Gold panning works because gold is far heavier than the sand and gravel around it. Shake a submerged pan of gravel and the gold sinks to the bottom. Then tilt the pan and wash the lighter material off the top, a little at a time, until only heavy black sand and any gold are left.

This guide is desk research. The steps come from the BLM and Forest Service gold panning booklet for Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula and the Washington Division of Geology and Earth Resources, with background from the U.S. Geological Survey and the California Geological Survey. Nobody at Backyard Prospectors has panned for this article.

Why panning works

The USGS gives the density of gold as it usually occurs in deposits as 16 to 18, against about 2.5 for the waste rock around it. That difference “enables gold to be concentrated by gravity” in a gold pan, rocker or sluice box. The Kenai booklet puts it simply: the weight difference “allows gold to move downward (concentrate) when agitated.”

The USGS calls panning “the simplest, easiest, and least expensive method” of separating gold from stream sediment and “the method most commonly employed by the beginning prospector.”

What you need

The Kenai booklet’s suggested equipment list starts with a gold pan, “14-inch size is best,” and adds:

  • a shovel to loosen gravel from the creek bottom
  • a grizzly pan with 1/2-inch holes to screen out coarse gravel
  • a magnifying lens of at least 10X
  • tweezers, a small magnet for magnetic black sands, and small glass vials for the gold
  • rubber gloves and rubber boots for cold water

For specific pans and kits, see the gold panning kits and pans guide . For screens, see the classifiers and sieves guide . Garrett’s Gold Pan Kit (part 1651310) is one example of a kit that bundles a 14-inch pan, a classifier, a Gold Guzzler bottle and two vials. Search Amazon for Garrett Gold Pan Kit 1651310

The Kenai booklet notes that modern pans are plastic with built-in riffles. New metal pans “generally come with a coating of grease” and, it says, should be cleaned “thoroughly by heating over an open fire.”

Step by step

  1. Pick your gravel. The Kenai booklet says to work “active, unvegetated stream gravels” and points to places where fast water slows: below rapids and falls, deep pools, the downstream side of boulders, inside bends and bedrock crevices. Our guide to where to find gold covers this in more detail.
  2. Get set up at the water’s edge. The booklet suggests panning “from a squatting or sitting position at the stream edge, in gently moving water, holding the pan between your knees.”
  3. Classify. Shovel gravel into the grizzly set over your gold pan and shake the fines through. Check the oversize rocks for nuggets, then toss them. Garrett’s kit instructions give the same first step: use the classifier “to filter out larger rocks from your sample.”
  4. Fill and submerge. The Kenai booklet works with a half-full pan, totally submerged. Washington’s instructions say to fill the pan nearly full and make sure all the material gets wet, mixing it by hand if needed.
  5. Break up clay. With the pan underwater, break up clots of dirt and wash any cobbles that carry clay, which the booklet says “can trap placer gold.” When the water in the pan starts to clear, the clay is gone. Pick out pebbles, looking for heavy pieces with an unusual color or shape.
  6. Shake to settle the gold. Hold the pan level underwater and shake it “with a sideways or circular motion.” Washington says to move the pan quickly from side to side and rotate the contents without spilling them, which “gives the gold particles a chance to settle to the bottom.”
  7. Tilt and wash off the top. Keep the riffles pointed away from you. Tilt the pan slightly forward and, while still shaking, let water carry the lighter material over the lip. Washington says larger pieces that come to the top “can be skimmed or scraped over the brim of the pan with your thumb or hand.”
  8. Repeat until only heavies remain. The booklet says to alternate underwater swirling and dipping until only a few spoonfuls of heavy minerals are left. The Kenai booklet says that when dark, heavy black sands appear, “you are doing the panning right.”

Finishing: separating gold from black sand

The last few spoonfuls take the most care. The Kenai booklet says black sand and other fine sands concentrate in the crease or riffles of the pan along with any gold.

  • Do it over a container. The Kenai booklet says to do the final panning “over another container to keep from losing the gold.”
  • Use less water. Washington says to pour off excess water until just enough is left to barely cover the concentrate.
  • Swirl to string it out. Washington describes swirling the pan to “string out” or “feather” the concentrate: lighter particles wash farther, “leaving the gold (because it is the heaviest) in the ’tail’ of the concentrate.” The Kenai booklet describes the same idea as a swirling and rocking motion where “lighter material moves to one side, gold stays put.”
  • Pick up the gold. The Kenai booklet suggests drying the fines, pulling magnetic grains out with a magnet, and lifting gold with tweezers, a knife blade or a dry finger. Garrett’s instructions use the Gold Guzzler bottle “to suck up tiny gold particles.” Store the gold in a water-filled vial.

For larger amounts of concentrate, see how to separate fine gold from black sand . If you are not sure a flake is gold, check it with the gold, pyrite and mica tests .

Mistakes the agencies warn about

  • Rushing. “Beginners are often impatient to find gold quickly. Take your time,” says the Kenai booklet.
  • Leaving clay in the pan. Clay can hold gold, so break it up underwater before you start washing off material.
  • Losing the last pan. Finish over a tub or second pan, not over the creek.
  • Expecting flour gold to sink. The booklet says flour gold “has been flattened to a few microns thickness and will float on water,” so watch the surface during the final swirl.
  • Digging banks. The Kenai booklet says “do not dig in stream banks,” because digging adds silt to the stream and many banks “can slide without warning.”

How fast it goes

Panning is slow by design. The Kenai booklet says experienced panners can process “about 10 large pans per hour” and that “a sluice or suction dredge can increase productivity.” The California Geological Survey is encouraging on skill: “with some practice, even an inexperienced panner should be able to recover most of the gold from the sand and gravel.” When you want to move more gravel, the next step is a sluice box .

Check the rules before you dig

Hand panning is light on paperwork in most places, but not everywhere. For designated public panning areas and each agency’s tool limits, see where you can legally pan for gold .

  • BLM land: Under 43 CFR 3809.5, casual use “generally includes” hand panning.
  • National forests: 36 CFR 228.4 lists gold panning among activities that need no notice of intent. Individual forests can still set rules; the White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire requires a free gold panning permit.
  • Washington: WDFW’s 2021 Gold and Fish pamphlet allows pans in fresh waters year-round, except lakes. Under that year-round option, you “may not excavate, collect, or remove aggregate from within the wetted perimeter.” Separate rules with timing windows, which require a copy of the pamphlet on site, allow more.
  • Mining claims and private land: BLM’s 2026 Montana-Dakotas claims packet says that to prospect on an existing unpatented claim, “you must have permission from the current claimant.” The California Geological Survey’s 2002 hints sheet adds that “you must always obtain permission from the owner to prospect on private property.”

FAQ

Which way should the riffles on a gold pan face?

Away from you. The BLM and Forest Service panning booklet for Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula says to keep the riffles pointed away from you “to catch any gold that might slip over the lip.”

How long does it take to learn to pan for gold?

Not long to learn, longer to get fast. The California Geological Survey says that with some practice even an inexperienced panner should be able to recover most of the gold in the sand and gravel. The Kenai booklet says experienced panners process about 10 large pans per hour.

Do I need a permit to pan for gold?

Often not on federal land. Hand panning is casual use on BLM land, and gold panning needs no notice of intent on National Forest land. Some forests and states set their own rules, and you need the claimant’s permission to pan on a mining claim, so check the land manager first.

Sources