more soil questions, noob strikes again! Options

[Caveman]

Chris, "only a gutter sluice?" The guy who made it did a great job! It is one damn fine piece of cleanup equipment. You are one heck of a guy to sell it to a newcomer, for
$10. Donated. Kuddos to you for making us all look good, and Kuddos to you, fennixsmom for bringing the right attitude to the game, which also makes us all look good.
May both your pans be chock full of color. Way to go!

[fenixsmom]

I feel a little cheesy for saying this, but the people are what make the organization what it is. Isn't that the mission statement? I never expected anyone to step up the way Chris has, it's amazing and unprecedented. From a newcomer's outlook, the group of people here are of the highest caliber. I cannot sing high enough of a praise for this organization and the people who drive it on. From Chris's insane kindness, Dennis taking me under his wing (in time we will get to CC!) Mr. and Mrs. P with their talent and kindness, to Caveman with his wisdom and overall good spirit. It is simply amazing! You folks have set the bar high! I will forever strive to contribute to this cause because I believe in what I've seen. (Now if I can only pony up the dough!)

[Caveman]

Wisdom? WOW! Never had that adjective used with my name either. I retain a lot of what I read and experience, and also hear. I also know that I can be very wrong, too -
never be afraid to challenge or correct me. I am still very green here - this is a new hobby for me, and I have a lot to learn. What I have posted in this thread is what I have
panned out from this and other sites - from a grand old lady at Tymkovich's, and others along the creeks, and also from the people here on this site. Pay attention to what
they tell you. Along the way, I have only had 1 fellow prospector tell me I was wasting my time and would never catch any gold - that was a GPOC guy who I never got the
name of, but was about the same age as me - and I had gold in my sluice, he did not! Only ran into 1 group that was stand-offish - younger types in their 20's - and that's it.
Everyone else has been encouraging and helpful, and full of info. This site is the friendliest and the most honest by far. Everyone has good suggestions, helps out fellow
members, helps others in the field, etc. Great people, and a great site! Dan and Denise, Chris, Leonard, Russ, Astrobleme, traddoerr, and all the rest lead by example, and it
shows here on the site and in this thread. By far, the most encouraging group of people I have ever met. Glad you are here with us, and hope to see a Lifetime tag in your
signature line someday too! Stay safe, and

Have Fun Out There!

[russau]

yep it is a good group!

[Denise]

You are correct fenixsmom! It's the people that make the club and website what it is, and I can honestly say that we are very proud of this group!

(Gives everyone a big group hug )



Thanks for all the compliments everyone!!

[fenixsmom]

Just as a randomish, half awake, working on my first cup of coffee thought.: there are nearly 2000 "members" registered to this site, yet I only see a handful of aforementioned members that actually engage each other. I'd like to brainstorm ways to increase the number of contributing members. Again, just a half asleep thought.

[swizz]

I believe that number refers to "forum members" which includes lurkers, random internet folks doing research, etc who just sign up for the forums to read or participate.... not necessarily "CP Club members" although I'm sure they're included in that number.

[fenixsmom]

Yeah, I'm sure they are members of the forum as well as fully fledged. I'm not a full member yet, but I'm included as a member.
I was just thinking it would be nice to have a more active forum, considering there are so many "members" If half of those people became more active and social, it would hopefully increase interest in the club. Just my opinion.

[fenixsmom]

Ooo! I have a question about classification sizes. I have a 1/20" classifier. When I work my dirt through, does it then become a 20 concentrate? Or do I need a smaller classifier?

[swizz]

Well, in all fairness I think that internet forums overall peaked about 5 or 6yrs ago and are now pretty level. My flyfishing forums are now ghost towns compared to this and they were once extremely busy. Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking sources have gained more popularity (I don't do either).
This forum is relevant primarily to "Colorado" at first glance but certainly encompasses and offers information that is useful to any miner/prospector regardless of region. With that in mind, I consider it somewhat of a "regional" forum as opposed to something like GPAA (a profit company that preys on recreational users). Most of our members are from Colorado but we have paying club members from other states also who support CP and use the benefits.
So I don't expect it will ever attract huge attention like a corporate sponsored site but frankly it's kinda nice having a great small to medium group. We all get along and can discuss topics without the anonymity that gives strangers on other forums the reigns to hurl endless insults at each other when disagreeing. I see it all the time.
Don't think of it as "slow"... more of a family community rather than an anonymous world community. That's how I see it anyway.

[fenixsmom]

Good perspective. I do suppose with size you lose the heart and soul of a club.

[dbx]

I don't believe I am 'random' , but Lurker ... maybe.
I just can't get in that water in the winter.
I've panned here and there, and watch the TV show
on weather channel. I spend time learning more about
where to go, and making maps for the spring.

[fenixsmom]

Lurkers are welcome!

[russau]

for a couple of years now most of sites have had few actual participating members, versis people that just read and dont respond to the forums. you would think that in the wintertime there would be a lot of people posting,but it seems that in the summer is when i see most posting.

[fenixsmom]

I hear ya! I suppose I just think this club is great and want to share it with the world! Haha.