Gold Tourism
Many places across Colorado are worth visiting to learn more about the history & science of finding gold in Colorado. Some are worth a trip just to see them; others are more of a “see it if you happen to be in the area” sort of site. Which is a matter of personal taste in most cases of course. Virtually all of them make a good excuse to see a beautiful part of the state so, either way, “enjoy!”
If you know of a cool museum, mine tour, gold mining ghost town hike, etc. that I should add, feel free to let me know. Also consider joining the Facebook group ‘Finding Gold in Colorado’ to join the community of Colorado oriented gold prospectors and adventurers. Get your questions answered, advice found, and prospecting buddies arranged too!
This site costs money to keep up. The only way it pays for itself is shopping referrals. If you appreciate the info here, please click thru one of my Amazon ads the next time you want to shop online. It won’t cost you anything extra and it keeps the site going: Gold Prospecting on AMAZON
Articles
The Dolores River and The Hanging Flume
March 26, 2024
http://www.denverpost.com/2012/04/13/121-year-old-western-colorado-mining-flume-clings-to-its-secrets/ Click on the picture above to go to the article directly. Or try this …
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The King of Colorado Gold Dredging
July 5, 2023
Benjamin Stanley Revett was a British-born mining engineer and entrepreneur who made his fortune in the gold-dredging business in Colorado. He was known as the “Gold Dredge King” …
Read more →I’m on TV!
June 17, 2023
There was recently a broadcast of a short piece about prospecting in metro Denver with long time fellow prospector and friend JJ Long and me. The local TV station, KDVR 31 runs …
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The Wandering Prospector Guidebook
June 16, 2023 · 12 comments
Announcing the latest book in the FInding Gold in Colorado series: The Wandering Prospector. Available now!
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Edwin Carter Museum
January 18, 2023
Free Admission! The Edwin Carter Museum on the east edge of downtown Breckenridge is a charming little museum housed in the original log cabin of Edwin Carter. Carter was a …
Read more →Mines of the Alpine Loop Books Available!
March 18, 2022
4-Wheel drive guide books to the Alpine Loop and the Animas Forks Triangle, in the San Juan Mountains of southwest Colorado.
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Breckenridge Gold Prospecting History Talk
July 1, 2021
Link to a YouTube video about the history of the gold rushes in the Breckenridge Colorado area.
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Local press covers gold panning
November 13, 2020
5280 Magazine is the premier magazine in metro Denver. I was thrilled to see that when they recently wrote an article on gold panning, they chose to reference this website twice! …
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Finding Gold in Colorado: Inspiring Images
November 4, 2020
We are very excited to announce the next book in the Finding Gold in Colorado collection! Finding Gold in Colorado: Inspiring Images takes you on a photographic journey through …
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Gold Rush Ghost Towns
January 11, 2020 · 1 comment
Gold Rushes in Colorado left many old ghost towns, Mills, and mines worth visiting for their history, beauty, and even their gold!
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Far Northwest Colorado Gold
September 3, 2019 · 1 comment
Ever heard of the Iron Springs Divide? How about the Little Snake River? Maybe Lay Creek? These are geographic features in far northwest Colorado and are geographical highlights of …
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Finding gold in Colorado! The George Andrew Jackson story.
March 29, 2019 · 2 comments
Interested in what it was like to be a prospector before the Colorado Gold Rush? Here’s the journal of the first U.S. person to discover serious gold in Colorado and then mine it. …
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Finding Gold in Colorado Book Index
October 19, 2018 · 2 comments
Finding Gold in Colorado Book Index: The following index will be included in books published in late 10/2018 and onward. It is provided here for those who own the earlier version …
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Map of dig areas by chapter for Finding Gold in Colorado Books
September 18, 2018 · 2 comments
To help those of you planning trips, this simple map shows you which areas of the state are covered in each chapter of the book Finding Gold in Colorado - Prospectors Edition. This …
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Buy the Book! Finding Gold in Colorado: Prospector’s Edition
May 27, 2018 · 16 comments
The preeminent guidebook on gold prospecting across Colorado is now available here and ‘in stores everywhere’. Awarded recognition as the “#1 New Release” in its category on Amazon …
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Museum of Northwest Colorado & prospecting In Craig
May 1, 2018 · 2 comments
The Museum in central Craig The Museum of Northwest Colorado (http://www.museumnwco.org) recently added a permanent exhibit on the gold prospecting and mining history of that part …
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Colorado Gold Mine Tours - Hidee Mine
March 25, 2018
The Hidee Mine is one of the easier underground gold mine tours to do since you walk right into a flat, dry tunnel. It’s also very easy to get to from the Denver area. It’s on the …
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Welcome to the Mountains...Now Behave!
December 2, 2017
Some of my readers here are planning a visit to the Rocky Mountains as part of a family vacation, prospecting adventure or other sojourn. If you are inexperienced with real …
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Vic’s Gold Panning
November 16, 2017 · 10 comments
Jesse in front of the Chaffee Mine on-site at Vic’s Gold Panning Most people stop at Vic’s Gold Panning to learn to gold pan. No shock right? But, honestly, there are lots of …
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Western Museum of Mining & Industry
November 10, 2017
Welcome! Turn here :) A visit to the WMMI will excite and educate anyone with an interest in gold mining in Colorado. Indeed, this museum could almost be called the Colorado …
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Mineral Belt National Recreation Trail - a loop around Leadville
May 4, 2017
The next time you are in the Leadville area, consider walking or biking the Mineral Belt National Recreation Trail to see cool gold rush artifacts and mining sites. My wife and I …
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Gold Tourism - Iowa Hill Hydraulic Mining historic site
January 15, 2017
Learning about gold placer mining includes everything from panning (which we all do) to sluicing, dredging and, at the large industrial scale, hydraulic mining which is also called …
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Satisfy your gold fever with a little winter reading and digging
December 28, 2016 · 4 comments
Bazooka Sniper on the Winter Solstice 2016 I’m sitting at my computer, looking out the window at yet another winter storm (we’ve had almost 6 feet of snow this month (12/2016) …
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Gold Tourism News Flash: Grand Opening of view point for Cripple Creek Gold Mine
September 17, 2016 · 4 comments
If you are reading this “now”, you missed the grand opening, but the overlook is open 24/7/365. Call the Victor Lowell Thomas Museum about scheduled tours of the whole historic …
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Gold Prospecting & Tourism - Lomax Placer
September 5, 2016 · 2 comments
The Lomax Placer site gives you a chance to see and touch placer hydrauliking equipment at a site where it was actually used. You can also see a fully equipped gold assay office, …
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Gold Tourism: New viewpoint at Cripple Creek & Victor mine!
August 3, 2016
Newmont North America runs the huge open pit Cresson gold mine near Cripple Creek, a small town in the Colorado Rockies. The folks running the largest gold mine in Colorado today …
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Gold Tourism - Denver Museum of Nature & Science
July 12, 2016
If you make it to Denver, this is a must stop! The Hall of minerals has lots of gorgeous crystals, mineral samples and lots of gold, especially Colorado gold. Here’s the entry area …
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Gold Tourism - The Phoenix Mine Tour
May 24, 2016 · 1 comment
A while back, I had a friend from China and her husband come visit. They wanted to spend a day as gold prospectors, so we visited Arapahoe Bar to dig (see my post about that site …
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