prospecting trips / tagalongs

Submitted: Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:03
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Hi all........very keen on learning some prospecting tips etc and have considered joining a tour such as "Gold Diggers Safaris" (Gold Quest Eqipment Supplies) operating out of NSW.....they have trips this year to VIc...NSW and WA

wary of joining a tag along tour (never had anything to do with a tagalong and not real fussed about the idea) ....full of slickers who need wet nursing for eveything from how to drive to how to think etc...but also aware of how little I know of prospecting and may have to tolerate the afore mentioned type just as they will have to tolerate my lack of knowledge in metal detecting....!

would appreciate comments from any any previous participants in such tours........or more experienced prospectors who reckon the idea has merit or otherwise

thanks in advance






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Reply By: Gramps (NSW) - Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:20

Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:20
"full of slickers who need wet nursing for eveything from how to drive to how to think etc"

I'm sure that attitude will get you a long way.

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Follow Up By: Member - bungarra (WA) - Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:28

Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:28
thanks Al...

however if you read the sentence I wrote following my quoted comment then yours was not necessary as I qualified mine quite clearly I believe
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Follow Up By: Gramps (NSW) - Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:35

Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:35
Looks like we'll have to agree to disagree.

Willie from Epping is probably the best one to advise you on these tours.

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Reply By: Member - Uncle (NSW) - Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:20

Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:20
Hi Bungarra, try www.goldprospectingaustralia.com.au they are probably the best to have a talk to. No affiliation, just heard very good reports. EO member Willie went on one last year and had a ball ( and got gold)!! I'd recommend a tour if your'e a first timer, as they will guide you thru every step you need to know. We will be over in the west this year ourselves chasing the yellow stuff, at the price its at currently, I'd like to have several spare ounces!! cheers Uncle.
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Follow Up By: Member - bungarra (WA) - Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:29

Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:29
thanks Uncle

exactly the sort of positive feed back I was looking for
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Follow Up By: oldgold - Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:40

Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:40
not enough gold here for you lot try Queensland leave WA gold to WA
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Follow Up By: oldgold - Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:47

Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 20:47
bungarra if you like to drop me a email i might be able to help you with a couple of places to try your luck here in the pibara
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Follow Up By: Member - bungarra (WA) - Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 22:05

Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 22:05
thanks oldgold...how do I find your contact details?...not in any list that I seem to be able to find

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Follow Up By: oldgold - Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 22:43

Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 22:43
email tastewart@westnet.com.au
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Reply By: Member - BIGDOG G (WA) - Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 22:37

Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 22:37
Please be advised there is positively, definitely, absolutely NO GOLD left in Western Australia.

Regards................BIGDOG
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Follow Up By: Member - Uncle (NSW) - Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 06:26

Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 06:26
Damn!! I wasn't going to take much anyway.........
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Reply By: KiwiAngler - Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 23:55

Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008 at 23:55
Great post topic - as soon as I read it my ears and lust for GOLD went onto high alert :-)

I am intersted in their 2 day Victorian Tag-a-longs and have sent an e-mail off asking for their 2008 schedule

I reckon I would be interested in doing a couple of those for the same reason that bungarra refrs to - namely no exprience in prospecting

Will keep you posted when I get reply re Victorian schedule
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Follow Up By: Member - Uncle (NSW) - Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 06:29

Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 06:29
when are you contemplating heading to Vic Kiwi? We will be there for about a month before WA Starting about 22nd next month.
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Reply By: Member - Willie , Epping .Syd. - Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 08:48

Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 08:48
I am booked on three Gold Expeditions tagalongs this year. Cue , Halls Creek and Tibooburra . I went with them on one trip last year to the Marble Bar area and had a great time .

Mark , the guy that runs it , is a great bloke , gives you plenty of instruction and puts you on ground where you have every chance of finding gold . I found 12 nuggets on my first trip as a complete novice , using a detector I hired from them .

Most of the bookings this year are from people who have been with them before . That says it all .

I have never heard of "Gold Digger Safaris" so I cannot comment on them .

You may have to wet nurse us slickers on the trips and that may spoil it for you . But just think how lucky we would be , benefiting from any knowledge you might share with us on camping and off-roading .

Willie

www.goldexpeditions.com.au
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Follow Up By: Member - bungarra (WA) - Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 09:05

Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 09:05
thanks Willie...

with the benefit of hindsight it looks like my one throw away comment meant half with tongue in cheek could have been left unsaid....words dont always read to others as they appear to the author at times ...lol...( but the two tag alongs I have observed were a circis)

anyway your comments re your experiences are very appreciated and I have since followed up with a phone call to Mark and was very happy with our conversation

may see you on one of these this year providing I can get someone to farmsit the property again

bungarra
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Follow Up By: Willem - Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 09:33

Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 09:33
Ahhh Young Willie......very veiled words there....LOL


Bungarra

Your Rig Pic.......Are there trees closeby with metal plaques on them? I seem to recognise the area :-)



Cheers
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Follow Up By: Member - bungarra (WA) - Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 09:47

Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 09:47
Hi Willem

yes you probably do recognise the place....Rudall River NP..."jarrah" pool for want of trying to spell the whole name......the plaque you refer to is just to the right of the picture

been there several times over the years, first about 18 years ago before it became as well visited as it is now

(I re read this response before I posted it to make sure i didnt start something again..........LOL)

regards

bungarra

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Reply By: David from David and Justine Olsen's 4WD Tag-Along - Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 13:51

Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 13:51
From your response I guess that you have never been on a tag-along tour. Almost all the people are exactly the opposite to what you describe. Some very very experienced but recognise the value of a holiday that requires no planning and the opportunity to get their heads out of the maps.
AnswerID: 283502

Follow Up By: Member - bungarra (WA) - Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 15:34

Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 15:34
Hi David

Appreciate your comment on my post....as I said before it was half a throw away comment and half because of a couple of examples I had seen when we were in the same area.....hence my wariness..... I am a little surprised at the reaction by some members :)......clearly more has been read into my comment by some members than was ever expected !

I said what I said because in one instance a tour leader was a little bushed and after passing us and backtracking twice looking for some landmarks he eventually stopped me on the 3rd time and asked me where to find this particular landmark....not a problem with that at all except what he said over the UHF to his party after wards was that he had stopped to advise me of something! (I was left wondering what else he was bluffing them about during the tour) ......the other instance was simply a very noisy group that left some rubbish..... clearly not a representative sample of..... nor did I state it was

I am well aware of the professional approach that the majority of people on this site (tour operators and ordinary people like us) take.

enough said on the subject...some responses are out of proportion to the post

Regards

Bungarra
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Follow Up By: David from David and Justine Olsen's 4WD Tag-Along - Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 16:47

Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 16:47
Fair enough.

Some people including tour operators behave strangely sometimes. I've taken the odd wrong term in my time. In particular I remember doing it on the Cape where I lived for about 10 years, but I hadn't been back for a while, preferring to run tours in the desert regions. Anyway my guests had a chuckle that I was momentarily geographically challenged.
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Follow Up By: David from David and Justine Olsen's 4WD Tag-Along - Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 16:48

Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 16:48
wrong term?

should be wrong turn...will master the keyboard one day!
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Reply By: Member - Brian (WA) - Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 13:55

Thursday, Jan 24, 2008 at 13:55
Just Beware,Once you go you won't want to stop. A tagalong
will be the best way to start. Altough I think they over priced.
The one you mentioned has been going to the same area in
WA for a number of years. It is a area I go and have met and
spoken to those tagalongers. They always seem to find some gold. I now look up the dates of his tours and keep out of there way. Go and learn, ask questions and then go by yourself.
Might see you out there someday. Brian
AnswerID: 283503

Follow Up By: David from David and Justine Olsen's 4WD Tag-Along - Friday, Jan 25, 2008 at 18:52

Friday, Jan 25, 2008 at 18:52
Appreciate you recommendation of tagalongs. As for overpriced well each to his own, but if you put yourself in the operator's seat then do the math, you may conclude differently.
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Follow Up By: Member - Brian (WA) - Saturday, Jan 26, 2008 at 10:24

Saturday, Jan 26, 2008 at 10:24
Hi David. There are different types of tours, yours is different to
the one spoke about above. I am just judging my opinion on those, not remote travel ones. Where you need to be the Doctor,
Mechanic have contact with help if needed.
Cheers Brian
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