I'd recently been panning for gold in Alaska so I wanted to find gems here in the southeast. Each of us bought a medium bucket and sifted thru it for gems. Each of us found quite a few, and some really great ones. I have a Rock Tumbler from when my grandson was little so I'll use that to polish them. Asked the person how to know which ones can be done together and she gave me the mohn scale website. Very helpful to us.
Interesting local facts about mining and a very pretty waterfall. A easy walk down to the fall and nice outing. Make sure you get some fish food! They have some Big trout in the water and they are so much fun to feed!
The kids (even a teenager) had a good time looking for gems. This is a great rainy-day activity as the flue area is under cover.
This is not your average kitschy, roadside gem shack. What better place for gem panning than at an actual mine? Prices are comparable to other gem panning places in the area, except here you'll find actual gems in your bucket (all sizes). We found a good amount of rubies, sapphires, and emeralds! The location is beautiful and you'll definitely want to take some time to walk the grounds before leaving.
Weather is great. Many REAL things to do. Easy living is in place and the natives are friendly and hospitable plus educational!!
Gem mining was a hit with the kids and the exhibits were interesting. The tour was the biggest waste of money. $7 for the chance to go underground in a mine. In my mind this would mean underground, as in a cavern. In the tour advertiser's mind that means going under a large overhanging rock ceiling, on ground level. Multiply 7 x 2 adults and $5 x 3 kids and you leave the tour feeling bitter...Could have bought another bucket of rocks to run through the sluice box.
Went with our 7 year old boy and 4 year old girl and had a blast. Mining museum is right next door to the old mine and is free admission. If you want to self tour the mine it's $7 adult and less for kids..can't remember, but its worth it. All the other exhibits are free and can do these and still have fun. BUT..the real reason for going is the gem mining. Its not in the actual mine, but right in front using one of two flues. You pick how much you want to 'mine' from buckets you purchase. From $10 for 3pds up to 55 gal for $1000. We got the one for $100 and took us about 2.5 hours. Found rubies, amethysts, tourmaline, garnets, emeralds, crystals, pyrite, tigers eye, and others. But the fun was mining for them. There are no restaurants nearby so bring food if you want. We will go back when we can.
Had a great time here! The caves are amazing! My Daughter and I wish we had more time here. This is a must stop if you like to dig as well!!!!!
Maybe this is the place to go if you are trying to spend some time with kids. I just did not see much and get that much out of it. Felt like someone was just trying to make a buck off me. I did not do the mining just the tour of the rooms so maybe I got what I paid for (free). Also there is no real food to eat so you might want to pack a picnic if you plan to make a day of it.
There is a nice museum on multiple levels(must be able to climb steps) exhibiting railroad, music, farming, etc. memorabilia. Pan for gold or gemstones and have the gemstones cut and mailed to you. They only do cabochon cut of the stones, so I only had a couple specimens cut. I prefer my sapphires, rubies, and emeralds cut differently. An employee identifies the stone that you find and you decide if you want them cut for $30+ depending on the cut and size of the stone.You can find emeralds, opals, rubies, sapphires, rose quartz, etc. when you buy a bucket for $10+ to sort thru.