Where to Pan for Gold

The hardest part of gold panning is often not the panning. It is knowing where you are allowed to do it. The good news is that a lot of public land in the United States is open to panning with simple hand tools. This guide explains which land is open, which is not, a few public panning areas set aside by government agencies, how to check for mining claims, and whether you can keep what you find.

Where can you pan for gold legally?

On most open public land run by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Forest Service, using a pan and hand tools. On those lands panning usually needs no permit, as long as the spot is not closed, withdrawn from mining or covered by someone's mining claim. Rules can be different in national parks, state parks, on private land and on claims, so the short answer always comes with "check first".

No agency keeps a national list of open panning spots. The BLM says so itself. That means you check each place, one at a time, with the agency that manages it.

Is gold panning legal?

Yes, in many public places, as long as you use a pan and hand tools and stay off land that is closed or claimed. Whether it is legal on a given creek depends on two things: who manages the land, and what the state allows for the tools you use. It is generally not allowed in national parks, and it is never allowed on someone else's claim or private land without their permission.

The tool matters as much as the place. Hand panning is the most widely allowed. Oregon's environmental quality department, for example, exempts hand panning from its mining permit. A sluice box is allowed in some places and banned in others, and motorized gear such as high bankers and suction dredges needs state permits. California has banned suction dredging outright. If you plan to bring more than a pan, check with the land manager and with the state wildlife agency before you go.

Can you pan for gold on BLM land?

Usually, yes. The BLM's mining claim guide says panning is allowed on its land without a special permit unless it is expressly prohibited, for example where someone has claimed the minerals. It counts hand panning and non-motorized sluicing as casual use, meaning activity that leaves little or no mark on the land. Some areas have special rules, so the BLM suggests contacting the local field office before you go.

Can you pan for gold in national forests?

In most of them, yes. The Forest Service's policy on mineral and rock collecting says most national forests are open to recreational gold panning as a low-impact activity that usually needs no authorization. There are exceptions. Some wilderness areas are closed to panning, and some eastern forests ask for a letter of authorization because of their soils.

The Forest Service in Montana gives a good picture of the limits. It says panning that disturbs little or no ground generally needs no permit there, but it is not allowed in places such as Wild and Scenic River corridors, campgrounds, wilderness, administrative sites and withdrawn areas. It also points out that many national forests have no designated collecting areas at all, so the ranger district is the place to ask.

Can you pan for gold in national parks?

Generally no. The National Park Service says gold panning is generally prohibited across the park system. There are a few exceptions, such as limited panning in the Whiskeytown unit in California, where only a pan and small hand tools are allowed and you may not sell what you find.

Can you pan for gold in state parks?

Sometimes, under that park's own rules. South Yuba River State Park in California is one example. It allows panning with hands and pans only, in the zone where the water moves, with a limit of 15 pounds of material per person per day. You may not sell what you find, and your muddy water must not be visible more than 20 feet from where you are panning. Other state parks have different rules or do not allow panning at all, so check each one.

Where are some public gold panning areas?

A handful of places have been set aside, or are managed, with recreational panning in mind. Each has its own rules, and some of the sources below are years old, so check the current rules with the managing office before you go.

Lynx Creek, Prescott National Forest, Arizona

The Forest Service runs the Lynx Creek Gold Pan Day Use Area mainly for recreational panning, inside an area withdrawn from mining. Gold pans, metal detectors and hand tools such as picks and shovels are allowed. Motorized or mechanical equipment is not. You may dig only below the high-water mark, and you must fill your holes before you leave. No permit is needed if you collect for personal use and not to sell.

Chugach National Forest, Alaska

On the Kenai Peninsula, the Forest Service has set aside four sites for recreational panning: Bertha Creek, Sixmile Creek, Resurrection Creek and Crescent Creek. They are withdrawn from mining and have no claims. Gold pans and hand-fed sluices are allowed there year round. Its guide dates from 2010, so check with the Seward or Glacier ranger district for today's rules.

Keysville, California

The BLM lists recreational gold panning among the activities at its Keysville Special Recreation Management Area in Kern County.

Cow Creek, Oregon

The BLM says visitors can still pan in a designated stretch of lower Cow Creek, near the Island Creek Day Use Area. It asks you to check with its Roseburg District Office for current guidelines.

Reed Gold Mine, North Carolina

The state historic site where the country's first documented gold was found offers panning for a fee. It closes panning in heavy rain, lightning or extreme heat.

What about state land, city land and private land?

These usually need permission or a contract. Washington's Department of Natural Resources puts it clearly in its recreational gold panning sheet. Federal BLM and Forest Service land there is open to panning unless withdrawn. City watersheds, such as Seattle's and Everett's, are usually posted and closed. State-owned land is not open to panning without a contract from the department. Private land is private, and the sheet counts mining claims, staked or patented, as private too. County assessors keep the land ownership records if you need to find the owner.

Utah's state survey lists the kinds of places that are usually off limits: national parks and monuments, state parks, reservations, military land, wildlife refuges and wilderness areas. In Utah, state school trust land also needs a lease.

Getting to public land can be a problem too. The BLM reminds visitors that crossing private land to reach a creek also needs the owner's permission.

How do you know if land has a mining claim?

Look it up before you go. Mining claims belong to the people who stake them, and the gold found on a claim belongs to the claim holder. The Forest Service warns that claims may have no visible markers at all, so a creek that looks empty can still be claimed. Even in areas withdrawn from new claims, older claims may still exist.

The BLM keeps claim records in its online Mineral and Land Records System, searchable by location. If a spot is claimed, do not pan there unless the claim holder has given you permission.

Can you keep the gold you find?

Usually yes, on open public land. The Forest Service says that gold found on national forests can normally be removed and kept. There are exceptions. Gold on someone's claim belongs to them, and some places, such as Lynx Creek, Whiskeytown and South Yuba River State Park, allow panning for personal use only, not for sale.

Should you join a prospecting club?

A club can be a good way to learn and to find out about places to pan. The Utah Geological Survey suggests joining one. Just remember that membership does not change public land rules. The Forest Service in Montana says its rules apply to club members the same as everyone else.

How do you pan responsibly once you are there?

Work only in the loose, open gravel of the active stream, and never dig into banks, which can collapse. Fill your holes, put rocks back where they were, and keep mud out of the water as much as you can. In Washington, carry a copy of the state's Gold and Fish rules whenever you pan. Leave old artifacts alone, and stay out of old mine tunnels and shafts.

What next?

Once you know you are allowed to pan a creek, our guide on where to find gold in a river shows where in it to dig, and How to Pan for Gold covers the panning itself. For the bigger picture of where gold occurs by region, see our page on where to find gold, and for gear and basics, our gold panning page.