New Zealand Gold Prospecting & Metal Detecting Forums Archive

Ok so I was just checking to see how many of us out there use Finders Logs or some thing like it? So if you do use one what type do you use and do you find them useful? These can be for either detecting or mining. I use both.

Never did for metal detector finds and for gold mining I did for one year only - It is a pity I hadnt kept better records from my peak gold mining days as they would have made a good book, not just the gold but the places and the antics of individuals and happy times long past.

Due to the statute of limitations or should I say the lack of it in this country I could not tell the full story as some of the misdemeanour's were a bit bizarre or broke some of the ridiculous rules, regulations, legalities. statutes, impositions, restrictions and bylaws that are imposed on us by the black suited, white collared criminals who in Nazi Germany would have readily jumped on the Gestapo and SS bandwagons and had their counterparts in the Kempai Tai, MI5, KGB and CIA but out here in the antipodes are called 'Civil Servants' who enforce ridiculous rules with an eagerness on behalf of their power hungry masters and who, given a little authority, impose the insane regulations with an enthusiasm which can only be likened to Hitlers minions.

Needless to say no one was ever hurt...well except me on several occasions necessitating long trips to hospital...and a good time was enjoyed by all...except me of course when things went wrong resulting in the aforementioned trips to the hospital!

You never know - I might write a book one day as there are a lot of memories and fine times with great people...which reminds me I must phone someone I know to tell him that next time he blasts a great big porcelain Confucius apart in my bloody paddock to clean up the mess later otherwise he will be as popular as a Pork Pie in a Synagogue - I think I know who it was - I think it was the same guy who once gave me a gift of a 1 litre bottle of black rum which I drank after three bottles of beer resulting in the worse gold mining trip of my lifetime and unconscious in bed for upwards of several days.

The same guy who sitting in the hut engaged me in an endearing conversation which turned into an argument over the qualities of Speights beer as compared with DB then stopped talking to me for weeks after just because I told him the truth that DB IS better! He was also the same guy who had something to do with the death of 'Alexander' a big black beetle who was walking in inane circles on the floor of the hut one night and the circumstances leading up to its untimely death - in the hut - amongst a volley of gunfire. Actually I am still worried over that due to the fact that on the judgement day I daresay that sitting behind St Peter all set to scream out "Guilty" will be more rabbits, ducks, goats, pigs than I care to admit - and one black beetle!

It did look sort of cool though - where the beetle had been one monent there was just one big hole in the floor, the beetle vapourised and dust wafting up through the hole sort of like a small slow motion twister coming up through the floor...that wasnt the end of the story but I dont consider it wise to tell the rest of it...excerpt to say that one of the fellows in the hut that evening spent the next day or two smelling like a brewery due to...never mind.

Edited by user Friday, 25 November 2011 2:54:55 PM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

Lol! you could write a farce about an "unknown" fossicker making his rounds and make the Doc and other "black suite nazi's" as ridiculous as they can be. Would make for an excellent comedy... lol

No worries, stories to tell the grand-kids then. So would you say that logs are a good or bad idea then? cheers

its a shame graham...I'd buy a copy too just from reading some of ya antics in here haha!!

comon ya ol bugger...start writing :)

I am totally allergic to writing and only tickle the keyboard because it is still a novelty which will wear off before too long I assure you and at the moment I seem to have too much time on my hands which has been brought on by two factors; - 1) an inherent lazy streak which prevents me from doing anything constructive 2) its against my religious principles to work unless it is something I like doing - and the only thing I like doing is hunting, fishing, certain nefarious activity which when you get older requires medicinal assistance and goldmining and as far as the latter is concerned I an simply waiting until the weather fines up!

Edited by user Saturday, 26 November 2011 9:55:18 AM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

Interesting things a GPS - if I had one many years ago I might not have the quandary I created.

A friend once told me where a large crow bar marked the site of what is supposed to be a specimen reef with a narrow vein of quartz but containing good specimen gold. I went looking for the crow bar and found it on the edge of a hole which had been dug and which had crumbled quartz and grit around the edges - I took great visual bearings of the site and knowing full well that my friend would find it when he wanted to and so would I - I removed the crow bar and took it to my hut and put it under the floor where it lies to this day.

It would have been a good ten years before I decided to get serious about the spot and went to have a prospect - but have never found the spot again...I know exactly where it is, I remember the scenery surrounding the hole perfectly well, I remember how far away the tussock gave way to bog type plants - but the exact spot just simply isnt where I left it!

There is a wee bit more to this story but to say any more might not make me popular as there is one other clue which I have learnt since from the same friend as the result of a discovery he made and which I have checked out and maybe this year I just might go have a look...if the friend in question does sees this and I am sure he will then dont worry you will always be included if I happened to come across anything.

The other fellow? Hes more withdrawn than I am when it comes to saying anything so hes the guy who reads what you say, hes the guy who takes it all in and hes also the guy who doesnt say anything - he is also one of the earliest gold dredging miners in the country and most successful...and as soon as he sees this he will be up to knock my block off!

That is the beauty of a GPS. You can mark your way points. You can even leave the thing turned on while out in the field (hard on the batteries) but when you get home you can load your waypoints on to google earth & they will come up on the map exactly where you have been. If you left the GPS on while out & about in the field it will show a continuess line of all your movements from the moment you turned the thing on to the moment you turn it off.....or run out of battery. Bloody fantastic.
In the Coromandel with all its bush cover & steep gullies it is very hard to know exactly where you are in relation to a map & when you come across something like a quartz reef or rich little stringer or something of interest it is great to be able to take a waypoint. Get home & wack it up on google earth & you then can then see exactly on a real life satellite photo where you have been. Plus you can get back to the exact same spot.
So Graham it certainly would have been a great help to you. Dont you hate how those spots move on you over time. That crow bar WAS a good waypoint until you moved the bloody thing.....

JW :)