Building Bonds

 

Many GPAA members talk about the gold they've found or the people they've met and tell anyone who will listen about the advantages of being a member. 

Hemet Valley Prospectors President Arnold Shields is no exception because while having dinner at a local restaurant he ran into a very special person — Larry Walker, the Scoutmaster of the Hemet Boy Scout Troop No. 310. 

"We would love to have your troop come out to one of our meetings," Shields said in his conversation with Walker. 

Well, that was it. Those magic words started a long friendship. Walker accepted the invitation and the first meeting Troop 310 attended started with two Scouts leading the Pledge of Allegiance. We stood hats off and with everyone reciting the patriotic words we all hold dear to our hearts. It brought everyone closer and lifted the young Scouts' spirits.

The bond grew, as more Boy Scouts began participating. The boys won some raffle prizes and enjoyed pulling the tickets from the raffle drum.

Members mingled with the Scouts, making them feel welcome, and the Scouts delivered some refresher lessons on how to start a campfire and collect water, among other topics.

As the troop was leaving, Shields presented Walker with a few tokens of our gratitude and invited the Scouts to attend a chapter outing to Coolgardie, which is the GPAA's Two Quartz gold mining claim. The Scouts were excited and urged Walker to accept the invitation. 

Walker thought for a moment and  then said that he and his troop would be happy to attend. The Scouts cheered in unison, filling the meeting hall with smiles.

The March 15 event came around quickly and GPAA member Frank Tafoya, the Hemet Valley Prospectors Wagonmaster, had everything ready as Brian Osborn, the mining equipment manager, put the last of the supplies that would be needed for the outing on the trailer. Gold pans, drywashers, a recirculating sluice and dust masks were just a few of the things Osborn checked off his list before heading north in his four-wheel drive pickup.

The drive to the GPAA's Two Quartz gold claim was fun as members joked about how the Boy Scouts' faces would light up the next morning when they would see the gold gleaming in their pans. 

Before we knew it, we had arrived at the GPAA's Two Quartz claim. As the dust settled, a good level spot was chosen for the campsite. The first night was so cold that we bundled up in our jackets and started a roaring fire before dinner. Flashlights brightened the evening sky members where they would set up the drywashers for the Boy Scouts when they arrived in the morning. 

Excitement was in the air and everyone seemed to be well rested the next morning as the California sun rose high enough to warm the ground and dry the dew. With smiles and laughter, the Hemet Valley Prospectors set up the digging area just in time to greet the caravan of cars loaded with Boy Scouts and more GPAA members, that crested over the ridge.

The caravan circled the campsite as everyone parked and stretched their legs from the long ride. 

Scoutmaster Larry rounded up all the boys and with great pride introduced them to the gold prospectors. The boys were polite and thankful for the opportunity to learn. They seemed to hang on every word as the anticipation of the day's adventures grew.

Tafoya and Osborn led the troop down the rocky slope and up the other side, finally arriving at the dig site. The wide-eyed boys were brimming with enthusiasm as they spotted the drywashers.

"First, classify your material," Osborn began, as he dumped a shovelful of dirt into the half-inch classifier and showed the Scouts how to operate the machinery. 

Tafoya started shaking the bucket while holding the classifier tight on top.

"When you're ready, because the dirt is a little moist, dump the bucket and spread it out to dry, then scoop it in the top of the drywashers like this," he said.

Yelling over the noise of the blowers' engines at full throttle, Osborn continued the drywashing lesson.

The Scouts were fast learners and soon got the hang of the whole process. The boys mined with all the vigor of true gold prospectors. They worked in teams, each doing his part — one bucket of dirt after another in search of the yellow metal. They ran most of the material through the drywashers three times to get every speck of gold. 

When the material was processed, Tafoya showed the Scouts how to clean up the concentrates from the drywashers. Some jockeyed for a better position while others cupped their ears to catch every word.

It was soon time to pan out the concentrates, so Osborn and Tafoya shut down the blowers and led the Scouts back to camp, where Hemet Valley Prospectors Vice President Ken Maltby had set up a panning station. 

First, Tafoya showed the boys how to use the recirculating sluice and clean it out. Osborn then taught them how to pan. And, when the boys saw for the first time the shining gold at the bottom of Brian's pan, they were hooked.

Each Boy Scout was given a pan of his own and some of the concentrates to pan out. The water troughs were instantly surrounded as one gold pan after the other was dipped and the paydirt stratified. 

After a short while, one of the boys,  Russell, exclaimed, "LOOK, LOOK, I HAVE GOLD!" 

Gabriel, Zachary, Alec, Sterling, Riley and the other Boy Scouts stared at the gold for a moment, quickly congratulated Russell, and then rushed back to their pans to reveal their own gold hiding under the black sands.

The boys' reaction brought smiles and excitement to the whole campsite as lunch was prepared. The hungry boys wolfed down their grub, chattering about the gold they'd found and thanking Tafoya and Osborn for their help while passing around their glass vials of gold. 

The boys, eager to get back to the gold, hastily cleaned up their eating areas and headed back out to the drywashers — only this time they didn't ask for help; they just picked up their shovels and started diggin', stopping only to urge Osborn to start the blowers.

As the daylight waned, the tired boys wore bright smiles on their dust-covered faces as they once again made the golden trek back to camp. On the way, the boys were greeted with the irresistible and unmistakable aroma of the first batch of hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill for the potluck dinner. 

The energy of the boys was rekindled as Sonda Reed and Ken Maltby rang dinner bell and the day's gold prospecting stories were told. The food was devoured and the flicker of the campfire, started by one of the Scout's flint stones, replaced the sun.

"Be Prepared" is the motto of the Boy Scouts and these young men not only taught GPAA members a few tricks on lighting campfires, first-aid and the basic preparedness of life, but they touched our hearts. They left us with a kindred spirit that calls for kindness to others and a love for the outdoors that is still being talked about to this day. 

Lance Taylor Graff is an active member of the Gold Prospectors Association of America and the Hemet Valley Prospectors. He can be reached at lgraff3@roadrunner.com.