The Complete American Gold Prospector's Handbook
Richard Blake has been involved in gold mining and writing since the early 1980s. Educated in geology, journalism and mineral engineering at Red Rocks and Boulder Colleges in Colorado, he was inducted into the American Institute of Mineral Engineers in 1983. He has worked for numerous mining companies including Urania, Inc., Swandyke and Glasgow Lode mining companies in addition to prospecting and locating over a dozen claims since the 1980s. As a reporter for the Fairplay Flume then located in the heart of the Colorado Mineral Belt in Fairplay, Colorado, he also became a historian of and advocate for the rich gold mining tradition of Colorado and the United States.