Finding Gold

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A01=Vincent Thurkettle
adventure
aspiration
Author_Vincent Thurkettle
Category=DNBP
Category=DNBP1
Category=DNC
Category=VSPM
Category=WN
civil servant
eq_bestseller
eq_biography-true-stories
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_new_release
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_self-help
escape
father's day
freedom
friendship
fullfiment
gold dust
gold fever
gold flakes
gold nuggets
gold panning
Gold Panning Association
gold prospector
Gold Rush
happiness
hunting for gold
inspirational
liquid gold
longevity
memoir
memoire
mental health
natural gold
purpose
resignation
retirement
Royal Wreck of Gold
shipwreck
the age rebellion
The Wood Fire Handbook
travel
treasure
treasure hunt
value of gold
wisdom
World Gold Panning Championship

Product details

  • ISBN 9781804194188
  • Weight: 411g
  • Dimensions: 148 x 220mm
  • Publication Date: 04 Jun 2026
  • Publisher: Octopus Publishing Group
  • Publication City/Country: GB
  • Product Form: Hardback
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'An uplifting book full of joyful nuggets of wisdom from a true adventurer!'
- Dr Hermione Cockburn OBE, BBC TV Coast presenter and science communicator

'Lyrical, magical, philosophical and inspirational' - James Ogilvie, Chair, Walking Scotland, Woodland Trust Director, Chartered Forester

'This is more than a story of gold. It is a reflection of a way of life.'
- Sanjay Singh , President of the World Goldpanning Association

Vincent's quest is a reminder never to give up on the most improbable dream: that is where you will find true riches.' - Annie Warburton, CEO & Clerk, The Goldsmiths' Company

On Friday I was middle management, employed and office-furnished. On Monday I was nobody, and it felt good. But I was not idle.

I wasn't expecting to get rich, but if anyone had ever told me how hard it is to find gold, would I have listened? I hope not. I wanted to feel alive.

I left the security of daily office attendance in favour of adventure, danger and chance, having decided life is too short. The reality of bills to pay reminded me I must succeed in my gold-panning mission, or my bank account would remain woefully empty, but there has not been a single minute of any day that I wished I was back at my old desk.

My love affair with this enchanting and almost indestructible metal has taken me across the world, where I've rubbed shoulders with many wise and sometimes weary wanderers. From the mountains of Scotland to the rivers of Lapland, the mighty Yukon to sun-baked Australia and the sodden west coast of New Zealand, and finally, diving for treasure on the UK's richest shipwreck - I've never looked back.

This is my story.

Vincent Thurkettle, born in Somerset and raised in Wales, is a lifelong outdoorsman. After serving as a reconnaissance officer in the reserve forces, he pursued woodland management with the UK Forestry Commission before leaving in 2005 to embrace a freer life. His passion for natural gold led him to become British gold panning champion multiple times and world champion in 2007. As President of the World Goldpanning Association, he began diving for shipwreck treasure and discovered Britain's largest gold nugget. Vincent now lives in a self-designed cottage in rural Norfolk.

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