Gold panning vacations are great fun whether you’re going away for a long vacation or just a day-trip. Kids love it, and you will love it too when you see the first glitter of gold in your pan! You can often borrow all gold panning equipment needed on the spot, but most people prefer to buy their own gold pan or gold panning kit. Here’s a state by state guide to gold panning locations through out the US, Canada and South America. Click on any of the states below and it will take you to the right section.
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USA
Alabama – 1 listing
Alaska – 5 listings
Arizona – 2 listings
California – 8 listings
Colorado – 2 listings
Georgia – 2 listings
Nevada – 1 listing
North Carolina – 3 listings
Oregon – 3 listings
South Carolina – 1 listing
South Dakota – 2 listings
Dominican Republic 1 listing
USA
Alabama
Alabama Gold Camp
1398 Co. Rd. 5
Lineville AL 36266 USA
Phone: 1.256.396.0389
E-Mail: gold@alabamagoldcamp.com
Alabama Gold Camp has something for everyone!
Bring your whole family and stay awhile or stop by for a day of picnicking and prospecting. We have easy access to all of our creeks. Plenty of camping right on Wesobulga creek. We offer water, electricity, bathrooms with hot showers, a pavilion where a group can gather for a meal or meeting. We’re currently working on a building which houses our office, general store and enclosed panning area.
With over twenty five years of prospecting and mining experience we will be glad to teach anyone how to pan, sluice, highbank, or even dredge. The best way to learn how to pan for gold is with dirt you know has gold in it and we have lots of it to get you started.
Alaska
Chicken Gold Camp & Outpost
PO Box 70
Chicken, Alaska 99732 USA
Phone: 1-907-235-6396 (voice mail)
E-Mail: chickenrvpark@gmail.com
Fortymile Adventures, Recreational Mining, National Historic Site
The “Chicken Gold Camp & Outpost” is a relaxing, off-the-highway resort in historic Chicken (on Airport Rd), with an active gold mine, tours of the historic Pedro Gold Dredge, gold panning, recreational mining (primarily gold), hiking and river recreation. The gold camp includes an internet cafe (serving home made entrees), Espresso/smoothie bar, a gift shop offering unique, hand-crafted Alaskan jewelry and gifts, rooms/cabins and kayak rentals. Separate caravan area with pavilion and barbecue grill for large groups. Pull-thrus, electric sites, WiFi internet, tent sites, a dump station, water and showers are all available. Our camp & claims are located in In Chicken Alaska in the middle of the oldest mining district in Alaska, the 40 Mile.
Faith Creek Camp
Faith Creek Camp, AK
69 Mile on Steese Hwy (Hwy 6)
P. O. Box 70929
Fairbanks, AK 99707
Phone: 1-303-719-6680 or 1-907-347-8373
E-Mail: faithcreekcamp@aol.com
Faith Creek Camp is 6 patented placers which encompasses 115+ acres and is privately owned by Clarence & Pat Douthett.
Offers a chance to experience the excitement of the wilderness, while prospecting.. Situated in the White Mountains, yet accessible by a well maintained highway.
Visit Faith Creek Camp, where Faith Creek and McManus Creek come together and form the headwaters of the Chatanika River. Do some gold panning, sluicing, dredging in one the richest mining districts in Alaska. Enjoy the wildlife; moose, caribou, fox, wolves, bear, and many more creatures of the wild. See the wildflowers that bloom in the land of the midnight sun. Pick blueberries and raspberries. Fish in the creeks and river. Come prepared to have an outdoor experience of a lifetime, at Faith Creek Camp.
We offer camping, gold panning, sluicing and dredging. We also have cabins for rent.
Kenai Princess Wilderness Lodge
Phone: 1 (800) 426-0500
Duration: 2 1/2 hours
Price from: $24 per person
Enjoy a true Gold Panning experience. Prospector John will take you back to the days of the Gold Rush. He takes you through the steps of modern and old-time techniques of gold panning. Try your hand in panning, for a guarantee of finding gold. Take home your riches, and a true Alaskan experience.
Located on the beautiful Kenai Peninsula in Cooper Landing, and nestled among 43 acres on the banks of the Kenai River, the Kenai Princess Wilderness Lodge offers all the luxuries of a small resort in a relaxing wilderness setting. This peninsula, renowned as a sportsmanʹs and scenic paradise, offers a spectacular setting amid fabulous mountain and river views. Optional activities include nature hikes, sportfishing, river rafting, flightseeing and sightseeing day cruises to the Kenai Fjords National Park.
Moore Creek
Call Roger or Arlene Cowles at: 907-653-1120 (Alaska Time)
E-Mail: info@moorecreek.com
The Moore Creek Alaska Gold Adventure is hosted by Moore Creek Pay-to-Mine LLC, at the historic Moore Creek mine, located along the old Iditarod trail, 50 miles Southwest of McGrath, Alaska. At Moore Creek, you’ll enjoy metal detecting, suction dredging, and highbanking – they provide all equipment and instruction, and you keep all the gold you find!
Moore Creek provides comfortable accommodations, great cooking, fun people, and a genuine mining camp for a unique Alaskan gold prospecting experience. Hundreds of gold nuggets and specimens, weighing a total of about 300 ounces – have been found at Moore Creek while Metal Detecting over the last few years. The majority of the nuggets are in the ¼- to ½- ounce range, and quite a few nuggets run from 1- to 6- ounces each! 2009 over 86 ounces was found by 28 visitors!
Moore Creek Alaska Gold Adventures, start at $2,500.00 per-person – Ask about their special Family & Group Rates!
Arizona
Arizona Gold Adventures
Phone: 914-589-3985
E-Mail: Info@ArizonaGoldAdventures.com
Arizona Gold Adventures (AGA), offers gold prospecting Day Trips and Vacations in the Weaver Mountains, less than two-hours from Phoenix, Arizona! Private instruction on our gold prospecting equipment, or yours! Panning, Drywashing, Sluicing and “Gold Nugget Shooting” (PI & VLF metal detecting) vacations, lessons & Day Trips!
Their Fall Prospecting Season starts September 18th – Make Your Reservations Now!
Stanton
125 patented acres at an old ghost town with several buildings dating from the 1870′s. Full-time caretaker; hook-ups for water & electricity. Dump station, sanitary facilities and club house. Dredging and/or highbanking along Antelope Creek. Dry-washing, coin shooting. Year-round camping for up to 200!
California
Roaring Camp Mining Company
PO Box 278
Pine Grove, CA 95665 USA
Phone: 1-209-296-4100
E-Mail: roaringcamp@volcano.net
Roaring Camp is something special in the way of family recreation. It is an old goldmining camp on the Mokulmne River. In the past, it was accessibly only by horseback. Roaring Camp was once a camp for Forty Niners, but since it was so inaccessible, most of the gold still remains. Visitors can see our operating gold mine an can mine their own gold by panning, sluicing, dredging, and dry washing.
Gabby’s Historic Gold Rush Tours
PO Box 92
Pine Grove, CA 95665
Ph: 1-209-296-3106 (voice)
E-Mail: gabby@gabbysgoldtours.com
Fun, authentic, escorted tours of the Mother Lode. Great tour packages to choose from.
Gold Prospecting Adventures LLC.
18170 Main St.
Jamestown, CA 95327 USA
Phone: 1- 209-984-4653 or fax: 1-209-984-0711
E-Mail: Brent Shock info@goldprospecting.com
Family gold prospecting trips at “1849 Jimtown Mining Camp,” family trips from 1 to 5 hours. For the serious prospector, 1 to 3 days. Our authentic 1849 “Jimtown Mining Camp” will handle an group. From over 12,000 4th grade students on our “Educational Program,” to “Adventure In Gold Country,” for our motorcoach clients at “Jimtown Mining Camp”. Helicopter and rafting trips also.
Duisenburg
160 patented acres near Ransberg, CA. Club house, outhouse and exhibit barn. A well and sanitary facilities are planned for the near future. Camping for Up to 1,000! Drywashing and metal detecting. No water at present.
Finley Camp
140 patented acres at the site of an early mining town. (All structures now demolished.) Part-time caretaker. No facilities, but Forest Service campground across the road. Dredging and highbanking along the Salmon River and Russian Creek. Camping for 200+.
Italian Bar
160 patented acres in the fabulous Mother Lode! Full-time caretaker, water, showers, club house and sanitary facilities and dump station. Camping for up to 150, open all year. Dredging (June I to Oct. 15) and high-banking on the Stanislaus River.
Klamath River
26 patented acres. Camping for 25, but no facilities or caretaker. Dredging (June 1 to Oct. 15), highbanking and nugget shooting on old bucket-dredge tailings.
Scott River
Junction is 28 patented acres at the old townsite of Steelhead. No facilities or caretaker, but plans are underway for bathrooms, showers, clubhouse, dump station and well. Dredging on both the Scott and Klamath Rivers, highbanking, sluicing and coinshooting.
Colorado
Leadville Camp
Approximately 60 acres in the heart of one of Colorado’s premiere mining areas. Enjoy the picturesque view of the Colorado Rockies. You can pan, sluice and dredge. No facilities at this time. Clubhouse, rest- room/showers are in the planning stages.
Nederland Camp
West of Boulder, offers 5 patented acres. No caretaker or facilities. Access by hike-in only. Lode mining for silver with some gold.
Georgia
The Loud Mine
Just west of Cleveland, Georgia, has 39 deeded acres. Full-time caretaker. Clubhouse, dump station. Bathrooms & showers are planned for the near future. highbanking, sluicing, panning and dredging along Town Creek in the historic Dahlonega Gold Belt.
Vein Mt. Gold Camp
Go for the Gold Prospecting Tours / Georgia Gold Prospector’s Association
Nevada
High Divide Property
20 acres of patented property located just south of Tonopah, NV in Esmeralda County. This property was patented for Lode. This property is remote and only dry camping is allowed. No facilities.
North Carolina
The Lucky Strike Recreational Gold and Gem Mine
Phone: (828) 286-3016
E-Mail: info@thermalcitygoldmine.com
The Lucky Strike is a gold and gem mine with a campground that is committed to making sure our visitors have a memorable outing. You can take a step back in time to the days of yesteryear by taking a pan or sluice box into the stream. Experience the thrill of that golden gleam in your pan that only finding your first flake of gold can give. We also have Gold Panning at the flume line with local ore from the Second Broad River. When you get tired or hungry you can visit the Miners Diner , located next to the covered panning area and have a delicious Bonanza burger or Klondike dog with a frosty glass of Sluice Juice.
Gem mining is very popular with our visitors. The Lucky Strike has gemstone buckets for you to screen at the at the flume line. There you may uncover semi precious gemstones such as ruby, sapphire or emerald that are actually worth cutting.
We are open to the public all year 8:00 AM till 7:00 PM daily except DEC 25.
Thermal City Gold Mine
Phone: 828-738-4893
E-Mail: liz@luckystrikegoldandgem.com
Located in Western North Carolina’s Rutherford County. Gold Camp, mining supplies, events, camping.
Thermal City Gold Mine is the best recreational gold and gem mining facility in the Eastern United States. For great family fun, Gem Mining in North Carolina, Gold Panning NC, Camping Mining North Carolina and much more, Thermal City Gold Mine is the perfect find!
Thermal City Gold Mine offers a unique experience hosted by people who are real prospectors! We are dedicated to keeping the tradition and history of Gold Mining in North Carolina alive. Anyone who wants to pan or prospect for gold is welcome. We enjoy teaching and talking about mining!
OPEN MARCH 1 TO NOVEMBER 15, 8:30AM TO 5:00PM 7 DAYS A WEEK.
Vein Mountain
This 130 acre private property is the most recent acquisition of the LDMA and is located in one of the richest gold bearing areas of the eastern gold belt. Gold ranges from fine to flake and is plentiful. Historical reports give the property a good potential for large nuggets.
Oregon
Cracker Creek Mining Camp
Cracker Creek Road
Sumpter, OR 97877
Phone: 1-541-894-2419
E-Mail: info@sumpteroregongoldmining.com or webmaster@goldminerscorner.com
Operation Hours: Monday-Saturday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. CLOSED SUNDAYS.
Our gold mining camp is tucked away on Bourne road along side the historic Cracker Creek in the quiet mountains away from town and you’ll be working the original gold vein discovered over 150 years ago! This is one of the largest continuous gold veins in North America! And….don’t worry, you won’t be alone! We will provide all the proper equipment, tools and even gold panning instruction necessary to find gold and have a great time doing it!
Burnt River Camp
Just south of Baker, has 167 patented acres, sanitary facilities, clubhouse and several other buildings. No hook ups, but water is available at the full-time caretaker’s house. Dredging and excellent high-banking along Burnt River.
The Cave Creek Property
Consists of 32 patented acres on Cave Creek just a short distance from the Burnt River Camp. This slender parcel takes in about a mile of Cave Creek providing members with plenty of Hunting ground. This property is good for Panning, Sluicing, highbanking and Dredging. Camping is available at the Burnt River Camp.
South Carolina
Oconee Camp
This property is located north of Walhalla, S.C. Approximately 120 acres of pristine wooded land with year round stream. Flake, Fine Gold, and nuggets are found here. You can dredge, sluice and pan. No facilities at this time. Clubhouse, restroom/showers and water are planned for the near future.
South Dakota
Big Thunder Gold Mine
PO Box 459/604 Blair Street
Keystone, SD 57751
Phone: 605 666-4847 or 1-800-314-3917
Fax: 605 666-4566
E-Mail: mclainsandra@aol.com or strikegoldat@aol.com
Big Thunder Gold Mine has recaptured the excitement and romance of this bygone era. Find yourself traveling back in time as you tour the authentic 1890′s gold mine and learn about the mining experience from knowledgable guides.
Big Thunder Gold Mine is completely handicapped accessible and fun for all ages!
Black Hills Mining Museum
Phone: 605-584-1605
Email: bhminmus@mato.com
Located in the mile-high city of Lead, South Dakota, there is fun for the entire family. Welcome to the Black Hills Mining Museum, located in the mile-high city of Lead. Our non-profit educational corporation is dedicated to the preservation of the rich mining heritage of the Black Hills of South Dakota. We invite you to visit us and enjoy our numerous exhibits and activities. For more than a century, gold mining has been the #1 industry in Lead and in the Northern Black Hills.
Share the thrill experienced by the prospectors the world over in the museum’s hands-on gold panning display. (Gold Guaranteed!) With the friendly, personal attention of our staff you will learn the techniques of panning and take home your own sample of real placer gold!
Canada
Yukon
Eureka Gold Panning
P.O. Box 33072, Whitehorse, YT Canada Y1A 5Y5
Phone: (867) 633-6519 or our Summer Gold Camp Phone, June to September – (867) 993-6411
E-mail: info@eurekagoldpanning.com
Pan or sluice for gold, then take a break and hike, bike, quad or drive old Gold Field trails for hilltop views of mountain scenery. Explore 1898 Gold Rush cabins and ghost towns; view wildlife or just relax and listen to the song birds within the background of a flowing creek. Avoid the crowds and stay with us, just a 45 minute drive from Dawson City, through modern and historic mining country.Take a step back in time and experience life as they lived it.
Dominican Republic
Jarabacoa Gold Company
Phone: 829-838-4653
E-mail: Jarabacoagold@yahoo.com
We at Jarabacoa Gold Company strive to give our customers the best outdoor adventure possible. With over 20 years experience prospecting in both the USA and the Dominican Republic and the hospitality industry we are the #1 choice when it comes to Gold panning adventures and other excursions and tours in the Dominican Republic. We know that your vacation is very important to you, so working with a reputable and honest company can mean a lot. Our goal is to give you the best excursion possible for the best possible price. If you choose, we will assist you with other excursions and lodging in order to help get you the best rates and experience. We are a family owned business and our reputation is very important to us. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us.
Have a Nice Prospecting Vacation!
If you know of any place that is missing, please help your fellow gold panners out by sharing it in the comments below and I’ll add it to this list! I will update the list continually as I find more vacation spots.
Related Gold Panning Links
Gold Panning Instructions – Simple How-To Guide
Choosing Between Gold Pans – Some Tips
Gold Panning Videos
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{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
Very nice blog with excellent information. Not sure if I can add my url here for our Gold Panning adventures in Dominican Republic.
Hi Ken,
Thanks for the comment, I’m glad you like my blog! Sure I’ll add you to the list, you seem to have an awesome family business going on there
Thank’s a lot for posting admin.
Hi Gold Men,
No problem, thank you for commenting! If you know of any good gold prospecting vacation tips or locations, feel free to share what you know and I’ll add it to the list.
Hey there. You’ve got some very cool blog here. Nice and great articles that is very informative..I will visit this blog often.God Bess:-)
Thank you Jacky, always nice to hear!
There are some places on the Llano river in Texas
http://www.roundrockgpaa.net and lots of places in New mexico that I have been over the years
nice job love the page
Hi David,
Thanks for your comment and also for your link, I’ll add the info about the Llano river to the list!
Goldstrike Colorado Gold Adventues offers guided creekside gold adventures at historical locations across Colorado. Half day or Full day adventures from panning instructions to sluicing, highbanking, GOLD CUBE, Gold N Sand hand dredging and even motorized floatation dredging. YOU keep all the gold from your adventure! FREE nugget with all fall and winter adventure packages!
Hi folks,
Ophir, Alaska has made the transition to becoming a formal commercial mining operation. It’s a great place to visit. There are many surrounding mines to visit and places to pan gold. Other more advanced forms of recreational mining are a thing of the past at Ophir. Please feel free to send an email with questions. visit http://www.ophir-alaska.com for updates.
Thanks!
Chuck