Hiddenite, North Carolina

Who's ready to play in the mud?  On our way to South Carolina, we made a little stop...We read about Hiddenite, North Carolina on a travel website and knew instantly that this was our kind of place; we had to check it out!  The area is in the middle of nowhere and it had rained...A lot! Everything was very muddy and the campsite (the only one in the immediate area) was down at the bottom of a slick, muddy hill.  We only hoped that we would be able to get back up the slippery slope when we were ready to leave!!!  Our reason for visiting this remote area was to explore the Hiddenite Gem Mines -one of the only Emerald Mines open to the public in the USA.  We wasted no time getting there bright and early the morning after we arrived and spent the entire day mining in the mines and in the river.  We even had a picnic in the woods next to the river, which was incredibly peaceful!  These are a few of our favorite pictures from our visit to Hiddenite, North Carolina.

Gem Mining...Here we come!!!!

Applying for our mining permits and getting the lowdown on how things work around these parts!

As you can see, it is not your typical, shiny tourist attraction.

Our tools for the task at hand

Heading up to the mines

Must.Stay.Inside.White.Taped.Area

Braden got right to work

Mining was hard work!  Digging, carrying heavy buckets of dirt back to the sluice...Truly backbreaking work - What did we get ourselves into?

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My smart boys working as a team to lighten their load

High tech way to keep my foot dry.  I went through a few trash bags that day!

Back at the sluice...

Their hard work was paying off

Inspecting his treasure!  (Look how muddy he is!)

Baby leaf?

Our favorite was mining at the Creek.  First, everything is better by the water.  Second, the work was less grueling and you could sluice your dirt right there in the river!  We spent the majority of the day here, in the middle of the woods, in the middle of nowhere North Carolina...Having the time of our lives!

Aaron looking for treasure

Braden hunting for the perfect place to dig

Our river mining tools

Our happy place

Cleaning up our river finds

Hands-on learning at its best

Brothers

Check out those treasures!

All the colors of the rainbow!

Just a few more minutes, Mom!

This gentleman, Josh, was very knowledgeable and taught the boys so much that day!  He had a mind like an encyclopedia and helped to identify our treasures!!!  He also recommended a great book so that we can further our knowledge of Gems and Minerals!  My rock hounds are excited to keep learning!!!

Bodie = Not overly impressed by any of it!