Pan/Panning

The classic and simplest method of mining alluvial gold. Gravels from a stream bed are washed in a pan and rotated by hand with a circular motion, causing the lighter sand and gravel to spill out while the heavier particles of gold settle to the bottom.

Although professional prospectors would use panning more as an exploration technique nowadays to determine if an area warranted further exploration, many amateur prospectors in the United States spend their weekends panning in the Sacramento and American rivers of California, the scene of the original gold rush.