Bradshaw Mountains In Arizona
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Bradshaw Mountains In Arizona |
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Interested in Arizona gold? The many gold districts of the Bradshaw Mountains are a great place to look......
| The Bradshaw Range in central Arizona
gives rise to a number of important gold districts all along it's length.
The gold districts located in the Bradshaw range are among the most
productive placer fields in the state, and still yield gold to individual
prospectors working there. Important gold districts in this area include Lynx Creek, the Big
Bug Creek area, the upper Hassayampa River system, the Groom Creek placers,
the Black Canyon placers and several others. Perhaps the first discovery of gold in the Bradshaw range was made at Lynx Creek in 1863 by a party of California miners headed by Captain Joe Walker. Lynx Creek was very rich in certain areas, and successful prospectors recovered an ounce or more per day in the early days. Word spread and additional miners came to work the area. Over the next five to 10 years, additional placer deposits were discovered in many other creeks draining the Bradshaw mountain range, with the highest period of placer mining activity occurring in the 1870s and 1880s. At times, several hundred men were working in the various gold districts around the Bradshaw range. Dredging was done along Lynx Creek in the early part of the 1900s. |
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| While some of the early mining
work in this area was done by sluicing or rocking during the times and
seasons when water was available, the vast majority of the work placer
mining in this area has been done by dry washing, at least until recent
years. Virtually all of the dry washing here has been done by small scale
miners who travel from site to site searching for richer deposits and
pockets of gold. In more recent times, metal detecting has become very
important method for finding gold in the Bradshaw range, and metal detector
operators commonly rework the tailings piles of older dry washing operations
for missed nuggets.
Because of its proximity and easy access from Phoenix, there are many private placer claims which have been located in the Bradshaw range. There are also some club claims located here, which provide access for prospectors who belong to those clubs. Additionally there is also a significant amount of private land, especially the lands closer to Highway 17. These areas are undergoing continued real estate development and more and more new homes are being constructed in the area. the for service has placed numerous restrictions concerning prospecting on Lynx Creek. Before attempting to prospect in the Bradshaw mountains area, it is important to know the land and claim status of the are you intend to explore. |
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| The placer geology of the Bradshaw Range
focuses on a Precambrian schist, granite and other intrusive rocks. These
older rocks are part of the main North American crustal plate, and have been
brought to the surface in the Bradshaw mountains by geologic uplift. While
there are some younger tertiary volcanic rocks such as basalt which cover
the hills and mountains in certain areas, the older Precambrian rocks are
underneath. Many of the most productive districts are underlain by a
Precambrian schist known to prospectors as the Yavapai schist. Precambrian
to tertiary age Quartz veins within the schist and granite rocks provide the
gold which erosion has concentrated into the placer deposits. While there is some nice coarse gold to be found in the
Bradshaw mountains, many of the nuggets found there tend to be on the small side.
As far as the coarsest gold, nuggets of about four to five ounces in size are usually about the maximum
obtained in the Bradshaw area. Along most of the creeks the coarsest gold
tends to be found in the upstream portions of the creeks, while in the
lower reaches of the streams fine gold predominates. The gold is widespread at many locations in the Bradshaw range, and many smaller tributary gullies and ravines have been worked for their placer gold, but these smaller deposits do not appear in any reports or other documentation. Rediscovery of these smaller streams has led to some excellent discoveries by prospectors armed with metal detectors. Areas which present good potential for prospecting can be identified using geologic maps and selecting the areas where the Yavapai Precambrian schist outcrops. |
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| Getting to the Bradshaw
Mountains area is fairly easy, but getting into the remote parts of the
interior of the range is not. Highway 17, which goes north from Phoenix
skirts the east side of the range and in many locations provides the best
access. From Highway 17, a large number of dirt roads, including both maintained and
un-maintained pathways, crisscross through the Bradshaw range. In some
places, roadways which seem to
be in good condition may quickly deteriorate into pathways which are simply
impassable. It is important to exercise extra care when driving
through these areas on unfamiliar roads. Prescott is the largest town in the Bradshaw range area, and has a full range of services and supplies. Some communities near Highway 17 have available supplies, but many of the smaller communities such as Cleator do not offer much beyond cold drinks. It is best to bring in one's own food and supplies when looking to go prospecting in the Bradshaw range. |
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Want to know a little bit more about this crazy prospector guy? Well, here's a little bit more about me, and how I got into prospecting: Chris' Prospecting Story
