| One weekend in July 2002 Buddy Davis and I set | | | | and louder until we were sure that it was going to |
| out for a weekend of Gold panning in North | | | | run over our tent. I have never been so close to |
| Carolina. Our local club was having a common dig | | | | a passing train in my life. We looked out of the |
| where each person that signs up gets a share of | | | | tent and just across the stream and up on the |
| the Gold from the dig. | | | | side of the bank where you could not see the |
| Thermal City Gold Mine is a very interesting place. | | | | tracks was a freight train starting its long pull up |
| They have cabins for rent and camp sites, we | | | | the side of the mountain. |
| choose to tent camp along the river that ran | | | | We had a good laugh and dozed back off to |
| through the mine. Besides working the common | | | | sleep. Shortly we heard the screeching of train |
| dig, we also bought a front end loader full of dirt | | | | brakes that got so loud that you could hardly |
| and had them place it in the stream just below | | | | stand it. A freight train was coming down the |
| our camp site. We planned to use the small high | | | | mountain and applying the brakes all the way. |
| banker that I owned to work the dirt for gold. | | | | That is the way it went all night long, a train |
| The high banker doubles as a two 1/2 inch dredge | | | | would go up the mountain and then another would |
| or a high banker. It has a small gas pump that | | | | come down the mountain. After a while it was |
| sprays water over the dirt and washes it down | | | | not so funny. The next day it was all quite again, |
| the sluice where the gold is trapped along with the | | | | they must run that route only at night. |
| black sand. When the black sand starts to back | | | | It may have been pay back time for me. Many |
| up or the pump runs out of gas, we wash out | | | | years ago we were on a church retreat in a cabin |
| the sand into a 5-gallon bucket. We then take a | | | | in the North Georgia mountains and I took a tape |
| break and divide the sand, panning out the gold. | | | | player and a tape with the sound of an |
| Panning is the fun part, you wash the dirt and | | | | approaching train. That night I played the tape on |
| sand off the top until you have only a small | | | | the porch of the cabin. The train sounded like it |
| amount in the corner of the pan. Then you swirl | | | | went right through the cabin. Everyone got a |
| the water around in a clockwise motion until the | | | | good laugh about the joke, and now the joke was |
| black sand is slowly moved and the gold shines | | | | on me. |
| through. That is truly a lovely sight. You continue | | | | That Sunday evening we gathered for the |
| this motion until the gold is free of the sand, then | | | | drawing for the Gold Nuggets, the first person |
| you take your dry finger and touch the gold. It | | | | would get the largest and it was a nice one |
| will stick to the end of your finger until you touch | | | | weighting over an ounce. I kept waiting for my |
| the water in a small bottle. The gold will then drop | | | | name and then Buddy got his name called and |
| very quickly to the bottom of the bottle. | | | | received a small picker. At last I heard my name, |
| We worked all day Saturday on the common dig | | | | I was last on the list. However, they had a special |
| and our private dirt pile until dark and retired to | | | | for the last person, it was a couple of crystalized |
| our tent. This sure was living, you could hear the | | | | nuggets or I should say small pickers. However |
| stream just below the tent and the summer night | | | | they were unusual and I was pleased. |
| was nice and cool in the mountains. We had just | | | | Buddy and I did recover a fair amount of Gold |
| dozed off when we heard a train approaching. We | | | | from our load of dirt and enjoyed the weekend, |
| had been there all day and had not noticed any | | | | except for the sleepless night with the trains. |
| trains or tracks. The approaching train got louder | | | | |
