White clay and gold ?.

Had an unusual signal in a creek bed not unlike ground noise and hit the quick track button and passed over the signal and it was soft but still there, I had the 12" NF Elipt mono coil on the 3500 and gave the area a scrape with the boot and started to dig down to the target.
The creek bed was dry in this section but got damp the deeper I went.
As I started to get closer to the target, it improved but just as I got to a white clay bottom and as I was scraping dirt and a bit of mud out by hand and passing under the coil I lost the signal all together but stuck to my fingers were sugar sized grains of gold.
I went back to the vehicle and got the pan out and returned and got a good show from the very surface of the clay bottom but nothing the deeper I went.
Question , is it just luck ,I heard a target and then lost it and then found some gold or is it possible a small pocket of fine gold accumulated on the clay bed and before it was disturbed was concentrated enough for me to pick it up, also I know gold is found on bedrock but didn't think of a clay bottom as such, but there was nothing in or below this clay.
This was a bit unexpected and I thought unusual and it would be good to get some others thoughts,

Cheers Mark

hi, thanks for journey down your creek, i visulised it beautifully.
would imagine it is a pocket of small gold concentrated enough to give you a small signal.
i would be looking upstream for any recent disturbed bank or bed that might have disturbed some aluviel gold recently from its previous resting spot. that is, look for a BEDROCK spot, might get a signal there from a bigger piece not yet disturbed, or a bigger concentration of small gold. i am no expert, but would spend some more time there ... kev

hi again, forgot to mention, my mate is down at avoca, was talking to him yesterday, he got a 21.4g piece a foot down in white pipe clay. i have heard of people down your way (that is in the vic triangle area) getting gold in white pipe clay, havent been lucky enough myself ... kev

Hi MS,
is that Adelaide where you found that gold? If it is, then I would say that's remarkable because I haven't been able to find any in this state.

G'day all, Kev, My first two pieces I ever found, both about 3g were found in white pipe clay not far from Ballarat.

I'm not sure about this and some-one will know, but I am led to believe that pipe clay is formed from super heated quartz.
Cheers

The dominant minerals of pipe-clay are calcite and dolomite.
Calcite is always present, dolomite is usually present, but
often in small amounts (about 20%). Calcite always contains
some MgC03

Kev -Yes I will get back there next year and do some more work, I have gone up stream and did detect some small bit's with rock attached but this was on exposed bedrock and the gold in cracks.
This area is not virgin ground and is in a know old gold area.
I ran out of time but will be back and just trying to work out a game plan, may mix it up a bit by panning and crevicing also.
I just need to read up a bit as this type of prospecting is new to me
shinegold - your right it's not in the Adelaide hills but don't give up as I do find a few small nuggets there also.
Mark

Hi mark

yes you will find gold in and on pipe clay, when it is wet the gold will stick to it or many years ago gold could be moved in it when the clay was in a liquid state. most times I have found small peaces, just in the top layer of clay. trick is getting the gold out, we have done a fair bit around( white hills) Havelock vic but it is hard work. PM me if you need help making a plan up

allan in vic

How far down into the clay did you dig MS? Its possible that the clay is a false bottom,if so, you may be pleasantly surprised with what you find on true bedrock.If you have dug down to true bottom already and found nothing, dig a trench both upstream and down till you hopefully find a crevice or gutter.Dont forget to check the clay for gold all the way down.

Hi Tunnel rat
It was shallow with about 10" of sand and gravel then hit soft white clay , I only went down a few inches in this and it got harder.
Some of the soft clay came out in sheets and was difficult to dissolve out in the pan.
With the trenches should I dig across or along the creek, I also was thinking of probing to try and find deeper pockets to dig out but not sure if this would work
Mark

Dig the trenches up and down the creek,MS,from where you found the gold.The crevices and gutters you seek are running more or less straight across the stream like a natural riffle box.The probe is a good idea if it can penatrate the clay to the bedrock,it will giveyou a profile of the bottom.However,dig the trench all the way whether there is six inches of clay or three feet of it because some of the best gold I have got has been in the gutters and crevices on higher levels of bedrock.Dont just pothole the deeper parts.Cheers Rat.

Tunnel Rat / Allan Thanks I will keep that in mind when I get over there next.
Allan how are you going with the whites, hope you bagged some nice nuggets or have you gone back to panning.
Mark

Hi mark

I've been to busy with study an work, hoping to get out over the break. I want to build a new dry trommel soon, so I can cut down on how much dirt I bring home to wash. I've been looking at an area with good color, but it is all in white clay haha. not your spot, the whites is still a gold virgin plenty of duck shot,nails,rubbish and lots of fun. as dory sed just keep digging just keep digging


allan in vic