Open Ground
Rye Patch, the Majuba Placers
Placer gold · discovered 1938 · West of Rye Patch Reservoir, Pershing County, NV
Open groundThe prize. Chevron gold, crystalline nuggets found almost nowhere else on earth
Where. West of Rye Patch Reservoir, Pershing County, NV
Status. Open ground
Where. West of Rye Patch Reservoir, Pershing County, NV
Status. Open ground
The account
The desert kept this one quiet until 1938, when Charles Dice pulled several hundred ounces from ground everyone had walked past. The gold here grows in chevrons, angled crystal ridges like sergeant's stripes, and detectorists have hammered these flats for decades without emptying them. The nuggets still come up. They always have.
Leads, where the trail points now
- What you can keep: Chevron gold, crystalline nuggets found almost nowhere else on earth. Confirm the site's current rules and any day fee before you go.
- Where: West of Rye Patch Reservoir, Pershing County, NV. BLM public land, panning and detecting lawful on unclaimed ground; check active claim maps (BLM MLRS) and respect posted claims and private parcels.
- Best practice: record anything notable, leave the ground as you found it, and check the latest access notices before you travel.
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