(Photo credit: Minelab)

A massive gold nugget, estimated to be worth up to $100,000, was recently discovered near a historic mine site in Ballarat. Unearthed by metal detectorist Luke Phillips, the nugget was found in a spot that had previously been overlooked by other prospectors.

An amateur prospector has struck gold after discovering a nugget worth a staggering $240,000 in Victoria.

Join geologist Andrew Bales and Darren Kamp on a prospecting experience in Dolly's Creek.

(Photo credit: The Weekend Prospector)

An amateur prospector uncovered the find in Victoria’s famed “Golden Triangle” using a basic entry-level detector.

Thanks to soaring gold prices, amateur gold prospecting is on the rise in Australia. Old prospecting towns are seeing new faces, and there’s a renewed buzz in the country’s historic gold fields.

Darren Kamp has been chasing gold for more than 30 years, from exploring old mines in Ballarat to gold panning with his grandfather in creeks around Daylesford as a child, before graduating to a metal detector in the 1980s.

“The largest nugget I found weighed 24 ounces (680g). It’s such a buzz when you find gold, like winning Tattslotto,” says Kamp, who runs prospecting tours around Clunes from his shop, Gold and Relics, in a charming old bank recognisable as the one robbed by Heath Ledger’s Ned Kelly in the movie.

A TV special – Darren shows Coxy how to prospect for gold on the TV show Coxy’s Big Break.

Andersons Mill Festival is held at Smeaton every year and it is a wonderful family event. Darren and Leanne were on hand to teach adults and children how to pan for gold.