Waldo Mining District

08/29/2026

Good information. Comment period open until September 21st.

08/11/2026

Papers please! There is less than three weeks to file your annual maintenance waiver with the BLM- Due September 1.

08/03/2026

🌲What is the "Roadless Rule" and why is it proposed to be rescinded? It took almost two years of public comments, drafts and final statements, with a record number of 1.6 million public comments to be enacted, and years of litigation following the implementation. 🚙

The article below breaks down the history, the proposals, the arguments from forestry, industry, government, recreation and environmental groups. (15 minute read)

On June 23, 2025, during a meeting of the Western Governors’ Association, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced the Department’s intent to rescind the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule

08/01/2026

🌲Forestry projects over the long term show results the environmental groups don't like to acknowledge. These studies were done in Australia, and pertain to the Pacific NW as well. Great read. 🌎

There is no silver bullet for managing forests, but this study answers some historic questions.

07/26/2026

Piaui Nickel Mine in Brazil keeps moving forward- partial funding secured to move toward commercial production.

Did you know Brazil holds something like 20% of the worlds supply of critical minerals? In comparison the US holds 1% of the world market supply. Read here👇

Nickel and cobalt-focused Brazilian Nickel has secured $19.2-million in financing from Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social, (BNDES) in Brazil, for its subsidiary Piauí Nickel Metais to develop the flagship Piauí nickel project. The company's business plan was selected by the P...

07/24/2026

Drones provide the ability to map the ground with a single set of boots on the the ground, accurately, easily and completely non invasive. Not a single drill hole, or even shovel full of samples taken. The Forest Service has confirmed Homeland's statement last week that they have received permits to use drones to map Cleopatra (18 miles SW of O'Brien), and Red Flat (15 miles inland of Gold Beach) with magnetometers and lidar drones. Likely a 3rd party survey company will be hired, the FS has confirmed that they are not providing the surveys.

Magnetometers have been used by geologists and surveyors for a long time, mounted on backpacks and helicopters, and more recently mounted on drones. Magnetometers measure the amount of magnetic or ferrous material compared to the surrounding area. The maps on the top row of the picture shows 3D models of deposits in an area, warm colors representing deposits, cooler colors show less or no metallic material. This allows volumes of minerals/metals to be calculated accurately, and pinpoint where deposits are located. Information is gps tagged and easily overlaid onto a base map of the area.

Lidar has been around for years, and is available on a variety of sites to explore bare earth topography. ( Images in lower right corner) There are lots of layers to fiddle with the shading, trees, etc. In Oregon, my go to site is : https://gis.dogami.oregon.gov/maps/lidarviewer/
The details that a drone with a lidar camera can capture is so much more- including heights of the trees/structures, depth of canyons, with color 3D model capabilities.

As prospecting is ever evolving, there are a plethora of companies and startups that are providing drone services for the miners, both for the small scale independent miner to full industrial scale world mining market. From mapping claim boundaries, discovering old workings not found on foot, or even poking in tunnels to make safety assessments, drones are becoming indispensable. If you use a drone on your claim, what do you find most useful?

* all pics are grabbed off the internet in general, and do not represent images of the local nickel deposits.

07/17/2026

Breakdown of how our public lands are being maneuvered towards the stock market.

07/16/2026

I received a private message the other day, that I couldn't respond to, but it's good information for anyone to have that finds themselves unexpectedly with a mining claim.

What happens to a mining claim when someone dies? What do the family members need to do to keep the claim?

Every year, mining claim affidavits and maintenance fee waivers must be filed with the county and the BLM. ( For those claim holders with 10 or fewer claims) Paperwork must be notarized, filed in the county, and then sent to the BLM before September 1st every year. If the paperwork isn't filed properly or on time, the claim is forfeited and becomes open to appropriation.

For those who wish to keep the claims but the paperwork wasn't filed, you may be able to refile the claim, but sometimes it will be found open to appropriation and filed by someone else. Claims are first come, first served.

Hope this helps. ✌️

07/15/2026