Gold Prospecting in Quebec
Plan gold prospecting and metal detecting without confusing gold geology with detector authority: compare documented gold context, panning-only areas, current claim checks, protected/no-go sites and exact-source references across Canada.
Quebec Gold Prospecting & Metal Detecting Field Guide
A metal detector used to search for naturally occurring gold should be treated as mineral prospecting, not as proof of recreational access. Any person may prospect eligible open ground without the former prospecting licence, but current GESTIM titles/constraints, private-land consent, leases and site-specific authorizations still control what can actually be done. Impact-causing exploration work requires prior authorization. This regional layer has 25 gold records. Records marked Research or Panning only are not statements that recreational detector use is authorized.
Can I use a metal detector for gold in Quebec?
A metal detector used to search for naturally occurring gold should be treated as mineral prospecting, not as proof of recreational access. Any person may prospect eligible open ground without the former prospecting licence, but current GESTIM titles/constraints, private-land consent, leases and site-specific authorizations still control what can actually be done. Impact-causing exploration work requires prior authorization.
Gold panning and gold detecting are not the same activity
Québec has no blanket recreational gold-detecting permission. Gold geology, surface access, current exclusive exploration rights, mining constraints, protected areas, disturbance and recovery authority are separate questions. The prospecting licence was withdrawn in 2021, but an active exclusive exploration right gives its holder the exclusive right to search public-domain mineral substances on the covered land.
Land, claims and mineral rights
Use GESTIM immediately before field work. Québec now uses the exclusive exploration right (EER; droit exclusif d’exploration / DEE) as its sole exploration title. A SIGÉOM gold occurrence or MRNF mine/project point does not establish open ground, permission to enter, detector authority, digging rights or mineral removal rights.
Québec exploration rights (exclusive exploration right / EER) · GESTIM Plus mining-title register
Hand-held detector prospecting and disturbance
Québec removed the prospecting-licence requirement in 2021 for prospecting land that may be subject to an exploration right. That does not defeat an existing EER holder’s exclusive mineral-search right, private-land consent requirements, mining constraints, protected areas, Indigenous/community obligations or the authorization required for impact-causing exploration work.
Official Quebec checks
Notice withdrawing the prospecting licence (effective 2021) · Exclusive exploration rights and impact-causing work authorization · Mining Act compliance, access and landowner-consent enforcement
Current mapped gold references
| Place | Detector status | Gold context | Access / claim note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Casa Berardi Gold Mine | Prohibited / protected | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Canadian Malartic Gold Complex | Prohibited / protected | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Goldex Gold Complex | Prohibited / protected | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| LaRonde Gold Complex | Prohibited / protected | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Kiena Gold Mine | Prohibited / protected | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Lamaque Gold Mine | Prohibited / protected | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Westwood Gold Mine | Prohibited / protected | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Chimo Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Croinor Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Duparquet Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Eau Claire Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Fenelon Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Géant Dormant Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Granada Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Horne 5 Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Marban Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Novador Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| O'Brien Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Perron Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Windfall Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM for the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization. Do not approach controlled mine workings or project infrastructure without authorization. |
| Beauce / Rivière Gilbert Historic Placer Gold Area | Research only | placer, alluvial, historic goldfield | Treat Beauce as a geology/research lead only. Use GESTIM and parcel information to resolve current titles and surface access; do not infer riverbank access, panning rights or detector rights from the historical gold rush. |
| Éléonore Gold Mine | Prohibited / protected | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM to resolve the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization before field prospecting. |
| Swanson Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM to resolve the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization before field prospecting. |
| Troilus Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM to resolve the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization before field prospecting. |
| Wasamac Gold Project | Claim / licence required | lode, hard-rock, mine / project | Use GESTIM and SIGÉOM to resolve the exact ground. Verify current title holder, surface access, mining constraints, Indigenous/community context, protected/heritage status and disturbance authorization before field prospecting. |