With her parents away and five hectares of land to reclaim, prospector and entrepreneur Tyler Mahoney stepped up to the challenge, juggling backbreaking reclamation work with gold hunting — and a few unexpected mechanical hiccups along the way.
Mahoney, well-known from TV and her online gold prospecting adventures, spent the week managing machinery, coordinating scrapes, and overseeing environmental restoration on their family lease. The mission was clear: get all reclamation done before inspection and sneak in some gold hunting on the side.
“We had five hectares to do, and Dad said we could go prospecting if we got it all done,” Mahoney explained. “Of course, we tried to do both.”
Teaming up with her partner-in-gold, Ree, Mahoney spent most of the week in the loader while Ree tackled the scrapes. Despite struggling with tight corners around heritage trees, a snapped bucket, and even running out of fuel with a broken gauge, she powered through.
“The loader ran out just before Dad arrived. Lucky we’re only 25 minutes from town,” she laughed. “Honestly, I thought I’d blown it.”
But all that stress paid off. The Mines Department later praised Mahoney’s reclamation work as “some of the best they’ve seen,” highlighting her care in restoring natural contours, scattering seed-friendly debris, and leaving no damage around trees.
In between rehabilitation, they also managed to squeeze in some prospecting. Though they didn’t strike any massive nuggets, the pair pulled an ounce of gold — around $4,500 in value — which they split evenly.
“We didn’t hit any monsters, but with zero expenses out of our pocket, it’s a win,” Mahoney said.
As for the legacy areas — old workings left by previous generations — Mahoney said they’ve started cleaning some up too. “It’s not our job, but we care about this country. We want to leave it better than we found it.”
From bush breakdowns to bureaucratic inspections and a satisfying gold tally, it was a week that tested grit and heart — and proved once again that Mahoney can handle the heat of the goldfields and the business.
