Here’s a quick list of some places you will be welcome to prospect across our beautiful state of Colorado. No need to join a club (although clubs definitely have their place!), just play by the rules of your hosts. This list is just a start, there are dozens of additional spots described in other articles on this website! (To see them all, go here.) Even better there are over 450 public dig sites across Colorado, all carefully documented, in my guidebooks, here.
Arapahoe Bar Info, Clear Creek, western metro Denver- city info here and my article here.
Grant Frontier Park Info, South Platte River, south central Denver- 2300 South Platte Drive https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grant-Frontier_Park and my article: https://findinggoldincolorado.com/grant-frontier-park-prospecting-tips/
Clear Creek Canyon Open Space Park, west of Golden- You can see their map and the delightfully simple gold prospecting rules here: https://www.jeffco.us/1196/Clear-Creek-Canyon-Park
Steele Street Openspace Park “Big Bend”, South Platte River, Adams County, just north of Denver-
Town of Fairplay – middle fork of the South Platte in Park County. The town rules are in Article 3 of this doc: http://www.fairplayco.us/municode/CHAPTER%2011%20Streets,%20Sidewalks%20and%20Public%20Property.pdf
As I share in my article about the Fairplay Town Park, you can just buy your pass online, at High Alpine Sports or the Town Hall…all mentioned in Fairplay forms including the gold panning permit
Cache Creek Placer Area – south of Leadville, turn west off the highway at Granite- https://findinggoldincolorado.com/cache-creek-prospecting-site/ and from the BLM, this meeting presentation from a few years ago: http://www.blm.gov/sites/blm.gov/files/uploads/Get%20Involved-RAC-Colorado-FR-8.8.12-Cache%20Creek%20Presentation.pdf
Point Barr (or Point Bar), Arkansas River, near Salida, south central mountains- https://findinggoldincolorado.com/point-barr-prospecting-site/ (dead BLM link deleted, let me know if you find a new one) and for those using power equipment at Point Barr or elsewhere on the Arkansas River, here’s the permit – https://www.blm.gov/sites/blm.gov/files/uploads/CO_MINING_04272017_DOC_2017%20Notification%20for%20Placer%20Ops.pdf
Gunnison River, Rattlesnake Gulch, western slope- from Delta, head out highway 50 to Rattlesnake Gulch Road 730, near mile marker 61. Panning and in-stream sluices only, dig in water only, National Conservation Area. See my article on this area: https://findinggoldincolorado.com/rattlesnake-gulch/ (dead BLM link deleted…let me know if you find a new one)
Piñon Bridge and Norwood Bridge Recreational Placer Mining Areas, ‘western slope’ on the San Miguel River…south of Grand Junction, northwest of Telluride.
Of course, you should confirm the current rules via the relevant websites above and maybe a phone call if anything seems unclear.
If you can’t find the rules for an area, here’s what they usually boil down to:
-no gas-powered gear
– respect private property and posted restrictions (for example a designated fishing area)
– don’t disturb any “improvements” such as bridges, rock work for erosion, etc.
– no digging in banks, only riverbed
…that’s about it.
I’d add, be a good representative of all prospectors by being friendly to other public land users. Think about how what you are doing “looks” to non-prospectors…quaint or destructive?
Please remember these are not mining claims. You don’t have a “right” to dig here, it’s a privilege. Be a good guest by following the rules, filling your holes and picking up any trash you come across along the way. Thanks in advance and please enjoy!
There are longer articles on all of these areas on this website (go here to see all the detail). This list is just meant to be a quick summary with links, so you don’t have to wade through all the articles to find a link.
Photo note: Selfie of me at Arapahoe Bar with a whole class of school kids, teaching them to pan and just having fun in the water.
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Interested in more sites? Check out the dozens described on this website by going here or take it up to the next level with over 450 sites carefully described in my books.
Interested in prospecting in Utah? Try this awesome book by Alan Chenworth (here).
Interested in rockhounding beyond gold? Learn more here https://southwestrockhounding.com/sw-travel-list/ by Thomas Farley
9 thoughts on “Where to start if you want to gold pan in Colorado”
Great job, this has been needed for decades!
I love having this if information available. Thank you for all of your efforts in compiling it
Thanks Donna, let me know here if you have any questions about these areas. I’ll do what I can to answer them!
I just updated all the links on this page. Frustrating how often governments change their websites and delete helpful stuff. (Feb 25, 2017)
…and again for the same reason (Feb 4, 2018).
Hi Kevin, GREAT INFORMATION!!! I am very new to this sport (I haven’t panned for gold yet), and I am curios if it is legal to take a bucket of placer dirt home from these areas ? Or are these simply a prospect and pan while you are there on the property type of operation? I am eager to learn and I would really like to practice at home when I have more time, to make sure I am doing it right and don’t throw any gold away.
Yes, it is ok to take your concentrates home from the sites on this list.
It’s a smart question since some other places do limit what you can take home but not the ones on my website.
Yes, with a couple of exceptions (noted in my books), you can take a bucket of material home to practice. I suggest classifying the material before you haul it home, so you aren’t carrying around a bunch of big rocks. Also, because that way, you are carrying “concentrates” home with you which is allowed almost everywhere!
The key exception is the State Parks which allow prospecting (not all do). They generally ONLY allow you to take home what will fit in your pocket. So bring a snuffer bottle, pan your gold down to the point where you can snuff it up and go home happy!
Is there a “map” version…?
Not necessarily exact locations if that is an issue but it would be awesome if there were a map that could point out at least what county a location might be in…
That would make it easier to say, “I’m visiting X area and there is Y area or Z area not to far away…
We are newbies to a local club and haven’t gone on any trips yet so a map would be helpful…
Is that a thing…?
Yes, I have maps that show the locale/area for each chapter, in the front of the book. Larger, color versions of the maps are available here.