<font color="yellow">Have you ever visited the lava tubes in central Oregon or south of Mt Saint Helens??</font><br /><br />I stay away from the lava flows, unless I am looking for crystals, i.e. diamonds, etc. I bet Mount St. Helens blasted out a few diamonds. They will not let you dig in there with the eruptions going on.<br /><br />I gold mine the Blue Mountains in Northeast Oregon, and the Cascade Mountains clear down to the Siskiyou Mountains. I typically work streambeds, and springs. There are boatloads of subterranean rivers and reservoirs in Oregon.<br /><br />I work dry beds with my metal detector. Most of the gold I find is flake and rice grain sized nuggets, and I have found silver, copper, and platinum too. It's lots of fun!<br /><br />Lot’s fire eggs, agates, opals, crystals, etc in Oregon too, and it’s a great place for rock hounding, hiking, etc. <br /><br />--- Jatslo<br /><br />