public gem quarries?

I was watching a show on the travel channel the other day that had a female host who goes out treasure hunting. She was at a public emerald quarry somewhere in North Carolina. There was also an episode where she was in a diamond quarry. I was thinking something like this would make a nice activity for a family vacation this summer. Could anyone tell me where I can go to find the location of some other public quarries like this? Thanks.

There are several places in the US that you can dig for all kinds of stones just depends what you are looking for. Here are some sites of places where you can do this for a fee.

http://searchwarp.com/swa244406.htm

http://jewelry.suite101.com/blog.cfm/dig…

http://www.highdesertgemsandminerals.com…

http://www.oregonpackagedtravel.com/tour…

http://www.lapidaryjournal.com/feemining…

http://www.mineraltown.com/Directori.php…

http://www.worldofrockhounds.com/links.h…

http://buynselljewelry.com/ad.php?id=203

This place looks like a lot of fun!

http://www.n-georgia.com/gold-n-gem-grub…

http://www.squidoo.com/Ely-Garnets

http://www.familytravelfiles.com/ezine/a…

http://www.fossilexpeditions.com/TravelC…

This place is in NC and it looks really cool you can dig for Emeralds. Gotta love that green. I believe this is where the host of Cash and Treasures the show you are talking about went to find her emeralds and she made a pretty good hall!

http://www.hiddenitegems.com/

If you would like to dig for diamonds check out this site. For a small fee they will let you dig or you can buy a bucket and just do the sifting part.

http://www.craterofdiamondsstatepark.com/

This place is cool however you have to bring your own bucket and shovel and they only do it on certain days. You can find all different kinds of gems here.

http://www.toteshows.com/morefield.html

It is funny that you ask this question because I love that show and we are also planning a trip to go dig for gems and for fossils. I think it would be a great time. We have looked at all the places above and are just working out where we want to go. Don’t be fooled it is a lot of work and you will get dirty, but just imagine what you can find! I think the kids would have a great time! There are also several awesome books that tell you how to look for gems in your own backyard and places like that. Check out Amazon they had a whole bunch. Good Luck on your hunt!

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