Copyright © 2006 by Ana Minerva Bonilla Updated: August 29, 2006 12:34
Reprinted by permission at http://theweekendminer.com
THE WEEKEND MINER
Rediscovering American Mineral Resources
THOUGHTS FROM THE “OLD MINER”
Use of GPS Coordinates
One of the most recurring questions you, as readers, have had since we started the website is, “Why are you focused on GPS coordinates?” Maybe if I address this directly you can get a better understanding of what the website hopes to accomplish.
From personal experience, I own and have read a multitude of books, articles, website renditions and legends of where mines are or might be found. Most of the descriptions regarding access or locations are keyed to landmarks, roads, and other visual references. Since “everyone else is doing it that way”, I thought there might be more value in variation. I used to tell my employees, “if we have been doing a specific way for three years, it is probably wrong today. Take a hard look at the situation and tell me how you feel it should be done more effectively”. Times change, technology changes and I am told the world’s base of knowledge now doubles every 5 years. This reinforces my faith that there is probably a better way to do it today, than there was three years ago.
Don’t get me wrong; these descriptive references are excellent for locating a site, provided two conditions exist. First, that the described access is still clear and accessible today; and secondly, that the landmarks haven’t changed significantly.
A lot of the locations we are covering in The Weekend Miner are not current or recent sites, some of the data going back to the mid-to-late 1800’s. Over this time period a lot of things can change. Granted, if your landmark is a mountain, that is still there; but if it is a tree, rock formation, roads, trail or even a river or stream, a lot of changes may have occurred over time that would obscure or confuse the directions; or, possibly even invalidate the description. Latitude and longitude doesn’t change, or we are in a whole lot of trouble, as a planet. Yes, the data probably will get more accurate as tools improve, and that should always be in the back of your mind. It is not likely, however, that a “hard-rock” mine has moved very far. Placer deposits and placer mining areas may change, with river and stream course changes, or as a result of major floods. If rivers do change, they usually only change near the surface, leaving behind buried ore. Look at the drift and placer mines of the California Gold Belt; most were old riverbeds. If you do find an old deposit and the river has moved, it’s probably easier to work it on dry land than it would be to work it under 6 feet of water anyway; so, some changes may be good things.
Another issue that comes up with visual descriptions is that they are often difficult to translate into points on a map, especially if roads and trails have been rerouted or closed. Even with high-detail maps, such as the USGS 7.5 degree variety, this may prove difficult. I have tried simple compass-based triangulation, using major visible landmarks, especially mountain peaks. It works relatively well, on a clear day, but has a couple of drawbacks. First, finding a level surface to draw on is usually difficult. I have often used my fold-up camp table for this purpose, but that is only effective if I am in camp or near my vehicle. Second, I end up wearing out a lot of maps drawing triangulation lines, even when I mark lightly. I think a GPS unit may pay for itself in the “cost-avoidance of map replacement”, especially if you are in new (to you) areas. Also, look at the weight/bulk relationship - table, straight edge, fewer maps and drawing items vs. a 12-ounce electronic tool. I carry a compass in any case, so while I don’t save that weight, I feel the GPS Unit still wins handily.
The availability of GPS units today rivals that of cell phones a few years ago. Another reason we are focusing on coordinates usable by the GPS user, is that I believe the boom in GPS usage will be similar to that of cell phones. Remember GPS units are not just in the field; they are in your car too (i.e. On Star). As this technology permeates our society it will get less expensive, easier to use and more “necessary”, just like cell phones. We might as well get “on board” early.
Using latitude and longitude coordinates is relatively simple, especially with newer and USGS maps. Many of the old maps didn’t have location scaling references on them; but then again, it is often difficult to tell which county some of the old ones apply to; especially in California. Here, over the years, the land area has undergone several “redistributions” between counties. This is why we have taken ”historical mines” and tried to associate latitude and longitude coordinates with them. My guess is, you may use old maps and descriptions for reference, but when you drive or hike to a location, you are using the most current map available. These new maps almost all have functional references to latitude and longitude.
Today, with a new map in your hand, especially a USGS map, and a GPS unit to supply your current coordinates, it is fairly easy to find where you are, within a few dozen feet. This is helpful for staking claims, calling for help in an emergency, or, in a “best case scenario”, calling for assistance to help haul out all of the gold you found.
A second question we get a lot is “Why are you using “degree, minutes and seconds for your latitude and longitude readings instead of decimal readings”? While we have started adding decimal equivalents, our initial database was built using the degree-minute-second approach because almost all of the maps use that format. A lot of the data and reference maps I have are from the 1950’s, when the US was promoting finding strategic minerals is within the US as a defense strategy. All of these are in the degree-minute-second format. These maps and associated data contain a lot of what seems to be “lost data” about earlier mines and explorations.
Another reason was it has always been easier for me to convert degree-minute-seconds to decimals than vice versa. You can make some gross estimates in our head – it just seems easier to remember 50% of a minute is 30, or 25% is 15, or 10% is 6, than to try to convert decimal equivalents back into minutes and seconds.
One thing that I have been approached about is producing a book of data for each county, or group of smaller counties. The thing we could do with a book would be to array the mines by latitude and then longitude. That way if you were going into an area, you could select everything in the database for that area, and then check out the mine details in the database as part of the preparation. It also might offer you something to do while driving to the area; having your passenger or passengers read the data aloud. This could make the trip time more productive and interesting. I like professional sports, but there is only so much baseball one can discuss.
A second thought here, is during times of inclement or especially hot weather, this might allow more in-detail data prospecting, allowing you to maximize the value of your time when you are physically in the ”hunting area”. It also might allow expansion of the areas we cover – for example do books on Arizona while we load California to the website.
To make the book as portable as possible, I don’t believe we would include any advertising and very limited, if any pictures. It would be basically a database. As we update data on the mines and areas, new editions could be published, or updates could be made via the website.
If there are any book publishers out there interested, let me know. I haven’t really thought about this too much, but it might be an option.
As always, be careful; be courteous to others and to the land, and good luck finding whatever you are hunting for.