Victorian High Country

Hi all, Going for a quick look around the Victorian high country, leaving Qld late feb for about 3 weeks, would love to do a bit of detecting while i am down there, have carried out a bit of searching etcx to no luck, have also heard its mostly flour gold and so no detecting, anyone help??
Regards
Frank

The Victorian high country though gold bearing is not suited to detecting!
Nuggets & coarse gold are not common to the area! Most of the alluvial goldfields produced very fine gold.
The slopes are very steep and heavily overgrown, it is hard going exploring off track! A great deal of the area
is closed to gold prospecting, National Parks & Exempted streams etc.

If you do not know the area you will most likely find little gold there!
In saying that it is a wonderful place to camp & travel through spectacular scenery etc.

If you want to find gold with a detector you are best to go to the golden triangle, historically the best
nugget producing field on earth! It is true its getting hard to find gold there compared to Western Australia
but lucky ones still find small bits!

Dont be negetive thinking mate give the high country ago you might find something nobody else thought was there good luck out there.

I am not being negative!
I and many others have thought it might be better hunting up there due to less detector traffic!
After tons of trips and hard yakka no gold to show for my efforts!

Also i do not prospect in no go areas like National Parks, people that do are breaking the laws which is making it very hard to defend our rapidly diminshing rights in Victoria!

My post was meant to answer the asked question, trying to supply correct and relavent information Frankaus before he embarks on his trip.

Mate that wasnt directed at you at all (WTF) thats just a figure of speech dont be negitive thinking out there gold can be found anywhere. Geez if that ticks you off you are one touchy bloke have fun

hey frankaus,

Maybe we'll run into eachother in them thar hills. I grew up in NE Vic and remember as a kid, my uncle would do a fair bit of panning in the cold rocky streams. I also went on the odd trek when I was older and yes it's rough country to detect off the beaten path but it's a nice spot to relax next to a creek and turn a few rocks over. Not sure about it being mostly state parks as a few known gold areas are on crown land. There are a few historical areas which might be off limits as well. Again, dont quote me. I'm just beginning to plan my trip away and having as much trouble as you finding specific info but i've found a few good resources. I think the best research I could do is make a day trip and check out in person where i plan to go before committing to the area. Calling into the local DPI office on the way out wouldn't go astray either.

-Trav

coming up empty handed is a very good pass time for me, if i did gold prostecting for a living i would surely starve, however i will try, and try also in the old ghost towns, who knows, might find some lead to add to my sinker collection.
no worries Trav, if we can meet up would be great, at least you will know some of the sights.
regards
Frank,

G'day Frankaus.

Although the heavy regrowth of shrub and plants,due to the massive fires a couple of years ago,the area between Mt Taylor and Omeo,
have yielded(for myself and a friend) several nice little nuggets ranging from 0.2g to a nice 10.3grammer.Creeks such as Boggy,Store,Yahoo, Swifts and their tributaries should be paid close attention to.With the amount of rainfall at the moment,a lot of the above mentioned areas,are
impassable and most creeks and tributaries thereof will be running.

Cheers kon61.

Brokeback Mountain all over again, one finding out his/her romantic sexuality preference starring Frankaus Ledger & Monoloop68 Gyllenhaal LOL kidding guys. Always wanted to do some Robert O'Hara Burke and William John Wills exploring the far virgin inhospitable mountainous lands of Victorian with a metal detector and camping out in the rugged mountain rangers under the bright shining stars, detecting from sunrise to sunset.

Dammmmm if only my equipment would all fit in a swag , bath tub , heater/air-con, stove, fridge........etc and someone make me breakfast every morning LOL.

There must be gold in them hills which no one has come across.

I've taken nuggets out of the High Country. However it is *hard*, *tough* country for prospecting. You must be totally self sufficient and have recovery gear for the vehicle. A Spot Messenger or sat phone/HF radio are very sensible equipment to carry - your UHF CB will not work worth a damn in the valleys of the High Country, neither will your mobile phone. Take clothes for 45C, take clothes for -5C, take clothes for 10C and heavy rain - and that's just in February! Seriously A chainsaw is essential. *Quality* boots are a must for detecting on the steep gullies. Thongs are good for wading the stony creeks panning - *definitely* take a pan for each person in the party (plastic is OK). A K-mart $30 fishing rod is worthwhile as is a 22 rifle. If you take a firearm please shoot any rabbits, feral cats and feral dogs you see.

You should spend some time researching the likely gold spots otherwise you will waste your time - kon61 has given you some excellent tips.

In my opinion (and I've been a few places around the planet) the Victorian High Country is one of the most beautiful, accessible and unspoiled spots I have seen or visited - my soul is at peace when I'm up there. Enjoy but also, please, take care of our treasure.

Mike Harding

what a great post Mike thank you

Mike Harding wrote:I've taken nuggets out of the High Country. However it is *hard*, *tough* country for prospecting. You must be totally self sufficient and have recovery gear for the vehicle.

Hi Mike Harding , so when will you take us forum members out and be our tour guide Victorian High Country exploration excursion.

Now I'm being serious and i promise i will behave myself.

cheers

Hi 24kt

Oddly enough, and usually when sitting by my campfire, I sometimes consider starting one of those tag-along businesses, not for the money (I doubt one would make much from it) but more to encourage others to venture into places they otherwise may not and simply for the joy of introducing people to our wonderful bush. Then reality takes a grip and I realise that although I like people and usually get on well with others I don't have the patience one would require for such an enterprise. And, anyway, I generally prefer to be on my own in the bush, that way when things go wrong it's 100% *my* fault

>Hi Mike Harding , so when will you take us forum members out and
>be our tour guide Victorian High Country exploration excursion.

Feel free to PM or e-mail me and we can kick it around:
<mike_harding@fastmail.fm>

>i promise i will behave myself.

I know you will.

Mike Harding

Mike Harding wrote:I've taken nuggets out of the High Country. However it is *hard*, *tough* country for prospecting. You must be totally self sufficient and have recovery gear for the vehicle. A Spot Messenger or sat phone/HF radio are very sensible equipment to carry - your UHF CB will not work worth a damn in the valleys of the High Country, neither will your mobile phone. Take clothes for 45C, take clothes for -5C, take clothes for 10C and heavy rain - and that's just in February! Seriously A chainsaw is essential. *Quality* boots are a must for detecting on the steep gullies. Thongs are good for wading the stony creeks panning - *definitely* take a pan for each person in the party (plastic is OK). A K-mart $30 fishing rod is worthwhile as is a 22 rifle. If you take a firearm please shoot any rabbits, feral cats and feral dogs you see.

You should spend some time researching the likely gold spots otherwise you will waste your time - kon61 has given you some excellent tips.

In my opinion (and I've been a few places around the planet) the Victorian High Country is one of the most beautiful, accessible and unspoiled spots I have seen or visited - my soul is at peace when I'm up there. Enjoy but also, please, take care of our treasure.

Mike Harding

Some good advise there except for the 22 rifle. LEAVE YER GUNS AT HOME unless you have a permit to cull feral animals. Just because we don't like certain critters does not take away there right to life. They were on this planet longa plurry time before we appeared on the scene. They are all part of nature and the food chain that many native animals and birds have come to rely on. Wipe out the cats, rabbits, dogs, pigs and you will see a rapid decline in some of our protected wild life like hawks, and the wedge tailed eagle, We have destroyed most of there natural hunting grounds for our farming use. Also if you remove these so called feral animals, the hawks and eagles will turn their attention to sheep. lizards, snakes and other small animals. and there will be a rapid increase in rats and mice.

No i think ALL feral animals should be destroyed any time you see them especially cats/dogs and foxes!!

A Feral animal is a natural born (either in captivity or not) wild animal that has been domesticated and subsuquently has returned to the wild (its natural habitat). that in most cases has been utterly destroyed by human activity. The animal then endevors to survive in this ruined habitat as it would in its natural wild state.

The animal has a natural born right to life that neither you or I or anyone else can Lord over and say, "well I don't like this animal or that animal because it eats this pretty bird or that wooly little lamb" That is life , it is how all creatures and plants live and survive. and we are the greatest destroyers of everything that has ever walked, swam, crawled or flew on this planet. Doing what you favour is exactly how we have destroyed to extinction thousands upon thousands of incredible creatures that were once prolific on this planet, simply because they got in the way of our survival or we just didn't like what they did or how they looked.

Adrian SS

cats are not native neither are foxes dogs i suppose to some extent and rabbits should be annihilated as well!! in my opinion you can make your argument in say 1000 yrs time when the whole ecology has come to some equilibrium !!

I do hope we are on the same page here ? im talking about OZ and its feral animals not on a global scale

Adrian:

It is about balance.

As you correctly say; man, through his ignorance, has caused an imbalance in the ecology of many areas of Australia. Today we are more aware of the damage our past actions have caused and we have an obligation to make some effort to put things back to rights.

Cats have no place in this country, they have never roamed this land since it became an island continent. They are not in balance with Australia; our natives have little or no defence against such a superb hunter - there is an obvious and irrefutable conclusion to this situation. Tens of thousands of years of balanced evolution are being seriously damaged by 250 years of cats in the wrong place. The same analysis may be applied, to a greater or lesser degrees, to all other feral animals - they are out of balance with Australia.

We have suburbs, here in Melbourne, where one rarely see any species of bird other than Indian Myna because the Mynas have driven the natives away by taking over their nesting sites. The UN lists Indian Mynas amongst the 100 "Most Invasive Species" on the planet. What will this imbalance in birds do to the distribution of seeds and plants etc?

Your first paragraph is misleading and ignores the fact that the feral animals we are discussing have *not* returned to their ruined habitat because they never habituated Australia in the first place. One cannot return to somewhere one has not previously visited.

>The animal has a natural born right to life that neither you or
>I or anyone else can Lord over and say, "well I don't like this
>animal or that animal because it eats this pretty bird or that
>wooly little lamb"

Your logic is confused. Man is an animal. If the feral is entitled to kill the pretty bird then, logically, man is entitled to kill the feral - this is the natural order of the strongest survives. Indeed you go on to refute your own logic as follows:

>That is life, it is how all creatures and plants live and survive.

By killing the feral man is ensuring his own survival by maintaining a balance in his environment.

With respect: you seem to me to be naive in this area, we do not advocate the killing of ferals because of pretty birds or woolly lambs but because they do not belong on this continent and will/are cause(ing) irreversible damage to it. If we were to follow your reasoning then should Brown Bears, Lions, Tigers, whatever find their way into the Australian bush we should leave them well alone? Where do you stand on Cane Toads, I wonder.

Mike Harding

"Where do you stand on Cane Toads, I wonder." On their heads hopefully !!

G'day Murachu.

Cane toads? Where exactly are they most plentiful so that i can sharpen my golf skills?

Cheers kon61.

Who is to say that cats are not native to Australia. The is evidence of megafauna cats having once been here along with plenty of other prehistoric giants that survived until the arrival of man in this country.

The gigantic difference between us and so called lesser animals is that we seem to enjoy killing and even call it sport and go out of our way to knock a few animals off, just for fun. where as wild animals kill for food and to survive.
People seem to single out cats when talking about feral animals and yes, just like us they are supreme hunters, (closely related to us ) that is why they have survived for so long. I think you would have a problem finding an animal and proving that it was brought to extinction by cats; We on the other hand who are also Not Native to this country , have wiped out hundreds of species here in Australia in a mere 200 years simply because we didn't like them or they ate our crops or aunt Marys pretty budgie.

The Cane Toad is a nasty piece of work as perceived by man and are in plague numbers, just like us, and just like us they are wiping out their habitat and anything they can that gets in their way. I do not have an argument for the cane toad other than like all other animals it was on this planet a long time before us and has survived well.

Aborigines are not native to Australia either having arrived here from India,Asia and Africa. They wiped out the megafauna and buckets of other species before deciding to leave and go back to where hunting was better. Those that remained after the ice melted struggled on till the present day living on roos, berries snakes n lizards, all that was left. Then we arrived and are merrily wiping out whatever remains.

Anyway this is a dead end augument so we will just have to agree to disagree.

I think you would have a problem finding an animal and proving that it was brought to extinction by cats; well I could do what the dark greens do and pick one like the lesser yellow breasted tit! I dont have to prove that because im a Greenie and what i say is final!!

Only Yellow breasted tits I have seen came from China.n none woz inna cats marph
A dark greenie aye, now I unnerstan

Marachu hi,

You say you're a greenie does that make you a Prospector where you detect for gold...?
Cheers,
uncle bob.

i was making the point that is what the greens do !!! no im not a greenie lol