40 AC Mining Claim, Kern County, CA

You are bidding on full price of 40 Acres Mining Claim Property in Ridgecrest, Kern County, CA. The Claim is located about 2 miles East of the town. Has frontage on Hwy 395 and Bowman Rd.  Very close to Inyokern Airport.

Usually people are associating mining claims with gold or silver only. This is a common mistake, because there is a variety of minerals, that are considered as locatable (essential to apply for the patent (deed) of the property), such as:

Bentonite,

Building Stone – depends on uniqueness and distinct and special values,

Clays – if it has high refractory properties and quality standards such as for use in china,

Gemstones,

Geodes,

Gypsite,

Jasper,

Limestone – locatable for use in manufacture of Portland cement,

Pumicite – considered to be locatable by the BLM in California for use as a pigment-extender in latex flat white paint,

Sunstones,

Zeolites etc.

Assortment of these minerals makes easier to actually locate (discover) one of them in your Claim and apply for the deed.

Mining claims may be patented (privatized) if certain requirements are met. A patent is a document, which conveys fee title. In the case of mining claims, it usually conveys title to the surface as well as the minerals. Two basic requirements for patenting are that $500 worth of improvements has been made for the benefit of each claim, and that a discovery exists on each claim. (Location and Validity of Mining claims and sites in California, BLM California State Office, 2006 Edition, page 91).

It is not essential that there be an actual discovery of mineral on the land. It is sufficient to show only that known conditions are such as reasonably to engender the belief that the land contains mineral of such quality and in such quantity as to render its extractions profitable and justify expenditures to that end. Such belief may be predicated upon geological conditions, discoveries of minerals in adjacent land, and other observable external conditions upon which prudent and experienced men are shown to be accustomed to act; Southern Pacific Co.,71 ID 233 (1964).

Purchase price of the patent for placer claims is $2.50, for lode claims - $5 per acre. (Location and Validity of Mining claims and sites in California, BLM California State Office, 2006 Edition, page 100).

Currently, there’s a moratorium in effect on applications for new patents.

The value of the land in vicinities of Ridgecrest is about $10,000. The claim for sale is 40 acres or 1,742,400 sf ! Do the math. Is it worth it to spend little effort, time and about $20 per year and keep the claim active? Is it worth it to wait until the moratorium on applications for new patents is lifted? And until that – hike, fish or mine for your pleasure. You can build a fence around your property, have a little cabin on it or a house if you’re a full time miner, you can sell, lease, rent your claim. It can be willed to your children or be transferred to another party. Just pay your annual fees and wait! This is one of the last opportunities to acquire huge parcels of government land basically for pennies.