Jul 18

Written by:
7/18/2012 9:19 AM 

By Brad Jones
GPAA Editor / Content Director

The Gold Prospectors Association of America is pleased to announce its 2013 Gold & Treasure Expo schedule.

The GPAA will hold 13 shows, including some exciting new locations such as Quartzite, Ariz, which will feature a special three-day event.

Other new locales are Turlock, California; Pecatonica, Illinois; Jacksonville, Florida; Charlotte, North Carolina and Millwood, West Virginia.

One noticeable change in 2013 will be the shift from Gold & Treasure Shows to Gold & Treasure Expos.

“Expo tells you straight up that we’ve got vendors ready to sell you products,” said Trade Show Manager Gary Sturgill. “That’s where you’re going to find the latest and greatest new equipment and the vendors are going to demonstrate how to use it.”

Sturgill said education will take on a pivotal role in 2013 with much more focus on teaching people how to prospect and pan for gold.

“We’re actually going to have a few different guest speakers who we haven’t had before,” he said.

Some of the returning speakers will include Gold Cube inventor Mike Pung talking about fine gold recovery, GPAA Executive Director of Operations Dominic Ricci talking about the Alaska Gold Expedition, GPAA Executive Director of Development Kevin Hoagland teaching metal detecting and Public Lands for the People Vice President Walt Wegner discussing land rights issues.

Wegner delivers informative talks on the importance of land rights, your right to prospect, stake a claim and mine on public lands. He talks about how some of those rights have been eroded under all levels of government and even the United Nations under Agenda 21, for example.

“Walt gets a lot of people and they are well-informed when they leave,” Sturgill said.

The Expo will cover more than just gold, including gem and treasure hunting.

Last April in Las Vegas, gem hunter and Gold Prospectors magazine columnist Blue Sheppard spoke about where to find and how to mine precious gems. He also had many precious gemstones on display at the show and the GPAA is expecting him back in 2013, Sturgill said.

“Blue gave a nice lecture on gemstones,” he said.

The Gold & Treasure Expos will also bring in local speakers to highlight gold prospecting topics that vary from region to region.

“Venue to venue, we’ll have local gold prospectors talking about where to look in their locales because they know the areas,” Sturgill said.

“We have a lot of people who are watching ‘reality’ TV shows thinking they’re gonna go get rich quick. We’re going to show them there is still a lot of gold in the ground; there’s a lot of gold left to go get, but it’s not as easy as you’d think,” he said.

“We’re going to show you where to look, what machinery you should be using, how to use some of this equipment and get you signed up with a GPAA membership so you have access to more than 350 gold-bearing mining claims we have across the country, where you have the opportunity to find your own gold. You’ll have somewhere to go to get some gold.”

The GPAA has also stepped up to the plate to meet the requests of showgoers for more vendors and a greater selection of small-scale mining equipment.

“We’re going into locales that have a lot larger populations and larger venues with more room for more vendors,” Sturgill said.

Another change is that all the East Coast shows next year will be held on Fridays and Saturdays — and not Sundays.

So, why should you get off your couch or your claim to come to the show?

“The No. 1 thing is the seminars. You can always learn and if you’re not learning something new everyday, you’re not tryin’ hard enough. We’ve got great seminars going on. You’re going to learn from them and that’s gonna make your gold recovery even better,” Sturgill said.

“Secondly, if you’re looking for a new piece of equipment, this is the place to find it. And, this is the place to buy it without paying shipping costs. It’s the place to get a great deal because the vendors often have show specials; they don’t want to load their products back on the truck.”

Sometimes at the shows greenhorns ask ‘Hasn’t all the gold been found?’ or ‘Didn’t gold prospecting die out 150 years ago?’

“Gold prospecting just got going 150 years ago and they’ve been diggin’ gold ever since. Only 10 to 20 percent of the gold on this planet has been recovered. The rest of it is still sitting in the ground waiting for us to come and get it,” Sturgill said. “We’ll dredge Earth first and we’ll get to the other planets later.”

And, as far as the stereotypical gold prospector as a stooped-over old white guy with a long grey beard, Sturgill shatters the myth: “We’ve got members who are nine years old that can out pan most of those guys with the beards,” he said with a chuckle.

Lots of younger men, women and young families love to prospect and pan for gold, Sturgill pointed out. One of those younger women is Gold Fever host Tom Massies’s daughter, Kia, who often appears on episodes. Gold Fever remains one of the highest rated shows on Outdoor Channel.

“People from all walks of life come to our shows. Gold doesn’t show any prejudice; it’ll let anybody dig it up. We’ve got wide demographics. We’ve got people as young as their 20s coming in with their kids in baby carriages and signing up for the GPAA. We’ve got people who realize the value of a Lost Dutchman’s Mining Association membership. For a gold prospector, the LDMA is better than KOA. You can’t go diggin’ holes in the ground at a KOA. The LDMA offers traditional mining camps for prospectors.”

The 2013 Gold & Treasure Expos will have a special focus on Lost Dutchman’s Mining Association memberships and the value, freedom and opportunities they offer LDMA members. There are currently 13 LDMA properties in Arizona, California, Oregon, Colorado, Nevada, North Carolina, South Carolina, Michigan and Georgia.

The Gold & Treasure Expos are open to the public. Admission is $5 or FREE if you pre-register online at least two weeks before show dates. The first 100 paid attendees will receive a FREE vial with some placer gold.

Gold & Treasure Expo 2013 Schedule

Pomona, California
Saturday, Jan. 12 - Sunday, Jan. 13, 2013
Pomona Fairplex
1101West McKinley Ave.
Pomona, CA 91768
Hall E

Mesa, Arizona
Saturday, Feb. 9 – Sunday, Feb 10, 2013
Mesa Convention Center
263 N Center Street
Mesa, AZ 85211

Quartzite, Arizona
** Friday, Feb. 15 – Sunday, Feb. 17, 2013
Quartzite Improvement Assn. Bldg.
235 East Ironwood Street
Quartzite, AZ 85346

Turlock, California
Saturday, March 23 Sunday, March 24, 2013
Stanislaus County Fair
900 N Broadway
Turlock, CA 95380
Building E-1

Salem, Oregon
** Friday, March 29 - Saturday, March 30, 2013
Oregon State Fairgrounds
2330 17th St. NE
Salem, OR 97301
Columbia Hall

Puyallup, Washington
Saturday, April 6 – Sunday, April 7, 2013
Puyallup Fairgrounds
110 9th SW
Puyallup, WA 98371
Doll Building — Parking: Gold Lot

Albuquerque, New Mexico
Saturday, April 13 – Sunday, April 14, 2013
New Mexico State Fair
300 San Pedro NE
Albuquerque, NM 87108
Lujan Hall B

Las Vegas, Nevada
Saturday, April 27 - Sunday, April 28, 2013
South Point Hotel & Casino
9777 South Las Vegas Blvd.
Las Vegas, NV 89183
Halls B & C

Reno, Nevada
Saturday, Aug. 17 – Sunday, Aug. 18, 2013
Livestock Events Center
1350 North Wells Ave.
Reno, NV 89512

Pecatonica, Illinois
Saturday, Aug. 24 – Sunday, Aug. 25, 2013
Winnebago County Fairgrounds
500 West First St.
Pecatonica, IL 61063
Moss Hall

Jacksonville, Florida
** Friday, Sept. 6 – Saturday, Sept. 7, 2013
Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center
1000 Water Street
Jacksonville, FL 32204

Charlotte, North Carolina
** Friday, Sept. 13 – Saturday, Sept. 14, 2013
Metrolina Tradeshow Expo
7100 Statesville Rd.
Charlotte, NC 28269

Millwood, West Virginia
** Friday, Sept. 20 – Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013
Jackson County Armed Forces Reserve Center
8832 Point Pleasant Rd.
Millwood, WV 25262

Show hours:
** Friday: 12 noon - 8 p.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Sunday: 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Pre-registration is now being accepted at www.GoldandTreasureShow.com for the GPAA Gold & Treasure Expos. Receive ONE FREE admission per email! For directions to the 2013 Gold & Treasure Expos venues, please go to www.GoldandTreasureShow.com.

Want to cover all your bases and stay up to date with the latest GPAA events information? Join the GPAA www.goldprospectors.org/join and receive our national magazine, Gold Prospectors, and the Pick & Shovel Gazette, your source of small-scale mining news.

“Like” us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldProspectors and follow our gold show team as they travel from show to show in 2013.

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Tom Massie speed panning at Gold Show

The Need for Speed!

Jack Barber of local GPAA chapter Temecula Valley Prospectors tries his hand at speed panning in the Gold Panning Contest at the 2011 Gold & Treasure Show in Las Vegas.

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