himalaya mine

I knew up front it was going to be a salted pile of tailings that had been previously sifted for the good stuff. If you speak of salting it's as if you have said there is no Santa Claus. If you are looking to make a great find you're in the wrong place. Buy some Tourmaline from a shop if that's what you're after. None of the digs near Pala are different. You'll find some close to worthless pieces of Tourmaline, Quartz and other specimens. You are paying for the opportunity to have some fun through discovery and identification, The staff tries hard to make it safe and a learning experience. You should prepare for the elements, hunger and thirst or you'll be miserable. We found more at the Oceanview Mine dig and it was better organized.

Don't use your GPS to find this place or if you do, don't put in Himalaya Mine. We did and got lost for 5 hours on a mountain which takes you to the actual mine and you can't get in there. So, if you must use a smart phone or GPS, type in Lake Henshaw Resort which will bring you to the correct place. Once you get to the Lake Henshaw Resort (don't let the name fool you, it's just a trailer park), go in their little store, ask for a code to get in (the mining is all the way in the back, towards the lake). Once you get past the gate, stay to the right side and drive on a dirt road towards the back. You should see other cars which look like they're in the middle of no where doing nothing. But the locals that do this mining regularly know what they're looking for. At $100 a person (kids are free with a paying adult), this is a pretty expensive gem panning activity for kids.

We guess that people just believe that gemstones like panning for gold is in abundance and just waiting to be discovered. The reality is that if you stick with it you will have great fun doing it while possibly finding some great stones; some gem quality some rough. The guide was top notch as she had an extensive knowledge of all rocks and she was very informative in educating us on what to look for when searching for rock formations and on the evolution of various rocks and gems. Our experience was terrific and we would do it again and again. We found a fair amount of pink tourmaline, watermelon and various pencil pieces. The experience is all encompassing and not just about finding the stones. We enjoyed the weather even though it rained a little, but that just added to the experience. Most people that are unhappy are so because they realize it is hard work, but that is the fun of it!

My wife and I visited the Himalaya Mine last week, 12/30/14, paid the $75 each and didn't find anything. We could have gone online and bought tourmaline for less. I asked the nice young lady working there how many people were working up at the mine and she said 6 so they must pulling gems out in order to make the payroll for 6 employees but they are not letting the public get any of the gems. Save your money and forget about this place.

The kids had a few days off and the wife had to work.What to do... Yes, dig in the dirt!My two kids 7 and 9 at the time spent two days filling buckets, filtering,and cleaning a ton or so of material. My son found a nice piece ofrubelite about 1.5 cm on a side. My daughter found a few smallerpieces that showed nice color. I found a nice, thin, 2 cm crystal thatshowed nice color.We also found some huge quartz crystals about 3" wide and 4-5" tall.We collected a lot of specimens to share with the kids classes duringshow and tell. Most of what we found wasn't gemmy at all, but certainlyfun to collect and share. There's quite a bit of mica to play with too.We checked our haul with a UV lamp later and found a few bits of fluorescentminerals (light orange in LW UV). Not sure what it was.If you go, be sure, be REALLY sure, to check what your kids are wearingbefore it's too late. I didn't.We camped a couple hundred feet away under a nice shady tree.Be sure to bring food and drink or pick some up at the store by the entrance to the camp.Hmm, bring ziplock bags too. Big ones. I ended up sharing ourswith other groups.One thing that might make it more educational for the kids would be a fieldguide showing & describing all the rocks and minerals that could be found.The staff was friendly and helpful.The kids want to go back.

The thought of mining tourmaline was very attractive for my wife, and since we were already visiting the observatory at Palomar Mountain. the mine was just another 14 miles. Upon arrival we were stunned by the entrance fee: $100 / person / day. Since we were arriving 2 hours before they close, they gave us a special rate of $50 each. We did find some interesting stones, and it was definitely an outing to remember, but I don't consider it a good value.

I have been to the Himalaya few times. No one trip was the same. On my very first trip out I found my largest Tourmaline at 181 grams it is a round about 2 inches in diameter and an inch thick. I remember finding this piece very well. I had already filled my bucket from the pile and simply picked up a rock that looked different than most. In fact I had walked this path multiple times during the day. I washed it and sure enough it was a tourmaline, green in the center surrounded by a pink rind. I am assuming that it is cab grade. Sometime later I intend to polish the back and front to revile its true interior. On the same day I found another one that was about 47 grams but not quite as nice as the first. Also found a few gemmy small crystals. some quartz crystals and good size pieces of shorl. Since then I have purchased a couple bags which was fun. In fact one of them had a gemmy clear beryl ( the only one I have found). I have been here while it is cold and raining and while it is hot and dry. I admit I do not like cold, but I love digging for tourmaline. When I went home I was soaked, but very happy. I read all the comments from before where there was a couple negative feedback. First of all heat and cold come during the seasons and not the fault of any operator. If the season is hot, bring a brimmed hat and make sure you have water. I like to wear light long sleeved shirts or coveralls to protect from burns and to keep clean. The key is fluids. Fluids help you stay cool. Also if the operator provided shade, your chances of finding good tourmaline just dropped by 50%. My productivity is far better on sunny days than overcast days. The sun highlights the tourmaline immediately. When I was there in the cold the operators supplied gloves to aid against the cold water. I admit I got soaked due to a long days rain and probably a sniffle to go with it, but I had a genuinely good time. As for the price, it is very fair for the value of being able to share in the experiences of actual mine workers and the opportunity to find something that is not generally available. It is true that the fee is $75 at the Himalaya. In my experience the Himalaya offers 5 hours to find various minerals and is a bit more consistent when locating various colors and grades of Tourmaline. I also feel that of the three the Himalaya is the most genuinely friendly and when you leave you feel like you have developed a friendship. Next there was a comment about the pile running out. All I can say is that you missed out on an opportunity to search for tourmaline that has been falling through the rocks for some time. I wish I was there because I would have dug a hole and would certainly have found many very nice pieces. Tourmaline has a habit of working toward the bottom due to its higher specific gravity. Finally, there isn't a crystal ball that determines what will be found in the pile. The pile this week may be totally different than the one next week and they have all been different for me. My best results have been returning which allows me to learn what I am looking for and to learn how to get the best results. Listen to the operators and learn, go back and try again another week. This hobby is fun and does produce very well when you do it enough.

We had been wanting to go gem digging and we had planned a trip to Oceanview but they are only open on the weekend and we needed a Friday adventure for my son's 9th bday. I read the reviews on here and they weren't stellar but we went anyway...so glad we did! It was us, another family and a couple and we had a blast! Jessica, mine staff, was so sweet and helpful and not only does she know her rocks, but every time anyone got something cool, she was genuinely excited for us and I was so grateful to have her there. We spent 4 hours there digging, the weather was great and my son said it was the best bday present ever. We got a ziplock baggie full of gems we can make jewelry out of and a grocery bag of other really cool looking rocks! Bring a hat, sunscreen and lots of water! Great time!

My family has been going to the mine for the past four years after we saw it near Julian, CA. We went there and to the Julian Mining Company. This place is the real deal, you are actually sifting through ore to find the gems. We have had good luck but it is hit and miss. Sometimes you get awesome finds and other times you don't. This is to be expected and you can't beat the experience. The staff are always friendly and helpful in figuring out what you have. We have found lots of quartz, tourmaline, Clevelandite and mica. We will be going back.

I digged for tourmaline two time, first time in august 2009 and the second time in february 2011First time in August was just awesome, They allowed me to stay a little bit longer that what was authorized, I met Chris who offered me to visit the mine on an other day, but i wasn't anymore in California.Second time was different but as awesome as the first time. Unfortunately, I didn't have a car to go there then i asked them for one of the 5 gallons bucket they proposed.I did some amazing find in these bucket, even better than what i found in august 2009, a beautiful watermelon tourmaline gem quality of 20 gram (~100 carats).Communication was perfect and i had a great time both in august 2009 and february 2011.Thanks again!Jérémie, from Switzerland.

We've been all over the country digging for gemstones and fossils and I must tell you, the Himalaya Tourmaline Mine is not worth the exhorbitant price they charge you for the little you actually find. This Mine was featured on the Travel Channel showing the host pulling huge chunks of tourmaline out of the ground. It doesn't work that way. We were there in June 2008 and it cost us $75.00 per person to sift through a pile of dirt for tiny bits of gemstones. The dirt pile is out in the blistering sun with no shade anywhere, except for the people taking your money who sit under umbrellas. Our grandsons got overheated and had to return to our motorhome. We do this kind of thing a lot, so we don't mind sweating a little and paying to dig if there is some benefit at the end of the day. It's a long, tortuous drive on narrow winding roads to get there and definitely not worth the effort. The owner has other gem mines throughout the west. We visited his Spectrum Sunstone Mine in Plush Oregon in 2007. It was slightly better and the Sunstones were on average pea-sized.The only bright spot in our trip to the Himalaya Tourmaline Mine was being able to visit the nearby town of Julian, which is a little jewel in itself. My advice is, skip the Himalaya Tourmaline Mine. Unless things change there, it's just not worth the effort and the cost.

I visited the himilaya mine on June 7 09.the staff was ok I found A few specimen grade watermelon & pink tourmalines & A quarter dia.X3/4" long Aquamarine piece.The quality/condition of the gems is slightly better than the ones at a similar mine in the area.which is the same price per hour@$15.00 X 5 =$75.00.The other mine is The full 4 Hours of screening for $60.00.My complaint at this mine was more than half of the time was spent waiting for the staff to refresh the tailings pile.They tried to keep irritated guests entertained spraying down the remaining rocks & D.G. with water & allowing Us to Higrade any pieces that may have fallen between the rocks.By the time the Dump Truck finally did arrive some people (pissed off) LEFT EARLY..which I wish I Could Have Gotten at least the last 2 hours @ $30.00 REFUNDED.Or mabe $0.50 everytime I heard (wheres the &%#@$ Truck ) I paid to Screen for gems not a Dog & Pony Show & Excuses!!!.