Gold panning is a skill anyone can learn — but mastering it takes patience, practice, and understanding a few key principles. This guide will teach you everything from selecting the right pan to reading a creek for gold-bearing hotspots.
Step 1: Choose the Right Gold Pan
Your pan is your most important tool. Here's what to look for:
- Size: 14-16 inch diameter for beginners (larger = more material, but heavier)
- Color: Black or dark green pans make gold easier to see
- Riffles: Built-in grooves help catch fine gold during panning
- Material: Plastic is lighter and cheaper; steel is more durable
Step 2: Find Gold-Bearing Gravel (Reading the River)
Gold is 19 times heavier than water, so it sinks to the lowest points and gets trapped in specific features. Look for:
- Inside bends: Gold deposits on the inside of river curves
- Behind boulders: Creates low-pressure zones where gold settles
- Bedrock cracks: Gold gets trapped in crevices
- Gravel bars: Especially downstream of rapids
- Outside bends: Fast current washes gold away
- Middle of stream: Too much flow to trap gold
- Sandy areas: Not heavy enough to trap gold
- Shallow water: Gold has already been washed downstream
Step 3: The Shake-and-Swirl Technique
This is the core skill every prospector must master:
The 5-Step Panning Process:
- Classify material: Fill pan 3/4 full with gravel, remove large rocks
- Submerge and shake: Underwater, shake pan side-to-side to stratify material (gold sinks to bottom)
- Wash off the top: Tilt pan forward, let water wash away lighter material
- Swirl and dump: Circular motion to concentrate heavies, dump light material
- Final inspection: Small amount of black sand and gold left — inspect carefully
Step 4: Identifying Real Gold
Fool's gold (iron pyrite) tricks many beginners. Here's how to tell the difference:
- Color: Real gold is bright yellow (even when wet); pyrite is brassy/greenish
- Shape: Gold is rounded and malleable; pyrite is crystalline and brittle
- Weight: Gold is noticeably heavier than similar-sized pyrite
- Scratch test: Gold leaves a yellow streak; pyrite leaves black/green
Common Beginner Mistakes
Avoid these pitfalls that cost beginners their gold:
The mistake: Rushing the process and washing gold out with the gravel.
The fix: Slow, deliberate motions. Gold is heavy — give it time to settle.
The mistake: Panning surface gravel instead of digging to bedrock.
The fix: Gold sinks — dig down 1-2 feet to reach the "pay layer."
The mistake: Dumping black sand concentrates without inspection.
The fix: Black sand (magnetite) often contains fine gold — check it carefully!
Essential Gear Beyond the Pan
To maximize your success, bring these additional tools:
- Classifier/screen: Removes large rocks before panning
- Snuffer bottle: Sucks up fine gold from your pan
- Magnifying loupe: Helps identify tiny gold flakes
- Magnet: Removes magnetic black sand from concentrates
- Vial: Stores your gold safely
Ready to put these techniques to use?
Check out our guide: "Best Rivers for Gold Panning in California" →
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Conclusion
Gold panning is part skill, part patience, and part knowing where to look. Master the shake-and-swirl technique, learn to read rivers for gold traps, and always check your black sand concentrates. With practice, you'll develop an eye for gold-bearing gravel and the rhythm needed to separate precious metal from worthless rock. Get out there and start panning — California's rivers are still full of gold!
