Tips, Warnings & Things You'll Need

If you excavate in an area, then fill any holes that you leave. Also, remove any trash that you dig up in your search.
You may want to purchase 1 high-frequency detector and 1 low-frequency detector so that you have some versatility while searching for nuggets.
Have realistic expectations. You will not find gold deeper than 1 foot (0.3 m) below the surface with a metal detector. You will also have to be prepared for slow, repetitive work, but if you find a gold deposit, the rewards will be worth your efforts.

Do not prospect in national parks or in areas where you do not have permission to search. This could result in prospectors being banned from the lands altogether, which would be a negative consequence for all gold-hunting hobbyists.

Permission to prospect
Metal detector
Coils in multiple sizes
Headphones
Wooden table
Objects to practice with such as bottle caps, can tabs, coins, nails and gold jewelry.