cal Monroe

Clifford Flake

Don Olson

Gayle Snider Gary Brossard George Bobak

Scott Posvistak Carmen Tuttle Jason Lewis

Deb Buck-Monroe(2) Jerry Guillen L.M. Tipping

Neil Lee Walt Skura Bill Eisley Mary Riley

Jack Puckett Charles Wilson John Czapko Wayne Blake

Grabriela White Fred Schuster

Jim Bradley Sharon Bibow

Don LeMay Nash Lopez

John Fearnbaugh Brad Guinyou

NUGGETS

Bruce Dean

Walt Zagorsky

Don Harty


Looking for just the right gift for the gold digger in your life?? Not sure what to get them??

The DGD Club Store has gift certificates for purchase—and these can be used either at our club store

or at Morey Detector Sales. Give the gift of a DGD Certificate and let your loved ones pick out

just exactly what they are looking for. See Helen Wruble at the DGD Club Store to buy your certificates

at the next club meeting.

Free ‘FOR SALE OR WANTED’ ads are on a one month basis and are for DGD members only. Deadline for the ads is the 15th of the month. If the space is limited, we must limit each ad to

1/8th of a page (business card size). Please send your carefully worded ad to the Gazette editor at [email protected]

WANTED: Lightly used and fair priced: Used Gold Bug II Metal

Detector, Dry washer "blower or

puffer type" Pin-pointer detector

type tool I am also interested in; Other Used prospecting

equipment, Maps and Books on

Placer mining and treas-ure hunting in the Southwest.

Please contact Kurt at (520) 405-2332

There is always a place to help out at the club! We

need folks to show up early to help set up and make

coffee—as well as stay after the meeting and make sure

all is put away.

This is YOUR club—step up and help out!!

For Sale Golf Cart

Like-New 2006 Club Car

All Extras, New Batteries, 30 MPH Clear Title, Street Legal

Was $10,000,.Asking $2,900 Roger Timm 326-8801

WANTED:

Someone with the skills and willingness to take over the editing job for the DGD Gazette. If you can type and have a computer, I can train you on the software. This is a paid position. For more information contact [email protected]


NEW!!! - Garrett Gold Pan Kit *14” Prospector Pan *10” Backpacker Pan * Classifier * Gold Guzzler

Bottle * 2 Gold Vials * Tweezers *How to Find Gold field guide by Charles Garrett and Roy Lagal. Pick yours up here at the DGD Club Store,

or visit Morey Detector Sales.

New Shirts and hats have arrived—check out the store!!!

Present your membership card and receive an additional discount on all rentals, purchases and service. Two locations to serve you, E 22nd and Ina Rd. Visit their

website at www.ridenow.com

To advertise your business here, simply go to the website and download the application for ad-vertisers. Mail it to the address listed on the application and enclose your business card.

Advertising reaches 500+ families and is only $40.00 for the year (12 issues).

Detectors Unlimited, Inc.

D.U., Inc. meets the 4th Tuesday each Month.

Location: Craycroft Towers Apts.

1625 Craycroft Road (Annex building in Rear)

Need Directions: Contact...Bill Eisley@520-731-1401

[email protected]


CLAIMS STATUS UPDATE From our Chief Claims Steward, Jerry Ray

Hello Everyone, With our Plan of Operations in limbo with the Forest Service we felt that a list of our Claims would help you in deciding where to prospect. If you prospect on the following claims on Forest Service Lands you may be approached or cited by the Forest Service which would result in your time and funds being tied up in legal action. These are the Claims that require an updated Plan of Operations to be filed with the Forest Service. Big Bruiser Isolation Great Hope #1 Achy Breaky Little Bruiser Placer Pond Great Hope #2 Wishful Thinking #1 Gap Gold #1 Digger’s Delight Great Hope #3 Wishful Thinking #2 Gap Gold #2 Gold Duster Great Hope #4 Reklov #4

While the current situation with the Plan of Ops being held up by Forest Service RED TAPE we need to proceed with caution when using the above claims. We feel that under the 1872 Mining Law we have the right to mine our claims! The Forest Service, however, has implemented Rules, Policies and Regulations which may be in conflict with the Federal law. The following Club Claims are on BLM Lands and do not require a Plan of Ops and are OK to use: Pilgrim’s Progress Try Your Luck Steven’s Shadow Reklov #3 Pilgrim’s Progress #2 Can You Dig It Steven’s Shadow #2 Reklov #2 Snoozer Rough as a Cob Be safe, fill your holes and find some yellow stuff

If a government representative approaches you on one of the claims the following is the

Suggested Challenging Procedure from Public Lands for The People


GENERAL DIRECTIONS & LOCATION:

Greaterville Claims

Highway 83/Greaterville bypass access: From Tucson take I-10 to exit 281 and go south on Hwy 83 to mile 41 and make right toward Greaterville. Travel 3.2 miles to "Y" (Madera Canyon/Greaterville sign) then bear left towards Melendrez Pass-road becomes FS 229. Continue southwest approx 2.0 miles to FS 165. Continue west to FS 4043 (2.7 miles), turn right and follow FS 4043 (2 miles) to Isolation. To continue to remaining claims drive past FS 4043 and continue on FS 165 to Placer Pond or to junction with FS 163 to claims. ROADS: F.S. #163 & #4085 LEADING TO G.H. #4 & G.H. #1 ARE GOOD WITH A FEW ROUGH SPOTS. BEYOND THE ROAD BECOMES STEEPER & ROUGHER, BUT CAN BE NEGOTIATED BY WITH A 2X4 HIGH CLEARANCE VEHI-CLE. VEHICLE: CAR TO 4X4 DEPENDING ON AREA. CAMPING: G.H. #1 EXCELLENT WITH SHADE & FLAT AREAS. METHODS: HIGHBANKING, SLUICING & PANNING DURING SEASONAL RAINS, DRYWASHING & VACUUMING IN DRIER SEASONS & METAL DETECTING. COMMENTS: FINES, FLAKES AND PIECES FOUND IN WASHES & FEEDERS

See the Club Store to get COLOR, laminated, full size maps, with driving directions and GPS coordi-nates for all the claims!!! $2.50 each or $16.00 for the set of 8. If you prefer, grab the DVD and print out your own maps and directions. These are just $5.00

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