May 2009

Allegheny Chapter of the GPAA’s May 9^th Meeting

MEETING INFORMATION

There were 86 people attending the meeting.

The meeting started a bit late, since we started by having the Pot Luck Lunch (please note some of the delay was waiting for some of the food to get cooked, and no this is not meant as a complaint to the cooks, cooking takes time and we don’t want any one to get sick.). I, as I’m sure everyone else also, would like to thank everyone that brought something to eat. The display of food availed was amazing. We had pizza, chicken, hotdogs, ham, coleslaw and the list just goes on and on. The desserts that were brought the chips, cookies, cake so on. Check out the photo’s below. I almost could not do any prospecting after the meeting I was so full! It was a great spread of different things; if you couldn’t find anything to eat you were not at this meeting!

You know there are times we forget to thank everyone for what everyone brings in to share with each other and I think we should right now! Everyone keep up the good work! And everyone that helps out in the “kitchen” thanks again. Dorsey for setting up and taking down the kitchen the cook’s for the day Jerry and Keith. You all get a warm round of thanks from everyone. And come to think of it I’ll give you all a hug when I see you next, so be on the lookout. Also please if I forget to name a person, it’s not because I’m being mean and don’t like you it’s because I’ve forgotten or I wasn’t there to see you helping out, so please let me know that I missed you, I like giving credit where credit is due. Email me and I’ll make it right by putting it in the list the Volunteers who help out. Remember at the meetings it’s the ones that help setup and take things down that really make the meetings run smoothly. Just like the people on the Work Parties keep the property in good shape for us to use, expanding where we can go.

Minutes of the last meeting were read by Chris Kelly, the sectary Carly was not able to make it for this meeting.

Chris Kelly was appointed the Outdoors Committee Chair person. She will be in charge of all the outdoors actives, like the trip to the Ace of Diamonds, Herkimer Diamond Mine that will be happening this weekend coming up (May 15^th thru 17^th)  I need to get new lists of who is in charge of what and a new list of the trustees.

POP & Water concession

If you haven’t noticed but the volunteer that was bringing the pop and bottled water that we sale at the meeting has bowed out of the position. If someone wants to take over the pop and water concession; see any of the officers on how to start up being that person. So for now bring your own drinks!

April’s Work Party

The work party that happened on April 18^th was quite a success with the basic completion of the road that goes from the pavilion up to almost the bridge. It will take some more work to harden the ground in some spots so they don’t sink or get so muddy that the road would be impassable, but a good workable road has been created.

Already this past meeting I (the webmaster) have seen spots already created for campsites along both sides of the road. With quite a bit of those campsites already taken by people. In 2003 there was an average of 30 members a meeting with maybe 5 groups camping out over the weekend, now we have an average of almost 90 members a meeting, and I counted 14 groups camping out this past weekend and other spots with tags on them for people who were not at this meeting.

Calvin led a round of applause to Jerry S. for leading the work party on this milestone of the project. The project has taken several years to get to this point. Because of funding, time, energy and people to be at the work party to do it. Not to mention how project’s priorities had to change from time to time to save the pavilion.

Remember this road is for all of us to be able to more easily get to different areas of the creek with our equipment, and it opens up more areas for us to camp. So if you see pot holes forming in the road and you are camping around there please fill in the pot hole with rocks or dirt or your panned out concentrates, etc to keep the road in useable condition. If the road is not usable then the road is not usable!

Also the work party put in some drainage ditches. They also cut down a lot of dead trees. I wish I could have gotten a full list of what they did. But either way just the road is enough for the thanking. I forgot to get the list of who was on this work party if someone would email the names, I’ll add them here.

Also it was talked about buying a pad lock similar to the main gate, for the new entrance to road on that was created.

Chapter Incorporation

We are finally incorporated as a 503c section 7 educational non profit.

To recap as to why we have done this, there are a lot of reasons. I’ll just list a few in no particular order:

• The GPAA wants (but doesn’t demand it) that every chapter of the GPAA be incorporated. It protects us as well as the GPAA.
   

• The purchase of large equipment, if we so desire to buy in the future would be under the chapter’s name, not one individual.
   
• With a debit card from the checking account (talked about below) we can more easily buy equipment for the store and raffles since a lot is though mail order, the internet and the like. This way it’s in the chapter’s name and we don’t have to have any one individual member’s credit card used, putting a burden on them since waiting for the club to pay them back with them accumulating finance charges on there credit cards. Did you know that if the club buys two good size sluices the cost comes to about $175 at once. With equipment and store supplies, raffle prizes, etc purchased at one time can be a big burden on someone’s personal credit card.
   
• Property can now be bought by us, with the chapter being the name on the lease, not held by one individual, if the club should happen to find and decide to lease it or buy it, this way not one person is in control of it, but the whole chapter.
   
• We could purchase a trailer for the club store, with everything in the clubs name, the tags, insurance, etc.

 The list goes on and on. This opens up possibilities that could not have other been there for us to grow as a chapter.

Checking Account

There has been a new checking account created in the incorporated club’s name, with the monies from the non-incorporated clubs account has been transferred into the new incorporated clubs account (this was told to us by John the Treasurer). That way all the monies are now known to belong to the chapter, and are under the chapter’s control.

Bonding (also called employee theft insurance)

The officers of the club will be bonded. The easy and short explanation of bonding is this. If monies, or other  items get stolen, then the insurance company that we are bonded with will replace it and in effect would see if any miss doings were done and if need be legal action could be taken against those individuals. This is a business and nothing personal towards anyone.

 

News about the other chapters, and information about what gold prospecting groups around us are doing.

EGPA & EGPA’s Dredging Permits

The back ground

Last year Calvin (our president) was our chapters lead in trying to see about how we could get a dredging permit for our property. Around the same time the EGPA formed and Calvin became a member of the EGPA and saw that the EGPA were ahead of us on this issue since they already were in talks with the DEP so it was decided to take a wait and see attitude and see what the EGPA can do in this matter.

Current information

In April’s meeting we were told that the EGPA have finally gotten a “Study Program Dredging Permit” that is a one to three year long study permit from the DEP for the York county area, where the EGPA has a property that they use. Calvin also told us that at the May meeting he may have some new information, once he was allowed to talk about it, since he has sitting in on the meetings the EGPA has been having with the DEP since the EGPA wanted him involved in the meetings.

In the May meeting Calvin has told us that the “Study Program” has be opened up for all of the EGPA properties not just that one location in York County but the study program has opened up to the “EGPA Corporation” itself and that the EGPA will be able to dredge at each of there PA locations, and as they get more locations in PA those locations will be allowed to dredge in PA as well.

Remember this is a one to three year study program permit and at the end of the study the hopes are that the DEP will make dredging permits as easy as getting a fishing license, with rules on where and when you can dredge so it has the least amount of impact on the rivers and creeks. So our chapter is currently still just taking a wait and see attitude and in one to three years once the study is over with we may be able to go to our local Wal-Mart and pick up a dredging permit!

This is a another step forward for recreational prospectors in PA, remember that until 2004 there were NO rules for prospecting in PA, and we finally got some recognition in this regards to recreational prospecting because of GPAA members, notably Dean Ransom, working with the DEP for years (yes years) to just get this far, the Recreational Gold Prospecting Pamphlet that shows we are allowed to pan, and sluice, and if you wanted to dredge the DEP wanted you to get a Commercial Dredging permit, even though we are doing it as a recreational activity.

So if the EGPA can take it to the next step of getting the recreational dredging and recreational power sluicing to be like the other states that have a “fishing license” type permit this will be the end of at least 10 or more years work by recreational prospector community of and for PA!

Next Calvin went on to tell us that the EGPA now has a property near our chapter’s property location, about 30 minutes away from our property.  That the Vice President (Bryn B) of the EGPA’s Main Headquarters found the property. Also that Calvin’s brother Brian is the president of that EGPA’s Chapters property (he was appointed by the GPAA to head up the property). Also the EGPA held an impromptu discussion group, after our meeting, for people interested in learning more about the EGPA and what they have to offer.

About the new EGPA Property that is by our chapter

The president of the (Lionsville’s) EGPA property is Brian H. and Vice President is Joe H. The specifics of the property are that it is  one mile length of creek; with small gold pieces found (about the size our property yields) this brings the EGPA’s total number of properties in PA to five. Several of our members are already members of the EGPA which is allowed since it is beneficial to everyone involved since as a recreational prospector it opens up more areas you can go to. Current price to join the EGPA is 50$ for the year. The property has just been acquired so they are just beginning to develop it so that it’s usable; there will be a road soon with camping spaces and so on.

 

Bald Eagle Chapter of the GPAA is having an Alaska raffle

Joe “Butch” Dorn of the “The Bald Eagle Chapter” came to the meeting selling his clubs raffle tickets. The raffle is to win a trip to Nome, Alaska. The tickets are $3/each with only 3,000 tickets being sold. The plane faire from Seattle, WA to Nome, AL with the weeks stay in Nome covered by wining the tickets, if you don’t want the trip it was said the replacement was $1,000 in cash. Second place was a whites metal detector, and 3 place prize was a $5 gold coin that weight of 1/10th of an once. The raffle will either take place at Carlisle gold show if all the tickets are sold by then or Nov 2^nd.

 

The Chapter Store

There will be NO store for June’s meeting. John the store manager will not be there, if someone would like to step up and run the store for the meeting please contact John to work out the specifics. Although it was mentioned that gold bags will still be sold at the June’s meeting.

Gold Bags

A note about the gold in the gold bags we sell, the gold in the bags is currently from Maine. The gold was bought off of a club member, Chester, that he had prospected for it himself over the years that he has been going to Maine. The gold bags sold in the past were form different places such as Alaska, California, and Nevada.

Club Shirts

For everyone concerned, I (the webmaster), asked about the shirts since for the past two months and for several other months before this meeting, from what I’ve been told, shirts have not been availed for purchase. When I asked at this meeting I was told by John, the current store manager, that has been cleared up.

The following is what I got out of my talks with the current and former store managers.

The old treasure who also was the old store manager retired from both positions in and around September of last year and that the shirts were not part of the store inventory that was turned over, since the shirts were not store (chapter) inventory. The old store manager had the shirts made up on his own and that he was selling them separately from the chapter’s store inventory. This was how it has always been since the club had no monies and we had been relying on the old store manager’s credit card, which we are thankful for. But because of this setup we actually had to rely on him coming to the meetings, which he was doing because of his position as treasure & store manager, so it was not a problem, until he retired from the positions. Since he does not need to be coming to each meeting at this point, we don’t have shirts to sell at each meeting, only the meetings he shows up at. 

To try to explain a little better what was going on. You see he bought the shirts with his own money and he wanted to watch over the shirts so he could make sure he got what was due him, which is understandable. I guess no one thought to work out a way for us to have the shirts at all times so they could be sold, for when he wasn’t at the meetings. But again it was assured to us by John the current treasurer & store manager this has been resolved, it was not elaborated as to fine details of this but at least now we will have shirts at the meetings for when people want to buy them.

Also please remember this is nothing against the previous store manager or the current one for that matter, the previous one did a great job and the new store manager is doing a great job. I am and I’m sure by extension everyone in the club appreciates all that they are doing and did in the past for us. You have to remember that being the store manager is a volunteer position and without them we would not have a store to buy things.

Now the only issue is that the current store manager will not be at June’s meeting so it looks like we will have to wait for July to purchase shirts. If you saw me in my shirts you would understand why I want to buy some new shirts, being the ones I have now are torn, faded, and the dirt that will not wash out of them, my wife calls me the dirty prospector and not in a good way. Waiting another month or two to get new shirts will not make a difference. Although it was stated that if someone wants to run the store for June please call John to work out what needs done to do this.

 

From the webmaster

Sometimes I’m very brief with the “newsletter” other times there is a lot to say. The reason is that I’m not at the meetings at all during the winter and only a few meetings during the summer and I rely on others to send me information and depending upon what there schedules are it can be an issue at times, and I’m not going to chase people down to get any information either, with that said if you have any information from a meeting that you think I should have included let me know! The reason why I’m saying this is that it was brought up to me by a few people at this past meeting as to why I didn’t have anything new on the site for almost 6 months, also not to mention nothing to much happens on the property during the winter. I don’t really take there question as a complaint but actually as something great to hear since that tells me/us that people are looking at the website and are relying upon the website to fill them in as to what is going on.

I also receive two or three emails a week asking questions about the club that I try to answer as best I can, or I pass on to Calvin. Because of this I’m trying to create a better frequently asked questions list from these questions that have been asked and also to better write down what and how everything works in the chapter, so when you are at a meeting you don’t miss out on all that is going on around you, especially the new people.

I don’t like putting people’s phone numbers, emails address, and full names on the internet. If you don’t mind your full information being on display let me know, other wise what I do is put your first name and the first initial of your last name, it’s kind of like a op-in type thing. I don’t do the op-out, where I’ll put your full name first and then wait for you to say something, I like to think I’m doing it a way that is in our best interest because of Identity Theft.

A little bit more about us the Allegheny Chapter of the GPAA

This property was found back in 1996 by a few GPAA members, the full list of those people have been lost to me but I can tell you that I know two of them Tim K, and Jim G. Before they found this place they met at a local park in the area. The property is not owned by the GPAA or any member of the chapter, it is in fact farm land that the owner has allowed us to be here panning and camping. We are very grateful guests on his land. When I joined the GPAA in 2003 (7 years after the property was found) there were on average 30 members at the meeting. We hardly had any monies at all. Everything that was purchased was always on someone else’s dime, sure the club paid them back eventually but still it was on someone else’s dime. We truly were a very small band of people. In 2006 or maybe early 2005 the club started going to few outdoor shows to help spread the word about gold prospecting, and also I took over doing the website in 2006. And in 2008 with gold going over 900 dollars and ounce.  It seemed like an explosion of people started coming to the meetings. In 2006 we averaged 50 people a meeting, 2007 we averaged 65, 2008 we averaged 80, and now for the past few months now in 2009 we have been averaging 90 people. We also have over 100 people on our email mailing list, the actually member list of everyone that is a member I’m sure will have over 200 people or more.

 

Because the club has grown so large with no signs of stopping, many people don’t know the rules that we have. Also there are people that have never been trained in the ways of prospecting and how to act in the wilderness. So I’m going to try to put some of these things in the up and coming newsletters as I get time. Like right now I’ve spent at least 10 hours (and people that know me, know I’m not kidding) on writing up everything that you have seen in this months newsletter, the drafts and revisions so as not to offend anyone because I forgot a name or didn’t mention this or that, or because I did mention something that someone else thinks I should not have, and so on. And you know what I think it’s great because people are so attached to the property that they care what is going on and want to be appreciated for what they have done to make the property better. I think of it this way “we are here for the club and the club is not here for us”.

So here I go with a few things.

Sign In Sheets

Please remember to sign the sign in sheet, if you don’t see it ask someone as to where it is remember this is for each meeting. It’s important that you sign in since at the Christmas party you get tickets for each meeting you attend that is used for the special raffle.

If you are using the property on a non-meeting day please sign the sign in sheet that is located in the back of the pavilion.

Accident Waivers

If you haven’t done so already complete the property accident waiver, these are filled out yearly. The accident waivers must also be filled out for people who are just attending this one meeting to check things out.

Raffle Tickets

Raffle tickets, buy early and buy a lot, this is where the club makes the income that keeps the club going.

Rules when using the property, note this is not a complete list.

• You must sign the accident waiver before using the property. If you don’t sign you can not use the property at all.
• No discharging of firearms on the property
• No fireworks, they are to illegal own or use in PA.
• All fires need to be in a fire ring or fire pit of some kind. If you make you own campsite create a fire ring with big rocks. And try to clear a “free burn” area of at least 3 feet around the fire pit. Do not steal fire wood from someone else’s camp site.
• Bringing of dogs to the property are at your insurance risk, if they bite someone it is on you not the club. Try to keep them quite at night, and on leashes.
• When digging for gold the hole you make fill back in when you are done.
• Clean up after your self, what you bring in take home with you. We have no trash pickup.
• The pavilion is there for everyone.
• No camping in/under the pavilion, especially now that there are more camping sites. Remember setup camp in the parking lot only as a last resort.
• Parking of vehicles in camping spots. Please park in the parking lot unless the camping spot is yours for the night. This allows people to know that they can setup camp there.
• No digging into the creek banks. You can see how the creek tears up the banks as it is.
• Be courteous to others.
• No cars, trucks, other mechanical equipment in the creek, you, not the club will get fined by the DEP if you are caught.
• Campsites. You will see markers of people laying claim to little areas for there own camping. This is currently allowed by our rules. If you want a camping spot of your own, feel free to create one. We have a road along the creek that gives people access to places that they can create there own sites. Just remember no permanent building or sheds, no building of log cabins, etc. Also remember that there are no security guards checking the place when you are not around. Leaving a trailer on the property till the next time you come up is not recommended since if it gets damaged by flood waters, stolen, broken, etc, it is on you, not the club. Yes flood waters, we are by a creek that floods occasionally, if you go to the pavilion and put your hand at ground level and go up about 18 inches that is how high the flood waters have gotten that I the webmaster know about. So if you come back and your stuff is gone it may have washed away. You have been warned. The club and chapter are not responsible for broken, lost, stolen, or damaged items. 
• What equipment you are allowed to use in your quest of finding gold. Sluice & Panning are fine.  No dredging allowed, we don’t have a permit, and no one else has a permit in the chapter, yet. No High banking in the creek.  This is a state law/regulation; remember you will get fined if you get caught, not the chapter. You have been warned.Remember be glad that we are not in New York where you’re not even allowed to pan.See the PA DEP fact sheet. The section of the “fact sheet” from the DEP’s “RECREATIONAL PROSPECTING IN THE COMMONWEALTH’S WATERWAYS” Number 3930-FS-DEP4099 4/2007 says the following

“METHODS AND EQUIPMENT NOT REQUIRING PERMITS

• Non-motorized pans, shovels, pan or dish-type hand classifiers and picks.
• Non-motorized sluice boxes, sieves, concentrators and mini-rocker boxes.

METHODS AND EQUIPMENT REQUIRING PERMITS

• Suction dredges with a nozzle no larger than four inches in diameter.
• High-bankers or suction dredge/high-banker combinations with a water intake no larger than two and one-half inches (inside) diameter, which are operated entirely below the ordinary high water line. “

            Until this is changed you must follow the law. You break the law, you get fined & get a criminal record, not the club. Please check the DEP’s website for updated information on this issue, they change there rules and regulations without notification to us. So if everyone keeps checking when something does change then the likely hood of us finding out sooner increases. The “northwest regional office” of the DEP covers our area, mercer, there phone number 814-332-6984.

A note about this, the EGPA has a dredging permit for PA that they are allowed to dredge on there properties, this is a “Study Permit” that they are allowed to dredge under the DEP’s supervision for one to three years with the outcome of being a “fishing license” type permit that everyone could get there own permit to dredge. Again this is still in the beginning of the process with them just getting this “study permit” so we still have to wait one to three years.

Remember there is plenty of gold to go around.

The above is not a complete list. And as rules and regulations change form time to time, please always check at the meeting to see if any rules and regulations have changed from this posting.

 

Elections and Officers

Elections are held in August. GPAA members that are current on there GPAA dues are allowed to run for office. Also you must be current on your GPAA dues to vote. And in addition the house rule is that you had to have attended two meetings in the current season to vote or run for office.

Please bring your current GPAA card when voting in August. If you don’t have it with you, you can not vote, period. It doesn’t matter if you have been a GPAA member for 10 years, or 1 year, the rule applies to EVERYONE in this matter. If you forget or lost it have your current paid up card with you for the next year’s election. I expect to be carded, and I welcome it, you should too.

This is a GPAA chapter and according to the rules of the GPAA (that the club is contracted with) only current GPAA members are allowed to vote and/or hold office in the GPAA chapter. There are no “Social Members” or “Social member” voting rights when it comes to the GPAA, you can become a GPAA member for a year starting at the low cost of $30 and that gets you membership (I believe this would still be a family membership, but I could be wrong) and a magazine and the ability to hold office or vote for officers. But Tim, I was told that I didn’t have to join the GPAA to be a member of a chapter, see next section.

 

Membership in a GPAA chapter

Membership in a GPAA chapter is kind of strange, in the following way. You can be a member of a chapter and not be a member of the GPAA.  

The catch (fine print of GPAA Claims) is this: If you are not a dues paying member you can not use GPAA Claims, on your own. You need to be a guest of a current GPAA member to use a GPAA claim.

The fine print for Allegheny Chapter’s Private property is this: As for the house rules in our chapter you can use the property during a meeting but to get “any time access” to the property you must have a current membership in the GPAA and have attended two meetings in the current season. Also remember you must sign the accident waivers to use the property regardless of if it is for the meeting or for the “Any time access”.

Access to the Allegheny Chapter Property

The Allegheny Chapter of the GPAA‘s property is private property that we are allowed to use, it was found by members of the GPAA back in 1996 and is not a paid for or kept by the main GPAA organization and it is not a GPAA claim, it is not owned by any member of the chapter.

Everyone must sign an accident waiver before you can do anything on the property.

Our chapter’s house rule is that NON-GPAA members can visit the property on a meeting day and that is all. We are open to the public on meeting days only.

If you want access outside of the meeting you must be a current GPAA member and have attended two meetings, in the current season, to get “any time access” to the private property.

 There is no “Social Membership”, “Social member” or an access fee to the chapter’s property by non-GPAA members for the privilege of the “any time access” to the private property. The only way to get the “any time access” is that you become a current GPAA member (remember GPAA membership is a family membership) and attend two meetings in the current season. This has always been the chapter’s house rule. (I the webmaster had to join and attend two meetings in the season for the any time access, and so has everyone else. If you know someone who is breaking this rule it is your duty to turn them in. And if anyone offers you a “Social Membership” they need to be turned in to the officers of the club, since we don’t offer a “Social Membership” since it is against GPAA bylaws.) GPAA membership starts at the basic membership rate of $30 a year.

I don’t want to join the GPAA, I just want to be a NON-GPAA chapter member, Can’t I just join your chapter and still use the property? I’m not a GPAA member I just want to come down and use the property, can I?

Please re-read the section above titled “Membership in a GPAA chapter” and “Access to the Allegheny Chapter Property” If you are not a current GPAA member then you can not hold an office or vote for officers of the chapter. There is no such thing as a “Social Members” that pay dues to the Chapter, this is not allowed by GPAA bylaws, and what reason is there for it, since you can become a GPAA member for the low price of $30 a year for the basic membership in the GPAA.

I’m a GPAA member but can’t make it to the meetings; can I still use the property?

The Allegheny Chapter of the GPAA‘s property is private property that we are allowed to use, it was found by members of the GPAA back in 1996 and is not a paid for or kept by the main GPAA organization and it is not a GPAA claim. If you want access outside of the meeting you must be a current GPAA member and have attended two meetings, in the current season, to get “any time access” to the private property. So if you can’t make it to the meetings, sorry you have not fulfilled the necessary obligations of the chapter’s house rules. It would not be fair to everyone else that has taken the time to do this. Also remember there are accident waivers that must be signed in order to use the property.

$30 for the basic GPAA membership a year, I can’t afford that!

I just did a check of the KOA campsite for May 29^th to May 31^st with tent camping with 2 adults and it would have cost me 32$/night (64$ for the weekend), or a RV Tent trailer for 44$/night ($88 for the weekend) and note there prices change so please look up for your self at www.koa.com, or you can look at www.bearruncampground.com that has camping also in PA. Here’s also http://www.cooperslake.com/ that you can checkout the pricing on your own.

How about if we put the cost of other things as a comparison like 10 packs of cigarettes ($7*10 packs= $70 at the local bar by my house), or about one case of beer depending upon brand ($34.95 Samuel Adams), or 2 matinee movie tickets with 1 drink and a large popcorn ($20 – 2 tickets, $3.50 – 1 large drink, $4.50 – 1 large popcorn = $28), or a dinner out with the wife with no movie (example Chinese buffet by my house costs $30.99 for two dinners, price includes two sodas). So lets put it together you go to a dinner ($30.99) and a movie ($28) with the wife and buy a pack of smokes ($7) total cost for one night out is $65.99 not including gas for the car and so on.

Now what does your 30$ a year gets at the Allegheny Chapter’s property: primitive camping, voting for officers or you could be an officer in our chapter. Also currently you get the GPAA’s bi-monthly magazine with the basic membership. Remember it is only 8 cent a day for all of this. $30 a year / 365 days = approximately $0.08 a day. You get the idea, $30 for a year is a drop in the bucket for what you get with the basic membership.

Also remember that there are more expensive memberships that are for the GPAA that you get access to GPAA claims and other free stuff for signing on. Or even other clubs like the EGPA that has memberships that currently cost 50$ a year for membership.

 

Well that about does it for May’s newsletter. Hope to see you at the next meeting and let me know what else I can do to make the website better and more useful for us all. Or what else I can explain about the chapter and the like.