LENGTH OF STAY IN NATIONAL FOREST, Are prospectors exempt from 14 day limit? Options

[English]

Hello everybody!
Hope you can help...
I'm planning a gold prospecting trip for "claim staking" purposes.
I'm now in the process of narrowing down my search area within a National Forest.
All National Forests promote a 14 day camping limit.
One National Forest said 14 days within a 90 day period (I wonder if that applies to them all).
I'm open to the possibility of it taking more than 14 days to find a "profitable" claim within my search area.
I can't imagine the 14 day rule applying to prospectors.
Are prospectors exempt?
If so please point me to the source (Web link) if available.
If you don't have the link but know the info tell/write me anyway. Thanks!

[CP]

Good question posed here English.

Hopefully I can point you to some good information about this along with others input.

Lets start with one Forest vs another.......yes they should be consistent at federal level or FS lands (law states so) unless there are special designations in that particular area. If there are supposed "special designations" then there are also laws about notifying the public as to those....ie must be posted at the actual site, in their district office for that area etc.

Prospectors looking for new claims are not exempt to the 2 week camping (recreational) rule as I understand it, but at the point which you have a claim filed then that all goes out the window as you can work your claim all day everyday of any day that you can tolerate the weather. The government can not tell you the claim owner when you may work your claims.

Some more info that might help you can also be found in other threads around the CP forum too.....begining with....

Forest service uses 36CFR228 alot but in it's purpose (228.1) states that "It is not the purpose of these regulations to provide for the management of mineral resources; the responsibility for managing such resources is in the Secretary of the Interior."

This next one deals with prospecting permits from the FS........states you do not need to have any special authorization at this level activity.
FSM (forest service manual) prospecting/mineral collecting 2860 & 2862

And another about actual government definitions for "prospecting" for several entities.
All these and much more can be found in the Prospecting/Mining laws, regulations section of the forum.

Best of luck with the new claim prospects and we would love to hear how things go.
CP