I should have specified.. this is an old channel where the river ran over 200 years ago but is now dry... there are pear orchards along each side. So you can walk inside the channel and scan up the bank... gold is usually found along the ‘cutting’ side according to what I’ve read about deposits along these rivers.
[[I should have specified.. this is an old channel where the river ran over 200 years ago but is now dry..]]
Check downside of large boulders with the detector- if you keep gettign hits, and finding smaller gold, fill a five gallon bucket or two with the black sand material where the heavier gold settles-
Also- look for any tree roots that are near the banks- they trap gold pretty good- check all the inside bends with the detector- dig down a ways when you scan for better results- If you find a good spot, keep quiet about it and keep going back and gettign 5 gallon pails of dirt to sluice or pan at home-
another thing you can do (If you have a gardenway cart or can use a ATV or have some type of pull along wagon) is bring a large bucket of water and pan the dirt from spots you think are likely to contain gold- Takes a little effort- but it makes for a fun day just being out panning for gold-
There are dry sluices you can use too- they have small backpack units, but they are kinda expensive-