You wonder if the fish that just swam up is looking for gold also. Unconsciously you reach out to brush it away from the nozzle with one hand while keeping your attention focused on the hardpack below. As you're reaching for the next cobble, you wonder if it's time to come up and check your sluice. Then you see it, a flash of yellow on the bedrock...

The birds are chirping. Or at least you think they are, it's a bit hard to tell for sure through the headphones. You're slightly startled when there's a shrill shriek as you swing the detector. What is it this time? Shot, a coin, another relic from the lode mine? Or the reason you're detecting in the first place, gold? After quickly checking the display on the detector, you decide to dig this target up. Soon after crouching with your tool, you see something glitter...

Kicked back in a chair next to the highbanker it's hard to tell who is having more fun: you or the children playing in the stream. A long time ago they gave up on any pretense of helping feed the hoppers, now they are currently hunting salamanders under stones. Glancing around to check on the rest of your group, you can hear a couple gold dredges running on the river, some have their detectors out and are sweeping the hillside. A few of the highbankers are still feeding theirs while others are cleaning out and there's activity going on over towards the campsite. Must be getting towards lunch from the conversations. "Well, what do you think?" your partner asks. Shrugging, you lean forward to look into the sluice. There, something yellow in front of the first riffle...

These experience and others we hope to offer you at Sand-a-Bar Placer, Bearfoot Gold's exclusive gold prospecting location.

What do we mean by "exclusive"? We feel that prospectors that enjoy the hunt for gold also enjoy the fellowship of like minded prospectors but wish to avoid crowds. With this in mind, we're limiting the total number of prospectors on the property at any one time to around ten total on a first come, first served basis. Reservations are required in advance and the property will be closed to additional prospectors once the capacity is reached. We also offer the opportunity to reserve the property privately to individuals or groups. Please review our Rates page for details.

Here's some of the history behind Sand-a-Bar Placer. Gold was discovered in the northwest section of Moore County, North Carolina in the early 1800's. The mine which rests on our property is one of the "newest", started in 1900 and ran for only 17 years until the United States involvement in World War One. The lack of able bodies knowledgeable in mining gold forced closures of our mine and the rest of the active mines in the area, the land owners switching to timber as a source of income. In the case of Sand-a-Bar, all equipment except the steam engine was left in place, we're still discovering heads from the stamp mill buried on the property. Since gold was known to the area, the miners immediately went for the lode rather than the placer deposits. Because of the closure, those placer deposits have been untouched until recently when we first dropped out dredge into the river a couple of years ago.

Sand-a-Bar is definitely not for the faint of heart, it's a densely wooded tract of land with no amenities at all. If you enjoy running water, electricity, and hookups for recreational vehicles, we suggest you visit one of the other fine establishments in North Carolina which offer them. On the other hand, if you're seeking an adventure out in the wild while roughing it in nature and finding gold on virgin ground, this is a place to come to. Currently we have a four wheel drive trail into the property and with wilderness camping available. Tent camping is welcomed, though you'll need to bring all your camping gear, gold prospecting equipment, and food with you. There is limited parking at the entrance for cars and those that do not wish to traverse the trail. We offer to bring your gear down in our vehicle if you opt to park at the entrance.

The section of property we're opening up to other prospectors encompasses over 1800' of riverbed, three feeder streams that have been shown to bear colors, and the lode mine. We have lightly worked sections of the riverbed, the rest is totally untouched by man. Though we have been focusing our attention to the riverbed as producing gold, all forms of prospecting are welcome. With a detector, Terri found her first nugget on the property, and since then we've found four specimens inside pieces of quartz. The gold miners camp was also located on this stretch of the property and is available for hunting relics. The only areas that are off limits are the open shaft and directly around it.

Located 70 miles from Raleigh, 80 miles from Charlotte, and 50 miles from Fayetteville, NC, Sand-A-Bar is easily accessible to the major highways in the state. I-73 which runs south from Greensboro is a quick jaunt from the property.

Since we are not open to the general public and welcome guests on a reservation basis we will not be revealing the exact location of our property online. This is to insure our guest that they will not be disturbed by unwanted visitors. For proposes of getting directions into the general area, the nearest large town is called Robbins, North Carolina.

Please visit our Rates page for more information or contact us at:

Phone: (910) 639-8237

Email: wylie@bearfootgold.com

Also visit the Area Attractions section of our Links page for activities around Sand-A-Bar for guests that aren't interested in gold prospecting alone. Among other interesting things to visit is North Carolina's Pottery Highway, the Uwharrie National Forrest, and Rockingham Raceway, all within convenient driving distance.

We're looking forward to hosting your visit. We welcome you to come find some beautiful North Carolina gold!