In news that will give hope to thousands of grey nomad treasure seekers, an amateur prospector has unearthed a nugget worth almost $250,000 in Victoria’s goldfields.
The man found the 4.6kg gold rock using an amateur metal detector in Victoria’s ‘golden triangle’ between Bendigo, Ballarat and St Arnaud.
When the prospector took his find into Darren Kamp’s prospecting store in Geelong, Lucky Strike Gold, he was hoping it might be worth $10,000 … so was over the moon with the valuation.
Mr Kamp told the ABC that the prospector had been doubly lucky in that he had made the find with a $1,200 machine, which is at the very lowest end of the pricing range for detectors.
'I've got a good feeling that this could be my lucky day.' PIC: Cosmin Gavris / PexelsPexels
Apparently, if the nugget had been any deeper than the 12 inches in the ground where it was found, only a more expensive machine could have picked it up.
After months of rain and floods, central Victorian gold hunters believe it’s likely that more gold may be sitting closer to the surface, and that’s sparked something of a modern-day gold rush.
The price of one ounce (31.10 grams) of gold is worth about $2,984 — up from about $2,600 this time last year.
Ian Holland, a professional goldminer of 40 years experience, told the Guardian newspaper that there were more people out there trying their luck than ever.
“When I used to drive around looking for gold in the in the crown land, you used to see one car a week,” he said. “Now you’ll see five a day … that’s how much it’s grown.”
But there could still be room for everybody to strike it rich.
The Geological Survey of Victoria estimates that there may still be up to 75 million ounces of gold in the central and north-central Victorian goldfields.
Prospectors and Miners Association of Victoria vice-president, John Garcia, told the ABC that he regularly finds pieces as big as seven grams — worth $662 at today’s gold prices — while out fossicking on the same ground the 2.6kg nugget was found on.
“Let’s put it this way, the ground will never run out of gold,” he said.
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Good luck to him. But the reality is, even with expensive detectors – gold is very elusive. Most club member detectorists are out to do some prospecting and then to enjoy the bush.
This is a feel good story I am happy for the prospector, that would be a good add to his retirement fund.