Most weekend and part time prospectors prefer placer claims for numerous reasons such as ease of operation, gold in hand at the end of the day, inexpensive equipment and lack of time consuming BLM plan of operations and posting reclamation bonds. The truth of the matter is that over 98% of all the gold recovered in Arizona was mined from lode deposits. Arizona from approximately 1860 through 1960 has produced over 16,000,000 ounces of gold, almost 500 tons. In Arizona, Yavapa