Winter Storms Lead to Mini Gold Rush Across California

Could California’s great snowmelt lead to the discovery of more gold?

It depends on who you ask.

After a series of winter storms, the state’s rivers and streams are flowing at rates not seen in years, leading many gold miners to believe there could be enough movement of boulders and sediment to loosen up gold deposits in the mountains.

The idea is leading to a miniature gold rush of sorts up and down the state.

“There’s places all over Southern California. They say the ‘Gold Rush’ started up north. Well, it didn’t. It started down south,” said Frank Tafoya, who has been mining for gold in Southern California for over 40 years. “I’ve been doing it since the early 1980s, so I enjoy coming out, enjoying the outdoors and if I find a little bit of gold, that’s great.”

We met Frank at a secret location in the mountains alongside several others up there for the same reason — to see how much gold they could find in a creek they say is rarely this full.

“Once the rain comes and the snow, it moves water down here, and it’ll move boulders, brings up new gold up from the bottom,” Tafoya said. “When it comes off the mountain, it’s deteriorating the veins and that’s washing all the gold down to the river.”

Tafoya’s pal, Tom Neumeyer, who walked us through his process, says mining for gold requires patience.

“First thing I wanna do is get rid of all those big rocks, but before I do that I want to get all that black sand to settle to the bottom ‘cause that’s going to hold my gold down,” he explained. “See all the black sand? The gold is underneath that if there’s some in here.”

And just as Neumeyer was talking us through panning for gold — Tafoya found some.

“Oh, you doing good buddy,” Neumeyer said.

“The joy of finding it, being the very first person to ever see it, that’s what I enjoy about it,” Tafoya said.

Not everyone agrees there’s more gold to be found however, such as Michael Brewart, who owns California Gold & Silver Exchange in Upland.

“We haven’t been getting any people coming in with any quantities or any amount in the last couple weeks, but I have heard that with the weather that there’s a lot of interest in trying to find gold,” Brewart said. “One of the things I love about my job is that we get people from every different culture, everyone around the world has a fascination for gold.”

One of them is Ben, a miner who also doesn’t believe there’s any more gold out in the hills either.

“If you’re thinking you’re going to come up here and find a lot of gold, don’t even bother,” Ben said. “Well, the snow is melting but it’s going back into the ground and anywhere where the water is coming out of the hills, that’s totally going into the river. For any big gold being pushed around, you gotta have a major flood going on out here. Basically, this is all real fine, fine gold.”

Whether the rush is real or not — Ben says real miners understand the real treasure is found in the hunt, not the discovery.

“It is peaceful,” he said. “Some people get angry if they don’t find nothing. I’ve known guys who come up here and dig all day and they’re pissed off the rest of the day because they don’t find anything. Not me. Nah. I’m happy.”

Tafoya agrees.

“To me, it’s not about gold. It’s the enjoyment of being outdoors,” he said. Gold is a byproduct of what we do. I enjoy being with family and friends and if I find a little bit of gold, it don’t matter if it’s just a little bit or an ounce, I enjoy it.”