| Gold was first discovered in the Fraser
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| | time. One former champion was observed to
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| River of British Columbia in 1858. By
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| | find all six of his gold flakes in less
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| 1861 pioneer prospectors had moved
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| | than three and one-half minutes.
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| northeast to the Cariboo region, where
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| | A few miles east of Barkerville, in the
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| William "Billy" Barker found a rich vein
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| | town of Wells, Joy Stepan owns and
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| at Williams Creek. By 1880, the town
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| | operates Gold Safari Tours. She said
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| named after him, Barkerville, had grown
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| | people still have the urge to explore for
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| into the largest city west of Chicago and
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| | gold, but gold panning is not allowed in
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| north of San Francisco.
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| | parks. So the only place visitors can
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| Today, Barkerville is a former ghost town
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| | legally pan for gold is on claims where
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| transformed into a popular tourist
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| | they are given permission.
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| destination. A popular attraction at
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| | Ms. Stepan, known locally as Cariboo Joy,
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| Barkerville is a gold panning and
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| | offers gold panning lessons at her RV
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| souvenir shop where visitors can buy a
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| | campground, and allows her guests to pan
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| pan full of dirt, rocks and at least a
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| | for gold on her claim at nearby Lowhee
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| fleck or two of genuine gold. The six
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| | Creek. Along with picks and shovels, she
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| dollar price per pan also includes a
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| | rents green plastic gold pans. She says
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| lesson on how to pan for gold. Novice
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| | they are easier to use than traditional
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| panners are warned not to put their
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| | steel pans because they are lighter in
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| fingers into the water, because the oil
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| | weight and do not reflect sunlight back
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| from their skin can cause the gold to
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| | into your eyes.
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| float to the surface and out of the pan,
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| | When asked how people know where to look
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| instead of staying on the bottom.
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| | for gold, Ms. Stepan replied that very
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| Once each year the gold panning shop
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| | unconventional methods are sometimes
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| hosts a gold panning competition, with
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| | employed. Some people hold a pendulum
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| participants from across Canada, the USA,
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| | over a map and then look for gold at
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| and even as far away as Europe taking
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| | places where the pendulum swung. Others
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| part. Each is given a bucket containing
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| | use a dowsing wand, a Y-shaped stick cut
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| dirt, gravel and six gold flakes.
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| | from a willow brand. They walk along the
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| Contestants have up to five minutes to
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| | ground, holding the wand out in front of
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| splash and shake their steel pans around
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| | them. Where the wand dips, they believe
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| in wooden, water-filled troughs, trying
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| | gold may be found.
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| to find the most gold in the shortest
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