Fee Mining and Digging for Gems, Minerals, Gold, Crystals
Hunt For Gems - Keep What You Find!
What are Fee Mining Sites?
Fee mining sites are places where you can pay a fee to dig, pan, or search for rocks, minerals or gemstones and keep whatever you find.
There are many places in the United States where you can pan for gold, wash gravel for gemstones, or split rocks to find fossils and have a reasonable chance of being very successful. We have been to fee mining sites many times, had lots of fun, and found some nice materials. We did not make a great find every time, but it was a good experience overall. Two of our favorites are: 1) looking for Herkimer "Diamonds" at the Ace of Diamonds Mine near Herkimer, New York; and, 2) looking for tourmaline at the OceanView Mine near San Diego, California.
If you own a fee mining site not listed here, please let us know. To be listed, a site must have a website and pass our review. We do not include sites where collectors search through materials that have been "salted" with things to find or where materials from other mines or locations are hauled in. Most of the sites listed below require a fee.
Alabama |
| Alabama Gold Camp | Gold |
Alaska |
| Alaska BLM gold panning sites | Gold |
| Chicken Gold Camp | Gold |
| Crow Creek Gold Mine | Gold |
Arizona |
| Arizona BLM collecting sites | Agate, Apache tears, fire agate, jasper, onyx, petrified wood |
Arkansas |
| Board Camp Crystal Mine | Quartz crystals |
| Crater of Diamonds State Park | Diamonds and 40 other types of rocks and minerals including: lamproite, amethyst, banded agate, jasper, peridot, garnet, quartz, calcite, barite, and hematite. |
| Jim Coleman Crystals | Clear and White quartz crystal. You can also expect to find some interesting pieces with Adularia and Calcite |
| Pine Ridge Crystals | Quartz crystals |
| Ron Coleman Mining | Quartz crystals |
| Sweet Surrender Crystals | Quartz crystals |
| Twin Creek Crystal Mine | Clear Quartz and Phantom Quartz |
| Wegner Crystal Mines | Crystal Forest Mine and Phantom Mine group dig and tailings collecting area. |
California |
| Benitoite Mining Company | Benitoite |
| Gold Prospecting Adventures | Gold |
| Himalaya Mine | Tourmaline, quartz crystals, lepidolite, topaz, morganite, and other pegmatite minerals |
| Modoc National Forest | Obsidian |
| OceanView Mine / Pala Chief Mine | Tourmalines, kunzites, morganites and more. |
| Roaring Camp Mining Company | Gold |
Colorado |
| Bachelor Syracuse Mine | Gold |
| Colorado Gold Camp | Gold |
| Country Boy Mine | Gold |
| Phoenix Gold Mine | Gold |
| Vic's Gold Panning | Gold |
Connecticut |
| Simpson Quarry | Pegmatite |
Florida |
| Caspersen Beach | Shark teeth |
| Fossil Expeditions | Mammal, reptile and shark fossils |
| Paleo Discoveries | Shark teeth, mammal and fish fossils |
| Rucks Pit, Fort Drum Crystal Mine | Fossils and crystals |
Georgia |
| Consolidated Gold Mine | Gold |
| Crisson Gold Mine | Gold |
| Diamond Hill Mine | Quartz crystals (smokey, amethyst, some doubly terminated, some skeletal) |
| Gold 'n Gem Grubbin' | Gold, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, amethyst, topaz and more |
| Graves Mountain | Barite,quartz, rutile, ilmenite, kyanite, pyrite, lazulite, pyrophyllite, hematite, goethite, limonite, iridescent hematite |
| Hogg Mine | Beryl, star rose quartz, black tourmaline, and aquamarine |
Idaho |
| Eagle City Mining Company | Gold |
| Emerald Creek Star Garnet Area | Star Garnet |
| Gold Mine Adventures | Gold |
| Spencer Opal Mines | Opal |
Illinois |
| Nick's Geodes | Geodes |
Iowa |
| Fossil & Prairie Park | Fossils |
Kentucky |
| Clement Mineral Museum | Fluorite and related minerals |
Maine |
| Coos Canyon Rock and Gift | Gold |
| Dig Maine Gems | Quartz, tourmaline, beryl, lepidolite and more |
| Maine Mineralogy Expeditions | blue beryl, golden beryl, amethyst, tourmaline, rose quartz, smoky quartz, clear quartz, mica, feldspar, apatite, lepidolite |
| Poland Mining Camps | Pollucite (gem grade), spodumene, kunzite (cab grade), muscovite and perhamite (tan spheres) with white fluorapatite. |
Maryland |
| Calvert Cliffs State Park | Miocene fossils and shark teeth |
| Nanjemoy Wildlife Management Area | Shark teeth and fossils |
Michigan |
| Caledonia Mine | Native copper, silver, datolite, quartz, feldspar, calcite, and epidote |
Minnesota |
| Hill Annex Mine State Park | Fossils |
Missouri |
| Sheffler's Rock Shop and Geode Mine | Geodes |
Montana |
| Baisch's Dinosaur Digs | Fossils |
| Blaze-N-Gems | Sapphire, Garnet |
| Crystal Park | Quartz crystals |
| Gem Mountain Sapphire Mine | Sapphire |
| Spokane Bar Sapphire Mine | Sapphire |
| The Montana Dinosaur Center | The Two Medicine Dinosaur Center runs scheduled digs for dinosaur and other types of fossils. Note: Fossils found become the property of the Dinosaur Center. Check their website for full details. |
Nebraska |
| High Plains Homestead | Fossils |
Nevada |
| Bonanza Opal Mines | Opal |
| Kokopelli Opals | Opal |
| Rainbow Ridge Opal Mine | Opal |
| Royal Peacock Opal Mine | Opal |
New Hampshire |
| Twin River Campground | Gold panning |
New Jersey |
| The Franklin Mineral Museum | Fluorescent minerals |
| The Sterling Hill Mining Museum | Fluorescent minerals |
New Mexico |
| Desert Rose Mine - Blanchard Rock Shop | Fluorite, barite, galena, quartz, smoky quartz, linarite, brochantite, wulfenite and more |
| Rockhound State Park | Quartz crystals, geodes, jasper, perlite, and more |
New York |
| Ace of Diamonds | Herkimer Diamonds (doubly terminated quartz crystals) |
| Crystal Grove Diamond Mine and Campground | Herkimer Diamonds (doubly terminated quartz crystals) |
| Diamond Acres | Herkimer Diamonds (doubly terminated quartz crystals) |
| Gore Mountain | Garnet |
| Herkimer Diamond Mines | Herkimer Diamonds (doubly terminated quartz crystals) |
North Carolina |
| Cherokee Ruby and Sapphire Mine | Ruby, sapphire |
| Cowee Gift Shop and Mason Mountain Mine | Garnet, ruby, sapphire, kyanite, moonstone, smoky quartz, cordierite |
| Crabtree Emerald Mine | Emerald |
| Emerald Hollow Mine | Over 60 different gems and minerals. |
| Emerald Village | Emerald, semi-precious stones |
| Eureka Gold Panning, Gem Fluming, & Pearls | Gold, Gems, and Pearls |
| Gem Mountain Gemstone Mine | Aquamarine, tourmaline, garnet, beryl |
| Little Pine Garnet Mine | Garnet |
| Lucky Strike Gold and Gem Mine | Gold |
| Mason's Ruby and Sapphire Mine | Ruby, sapphire |
| Rose Creek Mine | Ruby, sapphire, garnet, amethyst, citrine, moonstone, topaz, smoky quartz, rose quartz, quartz crystals and more! |
| Sheffield Gem Mine | Star ruby, sapphire |
North Dakota |
| North Dakota Geological Survey | NDGS runs scheduled dinosaur and fossil digs from late June to mid-August. Note: All fossils found go to the North Dakota State Fossil Collection in Bismarck, ND. Check the NDGS website for full details. |
Ohio |
| Caesar Creek Lake Spillway | Fossils |
| Hueston Woods State Park | Ordovician fossils |
| LaFarge Quarry Dump Site | Brachiopods, horn corals, trilobites |
| Nethers Farm - Flint Ridge | Flint |
| Oakes Quarry Park | Fossils (designated collecting areas are marked with signs) |
| Olander Fossil Park | Brachiopods, coral, other Devonian fossils |
| Trammel Fossil Park | Bryozoans, brachiopods, crinoids, gastropods, pelecypods, edriosteroids |
| William H. Harsha Lake | Fossils |
Oklahoma |
| Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge | Selenite crystals |
Oregon |
| BLM Sunstone Collection Area | Oregon Sunstone |
| Double Eagle Mine | Oregon Sunstone |
| Dust Devil Mining Company | Oregon Sunstone |
| Lucky Strike Mines | Agate, Thundereggs |
| Public Rockhounding Sites (central Oregon) | Petrified wood, agate, jasper, obsidian, thunder eggs |
| Spectrum Sunstone Mines | Oregon Sunstone |
South Carolina |
| Diamond Hill Mine | Amethyst, quartz |
| LaFarge Fossil Hunt | Fossilized shark teeth, bones, brachiopods |
South Dakota |
| Big Thunder Gold Mine | Gold |
| PaleoAdventures | PaleoAdventures runs scheduled dinosaur digs in the Badlands area of South Dakota. Note: Your guide will inspect the fossils that you find. Diggers can keep common fossils that they find and purchase commercial-grade fossils that they find. Scientific-grade fossils are given to museums and universities. Check their website for full details. |
Texas |
| Lindsay Ranch | Topaz, quartz, tourmaline, garnet, petrified wood, fossils |
| Mineral Wells Fossil Park | Pennsylvanian Period invertebrate fossils |
| Teri Smith Rock Hunts | Agate hunts to numerous locations in the Big Bend Region |
Utah |
| Blue Crystal Mines | Azurite |
| Gem Tours | Bixbyte, pink topaz, red beryl and more |
| Topaz Mountain Adventures | Topaz, bixbyite, and other minerals |
| Trilobyte Me! Quarry Fossil Dig | Trilobite fossils |
| U-Dig Fossils | Trilobite fossils |
Virginia |
| Fairy Stone State Park | Staurolite "Fairy Stones" |
| Morefield Gem Mine | Over 80 different minerals |
| Westmoreland State Park | Shark teeth |
Washington |
| Stonerose Interpretive Center & Eocene Fossil Site | Eocene Fossils (you can keep three per day) |
Wyoming |
| American Fossil | Fossils from the Green River Formation |
| Fossil Safari | Fossil fish from the Green River Formation |
| Tynsky's Fossils Inc. | Fossils from Fossil Lake |
| Ulrich's Fossil Gallery | Eocene fossil fish from the Green River Formation |
| Wyoming Dinosaur Center | The Wyoming Dinosaur Center runs scheduled digs for dinosaur and other types of fossils. Note: Fossils found become the property of the Wyoming Dinosaur Center. Check their website for full details. |
Australia |
| Gemtree Gemfields Fossicking Tours | Garnet and Mud Tank zircon |
| Mt. Hay Gemstone Tourist Park | Thundereggs, Rainforest Rhyolite |
Canada |
| Amethyst Mine Panorama | Amethyst |
| Opal Resources Canada | Opal |
Please Let Us Know About a Fee Mining Site!
If you own a fee mining site not listed here, please let us know by emailing the URL of your website to:
To be listed, a site must have a secure (https://) website and pass our review. We don't include sites where collectors search through materials that have been "salted" with things to find.
RockTumbler.com Authors
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Hobart M. King has decades of rock tumbling experience and writes most of the articles on RockTumbler.com. He has a PhD in geology and is a GIA graduate gemologist. He also writes the articles about rocks, minerals and gems on Geology.com. |