The Emerald Mine of Little Switzerland Review

Have you ever imagined panning for gold or finding a precious gem in the rough, The Emerald Mine of Little Switzerland  is the outdoor adventure for you.  Located in Little Switzerland,  North Carolina it's a fantastic place to visit with your family!

The Emerald Mine of Little Switzerland is a short drive north of Asheville.  If you take the Blue Ridge Parkway half the fun is getting there.  Stop along the way at the numerous overlooks and take in the vista of the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains.  

Originally, the Crabtree Emerald Mine of Little Switzerland, NC  was formerly owned by Tiffany and Co. Jewelers.  It now offers tourist, school groups and weekend miners an opportunity to root through buckets of "Mine Muck or Mine Run" residue left from commercial mining to find amazing pieces of "rough uncut emeralds, aquamarine, golden beryl, tourmaline, smoky quartz, garnet, moonstone and many other North Carolina gemstones."  The cost per bucket ranges from $5.00 to $250.00 and they guarantee you will find all kinds of beautiful gemstones.

My husband and I visited The Emerald Mine of Little Switzerland last summer and found all types of semi precious gems.  But our most incredible find was an almost golf ball sized piece of Tigers Eye suitable for cutting and polishing, along with a small oval shaped emerald that I'm having mounted into a ring!  There's a self guided Mining Museum with samples of the gems, mining equipment and other interesting facts about The Emerald Mine of Little Switzerland.  It usually opens in April or May through Oct. 25th,10:30 - 5 P.M [weather permitting], 7 days a week.

In my opinion, if you live in the Asheville area The Emerald Mine of Little Switzerland  is an awesome day adventure for the family and a gem of a good time!  Don't forget to stop by and say howdy to the current owner Miss Barb who also cuts and polishes gems.