New Zealand Gold Prospecting & Metal Detecting Forums Archive

The forum has moved to community.paydirt.co.nz, see you there!

This forum is now an archive to preserve the knowledge and finds posted here.

10 Pages«<5 678 9 >»

Lammerlaws History - on the road to El Dorado - Part 1 - The Claim Years

chrischch		Posted : Saturday, 7 July 2012 2:50:03 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 28/08/2011(UTC) Posts: 811 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 192 times Was thanked: 105 time(s) in 104 post(s)		A good keen man indeed.......I sooo gotta get out of the city.....time flies so fast and you never know when your number is up. Gotta get more of my bucket list accomplished. You are an inspiration, Sir. Thanks for showing/telling us stuff that you just cant see/hear elsewhere. Look forward to more stories and pics!
		Fisher Goldbug Pro, Fisher F2, Garrett Propointer.

Cleggie		Posted : Saturday, 7 July 2012 8:08:42 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Nugget Groups: Registered Joined: 24/03/2012(UTC) Posts: 88 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 88 times Was thanked: 59 time(s) in 31 post(s)		I can only echo what others have said, I really enjoy your stories not only in this thread but in the many other posts on this forum. Keep up the good work, you are an inspiration to us all, thanks Lammerlaw.

Lammerlaw		Posted : Friday, 3 August 2012 5:56:27 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 24/05/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,721 Thanks: 72 times Was thanked: 579 time(s) in 396 post(s)		Family days in the hill were always popular...and still are though today it is generally myself, my son who wasnt thought of back when this photo was taken and friends including several from this site. Taken towards seasons end when it was time to pack up for the year due to the oncoming winter when the hills were soon to be covered in snow- Lammerlaw attached the following image(s):

kiwikeith		Posted : Friday, 3 August 2012 6:01:55 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Medals: Groups: Registered Joined: 28/06/2011(UTC) Posts: 648 Location: hector Thanks: 359 times Was thanked: 230 time(s) in 154 post(s)		great to see you still in the land of the living oh boy what great 4wds nothing but the best LOL

Lammerlaw		Posted : Friday, 3 August 2012 10:20:13 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 24/05/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,721 Thanks: 72 times Was thanked: 579 time(s) in 396 post(s)		Still alive Keith - at the moment - David got a really ice bit of gold down about a k from the house last Sunday - One of the forum members whom I wanted you to meet has had about seven grammes in the hut paddock in two trips. Dads Landrover got flogged by some obnoxious nauseating little cretin - the bad news is that he ran it into a strainer post which skewered the front of it and wrote it off and the good news is he left his hat on the seat when he skarpered and got himself identified accordingly. As you know I still have mine but it is past the use by date, scuppered, deceased and otherwise terminal - we did get it going the other day after maybe ten years and amongst a cloud of smoke and using three cylinders got as far as the gate and back. Its only good for spare parts now. The person on the far right of one of the photos eating something - there was a pop group named after her - It was called 'Twisted Sister.' Edited by user Friday, 3 August 2012 10:21:56 PM(UTC) \| Reason: Not specified

treeman		Posted : Saturday, 4 August 2012 12:30:48 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Nugget Groups: Registered Joined: 1/02/2012(UTC) Posts: 32 Location: Arrowtown, Thanks: 10 times Was thanked: 16 time(s) in 11 post(s)		Liked your dad lammerlaw and my wife still talks of the trip when your dad invited us there. The parts she remember is how cold it was and having to rap up those two we boys of ours form that cold. and the fact they did not want to stay in the hut but play outside. that was a time ago 20 odd years I would say. cheers Treeman

Lammerlaw		Posted : Sunday, 5 August 2012 1:55:19 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 24/05/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,721 Thanks: 72 times Was thanked: 579 time(s) in 396 post(s)		Originally Posted by: treeman Liked your dad lammerlaw and my wife still talks of the trip when your dad invited us there. The parts she remember is how cold it was and having to rap up those two we boys of ours form that cold. and the fact they did not want to stay in the hut but play outside. that was a time ago 20 odd years I would say. cheers Treeman You should go and say gidday to him as he would quite like to see you I am sure. He speaks highly of you so holds you in high regard - I guess that is why he let you work the claim. He hasnt been doing any Gold mining but we did go Duck shooting this year and he is out fishing and travelling regularly from Waimate to Mosgiel and so he is often on the road - New Zealands oldest boy racer. Bought himself a boat but his last trip out and the engine died halfway down Taieri Gorge! Call in and say hello - he would like that.

expat		Posted : Sunday, 5 August 2012 7:28:22 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 26/03/2012(UTC) Posts: 499 Location: Rangiora Thanks: 49 times Was thanked: 91 time(s) in 76 post(s)		"The person on the far right of one of the photos eating something - there was a pop group named after her - It was called 'Twisted Sister" Magic. LMAO.
		My greatest fear is that when I die my wife will sell my collection for what I told her it cost me.

Lammerlaw		Posted : Wednesday, 8 August 2012 12:01:56 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 24/05/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,721 Thanks: 72 times Was thanked: 579 time(s) in 396 post(s)		Forlorne country and not a place to be in snow white out or fog - I got lost here for a short period on several occasions and on each occasion didnt come out where I intended or wanted to come out. This photograph was taken more or less from where I parked my truck to go down to the claim. It is at a point about one quarter of the way up the claim and the point where this photo was taken lies directly on top of a quartz reef that was reported to assay very rich but was never really worked. Even today it is possible to come here and find specimen stone if you are lucky and almost a guarantee to find stone with microscopic gold in it. Within two hundred metres of this spot I found a nugget weighing around three grammes which was a series of Gold crystals, squared and angular and which had not travelled anywhere at all. This photograph looks across the other side of the river valley where our claim was toward a historic gold mining site and careful examination of the photograph clearly indicates the old track leading down to the river where it crosses the river and then goes the other side of the hill up to the mine. Today nothing remains except three hut sides, the site of the stamper battery and the mine drive itself. Careful examination of the photo also shows New Zealands champion cat annihilator - this dog would have been the best friend of the greenies due to the fact that if the dog had its way cats in the South Island would have been extinct by now. Edited by user Wednesday, 8 August 2012 12:08:46 AM(UTC) \| Reason: Not specified Lammerlaw attached the following image(s):

oroplata		Posted : Wednesday, 8 August 2012 12:35:12 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered, Moderators Joined: 16/06/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,040 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 23 times Was thanked: 211 time(s) in 152 post(s)		http://www.usatoday.com/...use-cats-kill/56831262/1
		WWW

mineforgold.co.nz		Posted : Wednesday, 8 August 2012 12:47:24 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 14/11/2011(UTC) Posts: 299 Location: Nelson Thanks: 58 times Was thanked: 38 time(s) in 35 post(s)		Lucky you found your way out. You will have sympathy for the ash-out folk under the smokey mountain.
		Own: Lobo SuperTraq, Garrett ATPro, Minelab Excalibur
		WWW BLOG

Lammerlaw		Posted : Wednesday, 8 August 2012 1:58:03 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 24/05/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,721 Thanks: 72 times Was thanked: 579 time(s) in 396 post(s)		oroplata - I just happen to have an intense dislike for cats running wild for the simple reason I love native birds and one less cat is so many more birds lives saved and I am a stanuch supported of our native wildlife, whether it be Jewelled geckos, the native bush, insects, birds or whatever. Any introduced specifies which preys on our native species is on the hit list as far as I am concerned...this means that my dog went about massacring cats not with my blessing but rather with a blind eye..."What my dog killed your cat - good heavens I didnt think he had it in him" snigger snigger. 'Kill at cat and save a Bellbird' minerforgold.co.nz - I consider that all people who suffer a disaster in any form are deserving of sympathy - we have to consider it from the point of view that it might be our turn next and it might be us who need help and assistance so yes I think of all those who befall bad luck. An ash cloud can be a lot deadlier than fog or snow white out - if you keep your head and know what you are doing in a snow whiteout or fog and have taken the precautions that every one should be aware of and take in the great outdoors then you have no worries but in a the case of a Volcanic eruption and its resultant ash cloud then no one is prepared, they are taken by surprise and the results can be deadly with toxic gasses as at Mt Pelee and Mt Vesuvius or the ash itself.

oroplata		Posted : Wednesday, 8 August 2012 2:13:19 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered, Moderators Joined: 16/06/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,040 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 23 times Was thanked: 211 time(s) in 152 post(s)		Originally Posted by: Lammerlaw oroplata - I just happen to have an intense dislike for cats running wild for the simple reason I love native birds and one less cat is so many more birds lives saved and I am a stanuch supported of our native wildlife, whether it be Jewelled geckos, the native bush, insects, birds or whatever. Any introduced specifies which preys on our native species is on the hit list as far as I am concerned...this means that my dog went about massacring cats not with my blessing but rather with a blind eye..."What my dog killed your cat - good heavens I didnt think he had it in him" snigger snigger. 'Kill at cat and save a Bellbird' TWO THUMBS UP. :)
		WWW

tillerman01		Posted : Saturday, 11 August 2012 7:06:11 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Flake Groups: Registered Joined: 3/07/2012(UTC) Posts: 14 Location: Arkles Bay, NZ Thanks: 90 times Was thanked: 1 time(s) in 1 post(s)		Great story Lammerlaw, definately keep up the good work. I've just finished reading every post from page one onwards - what an amazing memory you have. You should bottle it and make some profit on the side. I reckon my wife would be the first in to buy a bottle or two for me! Edited by user Sunday, 12 August 2012 8:45:01 PM(UTC) \| Reason: Not specified

Lammerlaw		Posted : Monday, 20 August 2012 8:01:22 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 24/05/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,721 Thanks: 72 times Was thanked: 579 time(s) in 396 post(s)		This photo was taken from the gold mine mentioned in the last photograph and looking back to the spot where the last photograph was taken. Away in the distance is my Landrover parked near where the last photo was taken. The Landrover is parked above the rock outcrop toward the middle of the photograph and the last photograph was taken beyond that again. Remembering back this was a great day out and despite the storm in the distance the weather remained just great - It was on this day that I panned the bottle of mercury that is shown somewhere back in either this thread or my treasures of the Goldfields thread. At the point close to where this photograph was taken there were three huts and the site of the Gold stamper and the actual drive. Due to a fall of dirt the drive is now fairly full of water and if my memory serves me correctly had wooden rails in it. When I first went here there were old tools, a smashed Camp oven and other items lying in the tussocks. Edited by user Monday, 20 August 2012 10:29:41 PM(UTC) \| Reason: Not specified Lammerlaw attached the following image(s):

Lammerlaw		Posted : Friday, 31 August 2012 10:24:27 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 24/05/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,721 Thanks: 72 times Was thanked: 579 time(s) in 396 post(s)		About halfway up our claim was a huge cliff which towered over the river - I always intended climbing it but never got to that stage because Gold took precedence. The river under the cliff which overhangs the river at this point is nearly always shaded and this was one point in the river where I actually found a little fine gold - generally speaking there was simply no fine gold in this claim, it was all large flakey stuff and nuggets. There was very little indication that the old miners even passed by here as the last miners huts were a mile or so downstream. Regardless of that I did have some good days here over the years as well as higher up the river as subsequent contributions here will show. No it aint me in the photo but a friend who came with me every weekend for a couple of years - I am not sure if friends actually give you a 1125ml bottle of Black Rum just after you have consummed three large bottles of beer - I ended up crooker than crook and was in a comma more or less for a week . In any case this chap is one of the guys who kept me company and even today has his own key to my property to access it when he wants. To the right of the cliff a large cleft in the rock is clearly visible and where this cleft crosses the river as a crevice I thought I was going to make a fortune - despite the fact that some small cracks around the corner yielded over an ounce of gold each this crack was more or less a waste of time considering the time spent working it. This crack was also the last major crevice in the entire claim that I did actually work as I knew of it for years but did not work it until the claim was due to expire. This spot is located perhaps 1.5ks up the river from the last photos of the actual river. Edited by user Friday, 31 August 2012 12:29:41 PM(UTC) \| Reason: Not specified Lammerlaw attached the following image(s):

Lammerlaw		Posted : Thursday, 6 September 2012 9:57:55 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 24/05/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,721 Thanks: 72 times Was thanked: 579 time(s) in 396 post(s)		On the same day that the last photo was taken I also took this one - it looks back downstream, down a short straight - The riverbed fairly smooth along here but I did find two crevices each yielding just over an ounce if memory serves me correctly. Great days and great company. Right on the bend at the lower end of the crevice I got 3 ounces in a matter of minutes, all nuggety. It was while diving at the lower bend a cheery voice called out 'Gidday' - when I looked up a fellow and his wife were standing there - they asked me if I had any gold and it was all sitting in the pan on the bank! They could have so easily emptied the pan into something and headed West and I would have been none the wiser as to who or how and gold had gone. As it was they were known to me and had come looking for me just to say hello and see how I was getting on. In 30 years they are one of only two pair of people we ever saw up there tramping and on one other occasion only one other pair were met and they came overland on motorbikes - how they did it is anyones guess though they told me that had a hard time getting the bikes through the Peat bogs out on the tops. ...and it does NOT pay to try to take a Landrover down the hill behind and to the right of where my friend is standing! ...I had great faith in my Landrover and thought it could go anywhere! The cliffs in the preceding photograph are the same ones visible to the bottom right in this photograph. The closest cliffs on the right hand side have a huge cave in them and the entire hill seems to be balanced precariously on a pillar of fractured schist as the cave is the size of a room and high enough to stand in - the only cave I have ever truly felt very insecure as it seems to defy the laws of physics and gravity - each time I go back there I expect to see the hillside damming up the river! Edited by user Thursday, 6 September 2012 10:02:59 AM(UTC) \| Reason: Not specified Lammerlaw attached the following image(s):

Lammerlaw		Posted : Saturday, 8 September 2012 2:54:22 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 24/05/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,721 Thanks: 72 times Was thanked: 579 time(s) in 396 post(s)		Never in my life have I given up until the last nail has been nailed and until the task has been completed so I have decided to finish this part of my story, Part One, within the next dozen or so photos as quick as I can and then shall not continue into parts two and three due to lack of interest as it makes a fellow know it is worthwhile when comments are made but due to the lack of them I feel the story has run its course...I also intend cutting short my other thread within the next month or two due to the same reason. In the last photo I showed a spot looking down a straight length of river where I had a degree of success - enough success to madly decide tot ake my gold dredge down - the easy way - in my Landrover - now keeping in mind that A) landrovers go anywhere B)It is miles and miles away from anywhere - I decided that what goes down can go back up. The following photo shows where one stupid person took his Landrover - the other Landrover at the top of the hill is as far down as it dares to come in order to get a long tow rope down to mine. I had many stuck escapades including three very long walks to obtain the services of farm tractors to extricate me from unenviable situations. The Landrover in question besides this situation got trapped in three swamps and was also driven into three exploratory mine shafts. The mine shafts were all driven into either going forward or backing up with the result that three different corners of the Landrover were stoved in and today show evidence of sledgehammer panel beating. Today I only access this country as a way of getting to my own back boundary fence but have been informed that I am aobut tolose my key to access my own property - when this happens watch this space and also the appropriate space in my other thread as I fully intend putting on the exact and honest Google Earth grid reference to the most amazing gold quartz reef I have ever seen - this reef contains gold in a filigree and crystaline form with samples up to 10mm across...it is sort of called doing unto your neighbour what they do unto you - Didnt I read that in the bible? Edited by user Saturday, 8 September 2012 8:08:17 PM(UTC) \| Reason: Not specified Lammerlaw attached the following image(s):

simon		Posted : Saturday, 8 September 2012 3:29:28 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 7/01/2011(UTC) Posts: 789 Location: Central Otago Thanks: 33 times Was thanked: 239 time(s) in 150 post(s)		hi graeme. are you having a down day over your way? you can't stop your posts mate. they're the best reading on here. sorry if i haven't made too many comments. i think i've read each single segment. i just didn't want to reply to each piece and mess up the flow with my posts. i'm sure many others would miss your posts as much as me. keep it up please. i'm sure there are years of further stories to be told. i reckon you are secretly just too busy with a new digging out there on the hills at the moment!
		WWW

kiwikeith		Posted : Saturday, 8 September 2012 6:21:11 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Medals: Groups: Registered Joined: 28/06/2011(UTC) Posts: 648 Location: hector Thanks: 359 times Was thanked: 230 time(s) in 154 post(s)		hi greame dont stop as mun always says i try to read each one and since been there its always good to see it again one problem posting a photo of a landrover stuck cant be true they dont get stuck haha keep it up matey keith

10 Pages«<5 678 9 >»