Ottawa National Forest
Ironwood, Michigan
native copperdatolitelake superior agatesepidotejasperplacer gold
Forest Service collecting area · Free
Ottawa National Forest
Nearly a million acres of the western Upper Peninsula sit open to hand collecting, and the Ottawa publishes the terms plainly: pick up specimens for your own collection, no permit, no fee, nothing sold or traded. The bedrock is Keweenawan basalt and conglomerate, so it gives up native copper, datolite, epidote, and agates weathered out of stream gravel and old exposures. Three wilderness areas — Sylvania, McCormick, and Sturgeon River Gorge — are closed to collecting entirely.
The card catalog
| What you can find | native copper, datolite, lake superior agates, epidote, jasper, placer gold |
|---|---|
| Access | Forest Service collecting area — Free |
| Fees | Free, and no permit or special permission is needed for hand collecting for personal enjoyment. A mineral material permit is required only if you are taking rock for landscaping. Nothing collected may be sold, bartered, or traded. |
| Season & hours | Realistically May through October — forest roads go unplowed and many are impassable in winter. Gold panning is capped at a few scattered areas of under one square foot each, totaling under 40 square feet within any 500-foot stretch of stream, fewer than five days a year. |
| Kids | Family-friendly — Streambeds and old rock exposures are fine for kids under supervision, and hand tools — pan, small shovel, hand pick — are all that is permitted anyway. Suction dredges, sluices, motorized equipment, mercury, and chemicals are all prohibited. This is remote country with patchy cell service, so carry a paper map and know where the wilderness boundaries fall. |
| Official source | USDA Forest Service, Ottawa National Forest |
| Last checked | Checked against its source August 16, 2026 |
Hours, fees, and access rules change. Verify with the operator or land agency before you go.
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Before you go
What does Ottawa National Forest cost?
Free, and no permit or special permission is needed for hand collecting for personal enjoyment. A mineral material permit is required only if you are taking rock for landscaping. Nothing collected may be sold, bartered, or traded. Hours, fees, and access rules change. Verify with the operator or land agency before you go.
When is Ottawa National Forest open?
Realistically May through October — forest roads go unplowed and many are impassable in winter. Gold panning is capped at a few scattered areas of under one square foot each, totaling under 40 square feet within any 500-foot stretch of stream, fewer than five days a year. Hours, fees, and access rules change. Verify with the operator or land agency before you go.
Is Ottawa National Forest good for kids?
Yes — Ottawa National Forest works for families. Streambeds and old rock exposures are fine for kids under supervision, and hand tools — pan, small shovel, hand pick — are all that is permitted anyway. Suction dredges, sluices, motorized equipment, mercury, and chemicals are all prohibited. This is remote country with patchy cell service, so carry a paper map and know where the wilderness boundaries fall.