I did some panning in that river in 2013 in mid-July, and found a tiny bit of gold north of Buena Vista a few miles. I assume the water level goes down as the year passes. Is the level lower in August by any practical amount? I am somewhat limited in the months I can be there.

Thank You.

Hi Clod,
I'm personally not familiar with the Ark but you can probably assume that the water level will be the same or lower in August. The flows on that river are primarily controlled by dam release rates so it is possible that they could do a larger release for unknown reasons but not likely since it is a recreationally used river, for many activities.

You have to be pretty careful north of Buena Vista. I think the only public area is near Elephant Rock. The rest is all claimed.

The water flow tends to drop down to around 200 cfs in the late fall. Mid July it's still pretty high. We don't start dredging there until about Labor Day or in the spring Memorial Day until runoff starts.

Leonard

Thanks for the info, I didn't know about the water releases. BTW, I was panning on a claim with permission (Arkansas River Rim RV Park). Did I read somewhere that claims are no longer allowed on the river or was that just from Johnson Village on down?

Also, I seem to see quite a bit of concern about theft on this forum. Is it a bad idea to leave a locked vehicle out of sight anywhere from roughly Mt. White to Granite?

I probably just join the CO Prospectors and solve a lot of problems.

Thanks again.

As far as I know it's all claimed from above Granite to Buena Vista. Elephant Rock area was the only area not claimed. Claims are allowed but there isn't anything open to claim.

Leonard

We'd be very happy to have you in the club too Clodhopper, let us know if you have questions about signing up anytime.
Yes I agree, joining the club would help take a lot of worry out of your field adventures.

The Arkansas river headwater recreational area is a very weaved mess of private lands (patented), with a few mining claims (locations) and the rest having been withdrawn from mineral entry. That's an area you can find some gold though, at one of the open places (actually several of them) where like the RV park you can dig, or Cache creek or Point bar where anyone can dig and there aren't claims to sweat about.

Leaving a vehicle for extended periods would definitely be a concern yes, but I think for the day while working/prospecting should normally be ok for most spots. I'd still make sure it's locked up when unattended though for sure.

Good luck on your prospecting this year too!

Thank you for the info. I certainly need all I can get.