Raywood Goldfield Prospecting Map – Explore a Forgotten Goldfield North of Bendigo

 

Unlock the hidden potential of one of Victoria’s quieter but gold-rich districts with the detailed Raywood Goldfield prospecting map. Located just north of the famous Bendigo Goldfield, Raywood was part of the second wave of gold discoveries that extended the wealth of central Victoria into new shallow leads, gullies, and quartz reef systems.

Today, Raywood offers modern detectorists and fossickers the chance to work lightly prospected, easy-access terrain that produced consistent yields during the golden decades of the late 1850s through to the early 1900s.

 

🪙 Historical Overview: Raywood’s Golden Opportunity

Gold was first discovered around Raywood in the mid-1850s, following the major Bendigo rush. While never as intensely worked as Bendigo itself, the Raywood district developed into a significant small-scale goldfield, supporting shallow alluvial mining and minor quartz reef extraction.

Miners targeted:

Shallow gullies and surface leads

Small quartz reefs and blowouts

Low ridges and gravel benches

Because the area never experienced the same population explosion as Bendigo, vast tracts of potentially gold-bearing ground were only lightly worked, leaving excellent prospects for today’s modern fossickers.

 

✨ Notable Finds & Field Highlights

Coarse flakes and small nuggets were common, especially in shallow gravels

Some deeper pockets yielded rich patches of waterworn gold on ancient clay layers

Quartz reefs north and west of Raywood produced specimen gold from hand-mined shafts

Areas surrounding Myers Creek, Seven Mile Creek, and the flats near Raywood saw active alluvial mining through the 1860s and 1870s

Later, during the 1890s depression, fossickers reworked old gullies with pans and cradles, often recovering new gold overlooked by the early miners

 

 

🥾 Ideal For:

Detectorists searching for coarse nuggets and shallow drift gold

Alluvial fossickers working creek beds, gullies, and terrace gravels

Beginner to intermediate gold hunters wanting easy-access ground with a proven gold history

History buffs tracing small, forgotten gold rush settlements north of Bendigo

 

⚠️ Access & Fossicking Notes

The Raywood goldfield primarily lies on crown land, state forest, and public reserves where fossicking is allowed with a valid Victorian Miner’s Right. Some historic areas are close to farmland, so fossickers should respect private property boundaries. The terrain is generally open and gently rolling—perfect for metal detecting and casual exploration without needing major bush-bashing.

Raywood township provides basic amenities, and Bendigo is just a short drive south for additional supplies and accommodation.

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Find Gold Where Few Modern Prospectors Have Searched – With the Raywood Goldfield prospecting map, you’ll discover a forgotten part of Victoria’s gold rush legacy. Lightly worked, historically proven, and easily accessible, Raywood offers excellent opportunities for finding nuggets, coarse gold, and even specimen reef gold.

 

Link to the Raywood gold field cartographic map:

https://viewer.slv.vic.gov.au/?entity=IE15496130&mode=browse