Franklin North Carolina

[roaddust66]

We have a close family member moving there. I hear it is suppose to be some " gem capital of the universe or something. What do you find there ? And how do you find it ?

 

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[DDancer]

Western North Carolina has a lot to offer in terms of gemstones and some gold too. You can check out the web for the fee mines, Emerald Village and Hiddenite to see what kinds of materials one can expect. I've been to a few places and recovered some nice specimens~ Emerald, garnet, topaz, corundum and a variety of quartz. Bear in mind the places I've gone to are fee mines, so you'll pay for the privilege. They have their own buckets of stuff, native and salted, you can go thru and a couple of places will let you dig~ subject to limitations. Hiddenite is the best one in my book so far. Reasonable fee, you can dig or speck, and their native buckets are reasonable with some good materials. Plan to go there shortly~ I need a break from detecting and I gotta rock itch to scratch

 

[huntsman53]

Rubies, Sapphires (mostly pink) and quite a few other Gems (semi-precious and precious) can found in and around Franklin and many other areas of North Carolina. Stay away from most of the Pay Mines as many of them only offer imported materials from many parts of the world and these are called Salted Mines. There are a few Pay Mines where you can actually dig, sift and wash material right out of the ground which they dig and pile up for you. Many of the Gems from these locations are of poor quality but every now and then, someone gets lucky and finds a nice or even outstanding specimen. There is a lot of information online and in publications on locations to Gem Prospect in North Carolina, so it is best to do some research. You can prospect in some of the rivers but be careful of doing so in creeks and streams that are not in the National Forests. North Carolina doesn't have the same Laws as some other States which allow you access to creeks and streams running through Private Lands as long as you stay in the water and you could be prosecuted for trespassing as the creek or stream could be owned by the land owner. You might get permission to prospect on someone's land but it is very doubtful as the folks in the areas where the Gems are known to be located, are tired of folks coming in and destroying not only their' creek and streams but also their' lands. Besides having the options of looking for Rubies and Sapphires in the Franklin area, there are many locations within 20 to 50 miles from there, that have many other types of Gems including Emerald, White and Blue Sapphires, Amethyst, Garnets and many others.

If you decide to go to some remote mountain and mountain stream locations, just make sure you wear Snake Gaitors and be prepared for possible snake bites as there are a lot of Rattlesnakes (both Eastern Diamond Back and Black Mountain Timber Rattlesnakes) as well as Copperheads in many locations. Many years ago while prospecting for Rubies and Sapphires on Chunky Gal Mountain about 15 miles or so Southwest of Franklin off Hwy 64 towards Hayesville, I was buzzed 3 times by a Rattlesnake but could never locate it. Not wanting to get bit, I quickly backed out of there and got back to my' car.


Frank

Good luck!


Frank

 

[DDancer]

I left all my prospecting gear back in Arizona on this job hunt so the touristy area is fine for now. If I stick around long enough I might get serious and take a nature walk Thanks huntsman for the critter reminder.

 

[huntsman53]

I left all my prospecting gear back in Arizona on this job hunt so the touristy area is fine for now. If I stick around long enough I might get serious and take a nature walk Thanks huntsman for the critter reminder.

You bet and good luck!


Frank

 

[huntsman53]

I left all my prospecting gear back in Arizona on this job hunt so the touristy area is fine for now. If I stick around long enough I might get serious and take a nature walk Thanks huntsman for the critter reminder.

If I can find the time and you are available, I could bring my' Gold prospecting equipment (several Gold pans, quite a few Classifiers, Highbanker/Dredge, a hand sucker/dredge, a few buckets and lots of shovels), we could meet and then spend a day or a few days looking for Gold. Also, I know a few places to Gem and rock hunt, if you would rather do that. Currently, I have a MD'ing invite this weekend to metal detect on 1,200 acres of prime virgin (most never metal detected) grounds that have history back to the 1860's or earlier. Maybe, the following weekends will work but I will have to see and I don't know your schedule. Send me a PM and we can discuss the possibility of a trip.


Frank