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Gold just South of Haast?
gavin  
Posted : Wednesday, 5 January 2011 2:33:42 PM(UTC)
gavin

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Hi,

Anyone know if gold's ever been found anywhere around this area:

http://www.topomap.co.nz/NZTopoMap?v=2&ll=-44.086492,168.32539&z=14

Heading in to the bush with a bunch of mates for a week and wondering if it's worth taking in the detector ;)

Cheers,
Gav
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GoldenKiwi  
Posted : Thursday, 6 January 2011 4:16:45 AM(UTC)
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Gidday Gav,

I got stuck down in Haast for 2 days over the break due to shit weather, it was too rough to get in the creeks or rivers as they were flooded but the beds looked like promising all around the place.

Only way to find out is give it a blast. If not successful your still close enough to plenty good spots.

Best of luck mate
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gavin  
Posted : Thursday, 6 January 2011 4:45:54 AM(UTC)
gavin

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Cheers GoldenKiwi, figured I'd take in some basic equipment at very least. But if there's definite gold in the area I'd haul in more toys ;) I'll let you know how I do.
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gavin  
Posted : Thursday, 6 January 2011 4:49:29 AM(UTC)
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Couldn't see any obvious gold permits issued by Crown Minerals in the area - https://data.crownminerals.govt.nz/permitwebmaps/default.aspx?commodity=minerals - so figure the area can't be that well known for it?!

Maybe Haast was a hard spot to get to till the road opened in 1960 so the area might not have been as well explored on the gold front.
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GoldenKiwi  
Posted : Thursday, 6 January 2011 7:46:30 AM(UTC)
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I think your probably bang on the money there Gav, wouldnt have been bugger all exploring due to the absence of a road.

Get in there and may your pan glisten!
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criticol  
Posted : Thursday, 6 January 2011 9:14:11 AM(UTC)
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Hi Guys,& GALS.

Please excuse my negativity. but some of you fellars seem to think that the old gold prospectors needed "Roads" before they could explore this country for its potential raw products like gold.

In the first formative years of this country there were no "Cars".--- Horses? Yes,.--- Tracks? Yes,Some old maori trails.
There were also lots of pairs of feet for walking!!!!!

As to there being Gold to the south of "Hasst, of course there is, the Cascades spring to mind, Greenstone too.and good gold is also obtainable from the very Southern tip of the South island.

Slightly North of Hasst, is a creek that was named Bullock creek in the old days, and it posesses a little gorge futher away from its mouth, that produced some very rich gold in those times which was in the form of large coarse nuggets.
I alluded to this creek in an earlier post,which now has a different name than "Bullock" creek, and which is now almost impossible to locate at the present time.

Cheers---Colin.
P.S. But I know where it is!

Edited by user Thursday, 6 January 2011 9:17:15 AM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified
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gavin  
Posted : Thursday, 6 January 2011 12:14:41 PM(UTC)
gavin

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Didn't they just drive off the ships in the good old days in their monster trucks?! :P Nah, I know they got all over the place back in the day, but there's definitely more claims being worked further up the coast which I figured could have been due to easier access back in the 60's and gold mining having just lingered up there as a result.

There's quite a lot of Bullock Creeks around the place, guess it was a popular name! I do notice one just east of Haast just before Cook River. But I guess this isn't going to be the nuggety one you talk of?

BTW: Great to hear from you - was wondering where you were :)
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roman holiday  
Posted : Thursday, 6 January 2011 1:46:21 PM(UTC)
roman holiday

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criticol wrote:
Hi Guys,& GALS.

Please excuse my negativity. but some of you fellars seem to think that the old gold prospectors needed "Roads" before they could explore this country for its potential raw products like gold.

In the first formative years of this country there were no "Cars".--- Horses? Yes,.--- Tracks? Yes,Some old maori trails.
There were also lots of pairs of feet for walking!!!!!

As to there being Gold to the south of "Hasst, of course there is, the Cascades spring to mind, Greenstone too.and good gold is also obtainable from the very Southern tip of the South island.

Slightly North of Hasst, is a creek that was named Bullock creek in the old days, and it posesses a little gorge futher away from its mouth, that produced some very rich gold in those times which was in the form of large coarse nuggets.
I alluded to this creek in an earlier post,which now has a different name than "Bullock" creek, and which is now almost impossible to locate at the present time.

Cheers---Colin.
P.S. But I know where it is!

Hi Criticol, I think you shall have to be my first port of call on my NZ wide fossicking adventure... I'll be starting in the Coromandel around the end of Febuary before heading South!^^

Edited by user Thursday, 6 January 2011 1:48:23 PM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified
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criticol  
Posted : Thursday, 6 January 2011 2:49:57 PM(UTC)
criticol

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Hello Gavin.

I keep an eye on the forum in the "Guest" status.

There are a lot of creeks with the name "Bullock", as most transporting of goods and produce was done in those far away days by "Bullock" driven carts,etc. Bullocks beng better than horses for the harder work like dragging heavy loads through swollen rivers etc.
But as the journeys were long and time consuming,they had to strike camp many times before they reached their destinations.
Hence: these stop over places were generally by a convienient creek, so as to be able to water the bullocks, and so were called Bullock creeks!!!

Later in life as the places became more accessible and populated, many of these creeks were given a different and possibly more suitable name which more fitted their location, hence,if one of these creeks was mentioned in a generalized location as being gold bearing in the old days,you had to be quite a detective to run it down to earth as to its "Named" location on todays modern maps, no easy task I can assure you!

Anyway enough burble for now.

Cheers and regards---Colin.

Edited by user Thursday, 6 January 2011 2:51:48 PM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified
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Eagle  
Posted : Wednesday, 6 April 2011 2:37:32 PM(UTC)
Eagle

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Slightly North of Hasst, is a creek that was named Bullock creek in the old days, and it posesses a little gorge futher away from its mouth, that produced some very rich gold in those times which was in the form of large coarse nuggets.
I alluded to this creek in an earlier post,which now has a different name than "Bullock" creek, and which is now almost impossible to locate at the present time.

Cheers---Colin.
P.S. But I know where it is!

I know where it is too!!
Just wondering if you have been there before Colin,or is this from info you have researched.

All the best
Eagle
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nzgold  
Posted : Wednesday, 6 April 2011 3:31:18 PM(UTC)
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I totally agree with Colin, those oldtimers were a tough breed. They were pretty switched on and didn't miss much..
.
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criticol  
Posted : Wednesday, 6 April 2011 4:10:33 PM(UTC)
criticol

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Good day Eagle.

I have a feeling that we may just be talking about the same place?
Does Sardine terrace ring a bell with you?

And yes I spent a Good couple? of hours navigating the creek up to the golden gorge and spent a few days camped there looking it over and checking out the surrounding grounds. Whilst I was doing this I discovered that there was a track that led right back (through a swamp even.) to the sea shore a bit further South of the mentioned creeks mouth.
By casting around some more I found that I could access this track from the first spur on the right-hand side of the old named Bullock creek, which started just past the first tributary which is also on the right- hand side going upriver from the mouth.
You climbed up the center of this spur for maybe 500 meters before you struck the track that crossed the spur and continued up to the golden gorge! This track made future access to the golden gorge much easier.

There you go Eagle, does it sound like the same creek?
If you recognize those directions you will realize that I know what I was talking about

Cheers---Colin.
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Eagle  
Posted : Wednesday, 6 April 2011 6:01:22 PM(UTC)
Eagle

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Good evening Criticol.

It sounds like you are certainly a man of the land,loved your description of ....creek.I have always walked up the creek I might just have to take your route up the spur & look for that track. Thanks for shareing.

My granfather told me some great tales about the place,he used to mine in the Nevis valley above Cromwell.

I have had some fun in there & with a big high pressure system about to move over that area I am going to be heading in there for Fri & Sat to do some snipeing.There have been a couple of huge flood events since Christmas there, so I am feeling quietly confident. I will post some photos of any goodies I get,thats if I can work out how to get them on the forum.

I have just had the last 2 days out with my gp3500 detector,going over a area that I last visited about 1 year ago I will try to get photos up tomorrow.

Regards
Eagle
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