BOOK ON GOLD HUNTERS OF UTAH IS FILLED WITH DELIGHTFUL NUGGETS

By Jerry Johnston,

George Thompson sauntered actually, sashayed - into the Deseret News the other day with a book under his arm and a gold nugget the size of a plum in his pocket.

The book was his latest, "Faded Footprints: The Lost Rhoads Mines and Other Hidden Treasures of Utah's Killer Mountains." The gold nugget was his badge of credibility; a "reference" to show he knew his business.

It was worth more than $2,000. "I'm from Park City and I've been in mining all my life," Thompson explained. "I've written some 200 magazine articles over the past 30 years. And I've learned more about mining and prospecting this past year than I learned in the 10 years before that." Thompson is part of a small - but growing - group of people who enjoy the hobby of sniffing out old mining claims, mine shafts and artifacts. Over the years he's helped with several scientific studies and guided more than a few tours. He's proven that the Spaniards were in Roosevelt long before Escalante showed up, he's discovered a gold pan with a pound of gold still in it and once saw 12 ingots of gold about the size of muffins. He's met and chatted with hundreds of experts, historians and throwbacks to the 19th century when "gold fever" was as common as the cold.

"I really don't want to get into the guide business," he says. "I have no formal training as a writer, but I consider myself a writer. I enjoy it. And there's plenty to write about. There's a little tight-knit group of about 100 prospectors still out there in the hills today; and some of them can really be characters - even dangerous. One old guy has 600 mining claims. Another took a shot at a friend of mine because he thought my friend was a claim jumper."

"Faded Footprints" is not just made up of folklore, however. And it's more history than how-to. The book details such things as "Lost Bonanzas," "Ghost Gold" and "Legends That Endure."

"I get more satisfaction out of studying people who search for gold than searching for gold," says Thompson. "Every few weeks I go out into the hills to see what's going on. I'm retired now, so I'm on vacation all year 'round."