You couldn’t wipe the grin off Wangaratta’s Sue Nagle’s face if you tried as she visited the Wangaratta Chronicle office with her newly collected ounce of gold.

The small jar, remarkably heavier than it looks, was Ms Nagle’s 11th ounce she had mined since she started gold panning a decade ago.

This particular ounce of gold took Sue 46 days to pan for, collected over the weekends at Reedy Creek in the Eldorado and Beechworth area.

“I’m so chuffed, it’s a great achievement I reckon,” she said.

She pans using a sieve, yabby pump, crowbar and a pan and came across her first diamond this year.

Ms Nagle said she would usually collect half a gram to a gram each panning weekend, going the extra mile last weekend to ensure she had filled her jar before the colder months set in.

To put Sue’s patience and persistence in perspective, an ounce is roughly 31.1 grams.

She picked up the hobby after retiring from boxing due to an injury and she thoroughly enjoys coming across other prospectors and sharing her wisdom in hopes it inspires more people, and particularly women to give it a try.

“It’s not a male dominant hobby anymore, it’s becoming family orientated now and it’s really good seeing the girls go out there and have a crack at it,” she said.

Currently an ounce of gold is selling for some $6300, but Ms Nagle said she was willing to play the long game in hopes for a return within the $10,000 mark.