SA Gold Panning Association

10/09/2026

Goldpanning site looking great for tomorrow's Interschools Championships. Good luck to all the participants.

08/09/2026

The countdown is officially on! 🥳

In just 18 days, Cromwell becomes the centre of the gold panning world as competitors, supporters and visitors arrive for the 2026 World Gold Panning Championships.

After such a fantastic experience in Spain last year, the NZ Gold Panning Team can’t wait to welcome our international friends and showcase our patch of the world.

With world-class competition, local entertainment, great food, culture and plenty of Central Otago hospitality, it’s shaping up to be a week to remember! 🏆✨

📅 26 September – 3 October 2026
📍 Cromwell, Central Otago

Follow along as we count down — and tag someone who needs to be here!"

08/09/2026

Come and join in.

07/09/2026

Do you remember the feeling of awe when you first panned for gold and spotted a gold flake in your pan? One of the girls became quite emotional when she was the first to find gold when learners in Bushbuckridge were being trained for the upcoming Interschools Goldpanning Championships.

05/09/2026

The Interschools Gold Panning Championships will take place next week. Sponsored by the DCSR, groups of Grade 7 pupils from a number of local schools are invited to participate. Winners get the opportunity to enter the National Gold Panning Championships at the end of October.

19/08/2026

Today women goldpanning are fortunately no longer seen as eccentric 😁

Highlighting women on the diggings this Woman's Month Part 2: Jane Lilley.
The goldfields weren't seen as a suitable place for respectable women and most men seeking their fortune left their families behind. So when Jane arrived with her husband in 1873, she was one of the first women on the Pilgrim’s Rest goldfields. Jane was quite eccentric for her time as she wore men’s clothing and joined her husband in working their claims, which was where the famous Lilley Nugget, weighing 3,4 Kg, was found. The couple stayed on in Pilgrim’s Rest after most of the diggers left and the mining company took over. Their one son, William, later worked for Transvaal Gold Mining Estates and was sadly killed in a rockslide in 1903. In 1909 there was a request from the TGME mine manager to the magistrate asking for an investigation into Jane’s circumstances as she was quite destitute, and possibly not of sound mind. (Source: Reinders, R. (2016). Pilgrim’s Rest who’s who 1873-1881.)

19/08/2026

06/08/2026

Dust off those pans and join us on 16 August🤩

01/08/2026

An interesting read about possible future changes to championships.

01/08/2026

Congratulations to Sanjay Singh taking gold in the Mens' and VIP categories at the Czech and Slovak Championships.🥇🎉
Have a look at the overall times and nuggets lost! Sanjay confirmed that it was a difficult and technical competition.
Next up from 2-8 August: European Championships in Zlotoryja, Poland. Good luck Sanjay and Savera