Growing up in the Golden Triangle, an area renowned for its rich gold discoveries in Victoria, Australia, it was only fitting that I would share the history of the Gold Rush with the kids.
We have visited several mines, including Bendigo’s Central Deborah Mine, learned about the Eureka stockade and even stayed overnight at Sovereign Hill so we could immerse ourselves in the 19th-century Gold Rush.
Kids are innately curious and thrive when provided the opportunity to explore the outdoors. Sunshine and Striker have always been intrigued by natural history and have enjoyed both fossil hunting, gold panning and fossicking. Armed with our Miner’s Right, a gold pan and shovel, we headed off to a local creek to discover our riches – or at least, have fun trying.
Gold Panning with Kids
Table of Contents
Gold panning in itself is not that difficult. The difficult part is finding the right spot to pan. We’ve identified some good spots for you further along this post.
Our kids learned to gold pan when we visited Sovereign Hill in Ballarat. They host gold panning tutorials all day, evey day down at the Diggings, providing not only the kids, but the adults, the opportunity to get their gold panning technique just right.
Equipment
To successfully gold pan, you will need some equipment. At a minimum, you will need a shovel and gold pan.
Armed with the knowledge, we bought some gold pans off Amazon and off we went. (This is similar pan to what we purchased). This 4pcs Exploration Mining Trap Gold Plate Kit is also a good starting point and a great gift idea for the kids.
If you can stretch the budget to a Gold Panning Kit I recommend this for the sluice box. The sluice box can be fun for kids, separating the gold from the gravel and sand.
We’ve have been tempted to purchase metal detector, but our research has indicated that entry level detectors are unlikely to help us find anything but rusty nails, and we’re really not keen to spend big on something that works, especially as prospecting for gold is something we really only do once or twice a year!
Where to Dig for Gold
Gold is really heavy so you won’t find it floating in the running water. In fact, gold is usually heavier than most things in the creek or river and it takes a lot of force to move the gold. As such, you are more likely to find gold is areas where the water has slowed down as this is where the gold is likely to have settled.
When we gold panning, we head for the inside bends of the creek or river as this is usually slow moving, allowing the gold to settle. We also look fro big rocks or boulders which disrupt the flow of the water. Digging behind it can result in good finds.
Remember, gold is heavy. It will always sink as low as it can. Also check rock crevices and cracks where gold may have been washed into but was too heavy to get washed back out.
Gold Bearing Creeks in Victoria
Not all creeks and rivers are made equally! If you want to guarantee that the kids will find gold when you head off gold panning, then Sovereign Hill is your best bet. They pour gold into the creek regularly so visitors are guaranteed that they will find at least a speck.
If you want to take your chances in the wild, then there are six creeks and rivers that I would recommend. These six spots are gold bearing creeks. We often head to Sailors Creek with great results.
Nine Mile Creek – Yakandandah
Reedy Creek – Beechworth
Slaty Creek – Creswick
Sailors Creek – Daylesford
Stony Creek – Gapstead
Dead Dog Gully – Bendigo
I have added these to a map to give you an idea of where they are located however I have not provided exact spots for gold panning as these change. You will need to find a spot most accessible for you and your family.
How to Gold Pan
So you have your gold pan, and you’ve found the perfect spot. What now? Here is a quick step by step guide to panning for gold:
- Using a shovel, half fill you gold pan with the gravel, sand and small rocks from the creek
- Remove bigger stones and rocks from the pan. Some dig kits (like this one here) include a washing tool to remove all ths big stuff for you.
- With your hands on opposite sides of the pan (think 3 o’clock and 9 o’clock) place the pan in the water so you have some water in the pan
- Tilt the pan forward, slightly downward and begin shaking the pan side to side so the sand and gravel slowly move out of the pan. You want to agitated the dirt well to stratify it with the heaviest stuff at the bottom and the lightest stuff at the top.
- Repeat until all the substance is removed except around a half cup of fine sand
- Now move the pan in a circular motion so the fine sand separates. You should catch the finer sand around teh pan, with the heavier sand staying back
- Stop rotating and inspect your pan closely. If there re is any gold, you should see flashes of it in your pan.
- I usually lick my finger, then the gold and wipe it into my gold jar (which is filled with water). The gold then falls to the bottom.
Recreational Prospecting in Victoria
While you are allowed to go gold panning and fossicking in Victoria, you do need to ensure you have a current fossicking permit, known as a miner’s right.
The Fossicking Permit allows you to look for, remove and keep the minerals (like gold and gemstones) that you discover on Crown Land, your own land or private land (where the landowner has given permission).
Kids under the age of 18 don’t need a permit if they are accompanied by an adult who holds a fossicking permit.
Permits last for 10 years and are inexpensive. You can purchase your Victorian Fossicking Permit here.
There are a bunch of rules around prospecting in Victoria, as well as some clear guides on where you can and can’t go prospecting. It is important to be across these before you head off on your adventure.
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Places to head to learn about the Gold Rush
Go gold panning at Sovereign Hill
