Many individuals have gone before me. They have spent countless hours
exploring, researching, and interviewing. I would like to pay tribute to
a few of them. These men have gone to the other side and bask in their
treasures there. These individuals have had a great influence on my life.

Gale was dedicated to his work. He was constantly chasing that golden dream.
He spent years chasing down leads. His life had many ups and downs.
Occasionally he caught a glimpse of the real good stuff (riches) but for the
most part it seemed to elude him. Toward the end of his life he appeared
to be living off dreams more than anything else. My hat is off to you Gale.

George spent countless hours in research. He tried hard to keep the information
accurate and interesting. He wrote several books. By so doing he left us much of
his legacy. For this we should all be grateful. He once showed me his Spanish
melting pot or midden with its layered gold also several nuggets. What a site to
see. They were incredible! He said he couldn't tell me exactly where the gold
in quartz pieces came from because he was going back there next year. As far
as I know he never found the mother lode in this life...

Barry was a good hearted fellow. He was always looking out for the underdog.
In the mid 80's when I was becoming interested in panning he brought me dirt
from Miller Canyon several times. He said “You will probably find some gold in
there”. And I always did. He helped spark the panning desire in me. Barry once
told me the best spot he ever found to pan was at Manhattan, Nevada. He panned
one pan of dirt and recovered almost an ounce of gold. Wow! He approached the
claim owners but was unable to work out a deal on the property so his dream
had to be put on hold. He often brought me quartz with visible gold in it.
He said he found it on a mine dump where he had permission to be.
Barry I miss you.

Ed was one of the best friends I ever had. I once spent a full day chatting
with him and he allowed me to record it. He personally knew Richard Ridley,
Cump Murrey, Don Foote, and many other Indians who were directly involved
in covering up the money rock so they wouldn't be bothered any more from it.
Ed shared many secrets and maps with me. He was a very dear friend to me.
We actually were probably related too, since I am related to the Twitchells.
But that's another story.

Dean was the grandfather of my son-in-law Jake Ballamis.
Dean and I went out exploring and dowsing several times together.
He was very talented when it came to dowsing. He could find almost
anything that he set his mind to finding. Among his finds were water, oil,
gold and silver. Upon locating the spot he often had me hold his stopwatch
which he used to determine how abundant his find was. He determined
how deep the item was by counting how many times the rod bounced.

Raymon was my dad in this life and will be in the next because families are forever.
Dad and I had a very close relationship. There were many things I learned from him
in many aspects of life. I'm probably biased but I think he was about as close to the
perfect teacher as anyone, other than Christ, can be. I will miss him most when it warms
up each spring and I wished my dad were around to go hiking with me...
I love you dad.

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