that does seem like a big problem. they pan the locations but don't do much more than that. it's all seat of the pants.
Why not make artificial glory holes and come back every season and clean them out ? Let the river work for them.
Exactly, the battle is won before it is fought! Have to find out where the gold is first before wasting big money. Same with pretty much any biz especially trading. Another lesson from the show, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Stick to what you know. (Todd going to jungle after actually finding decent gold the year prior in Alaska)