Gold panning near me: public places to pan
Updated . We list a place only when the agency that manages it names panning there; each place links to that source.
The Bureau of Land Management counts gold as a mineral specimen you may collect in reasonable amounts for personal use, with hand tools such as pans, shovels and metal detectors, as long as you cause no more than minor surface disturbance. Mining claims are the catch: never pan on one without the claimholder’s permission. The places below are ones where the managing agency names panning.
- On BLM land
- Reasonable amounts with hand tools, for personal use
- Named panning places
- Lynx Creek (AZ), Union Flat and Auburn (CA), Quartzville and Cow Creek (OR)
- Mining claims
- Not without the claimholder’s permission
- Not allowed
- National parks; Eagle Forks Campground (OR)
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Places to pan
- Lynx Creek Gold Pan Day Use AreaPanning allowed
A day use area used mainly for recreational gold panning; vault toilet, no drinking water, free. Source · On the map
- Union Flat Campground recreational mining areaPanning allowed
Recreational mining is hands and pans only; watch for the claim markers of existing mining claims. Source · On the map
Approximate pin
The pin is the campground; the mining area is downstream of it.
- Quartzville Back Country Byway (BLM portion)Panning allowed
Recreational mining is allowed along the BLM portion of the byway; 14-day stay limit. Source · On the map
Approximate pin
One point on an 18-mile byway; panning is allowed along the BLM portion.
- Island Creek Day Use Area, Cow Creek Back Country BywayPanning allowed
A stop to pan for gold; do not trespass on the private mining claims marked along the creek. Source · On the map
Approximate pin
The pin is the byway’s listing point, not the day use area itself.
The places in detail
Lynx Creek Gold Pan Day Use Area, Arizona
In the Prescott National Forest. The Forest Service says the day use area is primarily used for recreational gold panning. It is free, with a vault toilet and no drinking water. The forest keeps a separate page on rockhounding, prospecting and mining with maps; we could not open it, so ask the Prescott National Forest for its equipment rules. Camping on the forest is limited to 14 days in each 30-day period.
Union Flat Campground, California
In the Tahoe National Forest, 6 miles east of Downieville on the North Yuba River along Highway 49. The Forest Service calls it the only place on the North Yuba River for recreational mining, which is hands and pans only. The mining area is downstream of the campground. Watch for the claim markers of existing mining claims.
Auburn State Recreation Area, California
California State Parks’ 2018 fact sheet allows panning only along lake shorelines and the beaches and gravel bars of streams and rivers, outside designated swim beaches and boat launch areas, with hands and gold pans only. Rock or mineral collection is limited to 15 pounds a day and cannot be sold. Metal detectors are prohibited, and so is collecting arrowheads or other archaeological or historic items. The fact sheet is from June 2018, so check with the park before you go.
Quartzville Back Country Byway, Oregon
The BLM allows recreational mining along the BLM portion of the byway and lists gold panning among its activities. There is no fee for day use, camping is limited to designated campsites, and the stay limit is 14 days.
Island Creek Day Use Area, Cow Creek Back Country Byway, Oregon
The BLM calls Island Creek a stop to pan for gold, and says that in summer visitors can swim, fish and pan in Cow Creek. Private mining claims are marked along the creek; don’t trespass on them. No fees; 14-day stay limit.
Nevada
We found no officially designated recreational panning area in Nevada. On BLM land there, the general BLM rules below apply; ask the field office about claims.
Rules on BLM land
- Gold counts: reasonable amounts of rocks and mineral specimens, including gold and other precious metals, may be collected.
- Hand tools: pans, shovels and metal detectors, if they cause no more than minor surface disturbance.
- Personal use only: not for sale or barter.
- Mining claims: collecting is prohibited without the claimholder’s permission. Check the Mineral & Land Records System.
- Wilderness and wilderness study areas: only non-motorized hand tools, and minimal surface disturbance.
- Developed sites: don’t collect in picnic sites, campgrounds or similar areas unless it is permitted.
- Oregon and Washington: no fee or permit for a reasonable amount; explosives or power equipment need a permit, Notice or Plan of Operations; dig no deeper than four feet.
Where you can’t pan
- National parks: gold panning is generally prohibited in all units of the National Park System. See national parks.
- Eagle Forks Campground, Oregon: the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest says panning is no longer allowed there.
- Anyone’s mining claim without permission.
- National forests: rules differ from forest to forest. Ask the ranger district before you pan.
Save panning spots for the trip
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Questions
Can you pan for gold on BLM land?
Yes, in reasonable amounts for personal use. The BLM counts gold as a mineral specimen and allows hand tools such as pans, shovels and metal detectors if they cause no more than minor surface disturbance. What you find may not be sold or bartered.
Do I need a permit to pan for gold?
Not for a reasonable, noncommercial amount on BLM land in Oregon and Washington, where the BLM says no fee or permit is required. With explosives or power equipment, or above a reasonable amount, a permit, Notice or Plan of Operations is required. Elsewhere, ask the office that manages the land.
Can I pan on someone’s mining claim?
Not without the claimholder’s permission. Look up claims in the BLM’s Mineral & Land Records System, and watch for claim markers, for example along Cow Creek and around Union Flat.
Where can I pan for gold in Arizona?
At the Lynx Creek Gold Pan Day Use Area in the Prescott National Forest, which the Forest Service says is primarily used for recreational gold panning.
Where can I pan for gold in California?
At Union Flat Campground on the North Yuba River in the Tahoe National Forest, where recreational mining is hands and pans only, and at Auburn State Recreation Area, with hands and gold pans only on shorelines and gravel bars, up to 15 pounds a day.
Where can I pan for gold in Oregon?
Along the BLM portion of the Quartzville Back Country Byway and at the Island Creek Day Use Area on the Cow Creek Back Country Byway. Not at Eagle Forks Campground, where the Forest Service says panning is no longer allowed.
Can I pan for gold in a national park?
No. The National Park Service says collecting, rockhounding and gold panning are generally prohibited in all units of the National Park System.
Sources
- BLM: Can I keep this?
- BLM Oregon and Washington Rock Collecting Guide (no printed date)
- BLM Mineral & Land Records System (mining claims)
- BLM: Quartzville Back Country Byway
- BLM: Cow Creek Back Country Byway
