PHOTO BY GRANT EATON Recreational Panning in The lure of gold brought miners to Alaska over 100 years ago, and it continues to this day. Gold is a fun way to spend some time outdoors trying to strike it rich!

Most public lands in Alaska offer recreational and prospecting, although there are restrictions. Please note that this guide focuses on recreational on designated public lands.

Designated Panning Areas There are many designated public recreation mining areas within Alaska that are open to gold panning and small-scale mining. There are some restrictions, but generally, this is where it’s best to go if you are looking to try your hand at gold mining without applying for permits and getting into the “nitty gritty” of it all. You must be aware of the regulations associated with the land you are prospecting so that you do not trespass, infringe, or violate any regulations.

Interior & Northern Alaska Pedro Creek (Steese Nome Creek Valley Milepost 69.5 Gravel Bachelor Creek Dalton Highway Highway) (Steese Highway) Pit (Steese Highway) (Steese Highway)

Located at milepost At milepost 56 of the At milepost 69.5 of Just across from the The Dalton Highway 16.5 of the Steese Steese Highway, turn the Steese Highway, DOT maintenance offers several creeks Highway, across left onto US Creek look for a small dirt station at milepost 80 north of the Yukon from the Felix Pedro Road. Follow the track that makes its of the Steese Highway River that are open to Monument, this 1-mile gravel road for 7 miles. way down a steep is a dirt track that leads recreational panning. stretch of creek is Recreational panning embankment on the 6 miles into the hills The brochure, Panning great for beginner is designated for the right side of the road. and valleys of Bachelor for Gold Along the panners or those who 2-mile stretch down The gravel pit is at the Creek. This area is only Dalton Highway, don’t want to travel river of the bridge. bottom of the hill near accessible via ATV or highlights all of the too far out of town. This area was once the Chatanika River. hiking. Existing claims recreational gold It is requested that heavily dredged and Don’t bother panning in the area mean that panning areas. only pans be used in has a large amount of in the river itself; it is it is best to check this area; no suction leftover deposits. not considered a good with the BLM before dredging or heavy prospect. prospecting. equipment.

Locations throughout Alaska Petersville Recreational Mining Area Hatcher Pass Public Use Area Independence State Mine Historical Park Kenai Peninsula area state parks Chugach State Park Chugach National Forest National Park units except Klondike NHP, Sitka NHP, former Mt. McKinley NP (inside Denali NP/P), and former Katmai NM Equipment You don’t have to start out rich to try your hand at . The equipment is simple and does not require a large investment. The only thing you truly need is a gold pan (metal or plastic with riffles); 14” size is best for everyone. The following items are suggestions of extra gear/equipment: • shovel or spade to loosen gravel from creek bottom (cannot be used when panning for gold in national park units) • grizzly pan with 1/2-inch holes in bottom; this pan helps separate coarse gravel, speeding up the panning process • sluice box (cannot be used when panning for gold in national park units) • tweezers for picking up gold flakes and dust (a dry finger will also work) • rubber boots and gloves to stay warm while working in the cold water • small vial or container to hold collected gold

Filing a Claim If you would like to file a mining claim, it can be done through the Bureau of Land Management or the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Division of Mining, depending on if the parcel is on federal or state land, respectively. It’s not easy determining which areas of land are public and which are private; a majority of the time there isn’t a boundary line defining the edge of said places. Designated panning areas are outlined in this guide. If you are looking to dig deeper, so to say, and try your hand at a more serious approach, it is best to talk with the land managing agency for the area that you wish to prospect. To ensure the status of a particular area in Alaska, to check whether it is open to mineral entry, and to see if there are other legal mining claims in the area, check with either the Bureau of Land Management or the State of Alaska Department of Natural Resources. These two land management agencies maintain the most up to date maps and information on land status. If you know where you want to gold pan/mine, it is very helpful to have the exact location of the plot that you would like to explore.

Additional Contacts & Information Maps Alaska Land Management Agencies GeoData Center & Map Sales Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Akosofu Building, University of Alaska Fairbanks Alaska State Parks 903 Koyukuk Drive 550 W 7th Avenue, Suite 1380 Fairbanks, AK 99775 Anchorage, AK 99501 (907) 474-6960 (907) 269-8700

USGS Map Distribution US Fish & Wildlife Service store.usgs.gov 1011 E Tudor Road, Suite 200 1-800-ASK-USGS Anchorage, AK 99503 (907) 786-3309 Mining Information US Forest Service, Chugach National Forest Alaska Department of Natural Resources, 161 E 1st Avenue, Door 8 Division of Mining Anchorage, AK 99501 550 W 7th Avenue, Suite 900B (907) 743-9500 Anchorage, AK 99501 (907) 269-8647 National Park Service, Alaska Regional Office 240 W 5th Avenue Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Anchorage, AK 99501 Division of Mining (907) 644-3510 3700 Airport Way Fairbanks, AK 99709 Land Status Information (907) 451-2774 Bureau of Land Management, Fairbanks District Stream Restriction Information 1150 University Avenue Fairbanks, AK 99709 Alaska Department of Fish & Game, Sport fish Division (907) 474-2200 1300 College Road Fairbanks, AK 99709 Bureau of Land Management, Anchorage District (907) 459-7207 222 W 7th Avenue Anchorage, AK 99507 (907) 271-5960

2/2016

101 Dunkel St., Suite 110, Fairbanks, AK 99701 • (907) 459-3730 • AlaskaCenters.gov • facebook.com/AlaskaCentersFairbanks