Some believe Trabuco Creek over the years has yielded a significant amount of placer gold, including some good sized nuggets. However no amount has ever been officially registered with any governmental agency in modern times. But we believe what ever gold was taken from the region was mined by the indigenous early peoples using primitive means as they lived in the area for millennium. After them came the Spaniards and some theorist bet they found some gold as well.

The Santa Anna Mountains are a part of the Transverse Range geologic province of Southern California, in Orange County, just a short drive from one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United States. Because of rumors of placer gold and its easy and convenient access in good weather, this location is fast becoming a very popular spot for local recreational prospectors - and much of the placer area is on non private land and open to the public and anyone is welcome to wet their gold pan in the water and look for some gold. If you want to prospect on private land, be sure to ask. You can prospect on public lands that are not designated as park or natural reserve areas.

Trabuco Canyon was the site of attempts to mine tin in the early 1900s. The Santa Ana Tin Mining Company which had a number of claims in Trabuco Canyon was owned by Gail Borden of the Eagle Milk Company. He had spent a million dollars on the mine in 1903 but no tin was ever removed. Many believe that the local Indians for years mined the area for gold as did the Spanish who came later.