hidee gold mine

I was there early, so we had to wait a little, but the guide was very informative about the history of the area and the effects of the mines. It was very educational. Inside the mine was pretty cool, and you get to mine gold for yourself and take it home with you. That alone is worth the visit. It's a very winding road to get there.

chris was our guide and he knew everything about everything. no question went unanswered. his vast knowledge of the history of the mine and the surrounding areas was impressive. tge tour was great and interactive, including a lesson in panning for gold, and you get to mine and take real gold home! highly recommend this adventure.

Our family decided to take a mine tour and Hidee did not disappoint. It was awesome! John, our guide, was really informative and provided us with a lot of facts about mining. Once we headed in 700 ft for the mining experience, John continued to educate us on the tour. His descriptions were kid friendly yet engaging and informative. The kids really enjoyed the hammering portion inside the mine for their "golden treasures", as well as the panning lessons once we returned outside the mine. A very memorable experience for our family. I very highly recommend this tour for families of all ages.

Decided to take a gold mine tour at Hidee. Mark was our guide and he was great! He explained the history of gold mining, the difference between fool's gold and gold just to name a few. The mine is cool and quite comfortable. I was worried we would be freezing just wearing light jackets and shorts. The actual mining was the highlight for my kids. They were able to mine and chisel out some of their own gold. This was really fun for them. They will allow you to pan for gold for a small fee but we opted not to do this. Also, there are a few picnic tables to have a quick lunch. Reservations can be made in advance for this tour. We didn't have one and had to wait a few minutes but we thought the wait was worth it. Be sure to wear shoes that can get muddy. Also, the mine can be tight so if small spaces are an issue for you you might want to pass.

Of the three mines in the Central City/Idaho Springs area(Argo and Phoenix being the others), Hidee felt the most realistic as you descended through narrow passageways to a very cramped area at the end of one tunnel where not only can you see the gold(and other minerals) in veins in the walls, you are invited to take a pick and chip out a few samples to take home as a souvenir. At the end of the tour, you can try your hand at panning for gold at tables set outside for that purpose. The mine is conveniently located about two miles outside of Central City, a short distance off the four lane Central City Parkway. Reservations are suggested.

This place doesn't look like much when you drive up, but what a wonderful experience. My mom, kids (ages 12 and 8), and I headed out to take this tour and loved it. Our guide, Mark, is an active miner and does tours in the off-season, and he was great. We got to see old mine buildings, and he told us the history of not only the Hidee Mine but the other previous mines that were around there, then took us in the Hidee Mine and showed that to us. Beware - it's a tad muddy in there, so wear appropriate shoes. We even got to mine some of our own ore. All of us thoroughly enjoyed it, despite the age spread in our group, and we lucked out by getting a private tour since no one else was there ready to tour when we were. After the mine tour, the kids panned for gold, and they loved that too. Adults were $14 and kids were $8-10 (can't remember exactly), which we thought was a bit high, but we had a great time.

We tried this tour based on the previous reviews and it was wonderful! Our guide, Chris, gave an informative and educational tour of the grounds and mining history. Then into the mine to hammer out your own gold! The kids (age 8 and 10) loved it! We panned for gold and chatted with John who was excellent company. We chose this mine for the hands-on mining experience and we had a great time! Thanks John and Chris!

We were staying at Copper Mountain for a family vacation and started searching for a mine tour by asking around and checking TripAdvisor. Sure glad we did. Be careful as you might drive right past the place, but once there you will love it. Great mix of history, mining information and fun stuff "TommyKnockers" for the kids without the retail/commercial/mostly gift Shoppe focused feel . Not to mention the hands on activities like panning and chiseling for a souvenir ore sample to take home. You'll go nearly 750 ft into the mine! John was our guide and made it a great time for our two adults and 3 kids from age 6 to 11. Not crowded at all, in fact, our family had a private tour! Highly recommend!

We went as a family of six (two adults, four kids) to visit this mine. After browsing others' reviews on TripAdvisor of different mines in the area, we settled on this one, even though it had less bells and whistles and cost more. However, we were NOT disappointed. Our kids enjoyed it (all 10 and under) - especially being able to mine themselves for real gold at the end of the tour.A few tips:1. Bring jackets. The mine was 45 degrees when we visited, while it was over 90 outside.2. If you bring a baby, have some way to carry him/her on your front/chest. They won't allow you to carry a baby on your back, and strollers won't work. 3. If we had followed our GPS instructions, we would have gotten lost. So, be careful to look for the Hidee Mine signs (small and easy to miss) along the side of Central City Parkway.4. Visit the website and note the times/days for visiting.5. Make sure you visit the "award-winning porta-potty" just for the experience of visiting an "award-winning porta-potty."6. Make sure to ask HOW the mine got its name. The guide was terrific - a great sense of humor and easy demeanor with young and old. We highly recommend visiting.

Looking for an adventure with my 8 yr old grandson. He wanted to see a REAL gold mine - this was a delightful day - for us. Mark was our guide and very knowledgeable and friendly. Getting to try our hand at mining with hammer and chisel was the highlight of the tour bringing back a bag of treasures! Low keyed and non commercial (unlike the disaster that has been created in Central City) - loved it!!!

One of the things the kids wanted to do on our Colorado trip was go on a gold mine tour and pan for gold. We did some research on the internet and are so glad we decided to take the drive to Hidee. The guide was full of information and kept the attention of the kids. The staff was excellent.

We stumbled upon the website for Hidee Gold Mine as we were planning our trip to the Rockies. We were intrigued about learning first-hand the history of this part of Colorado, so we reserved a tour. It turned out to be one of the highlights of our trip! If you are interested in the history of Colorado and the gold rush, don’t miss this tour. It is the only safe tour of an active mine, as far as we know. Plan on a couple of hours; reserve in advance (our tour was booked and last-minute arrivals were declined); bring cash or a check (no way to run credit/debit cards there); wear long pants and shoes you can get muddy (hiking boots would be great, although we just wore tennis shoes); and bring a change of shoes for after the tour.The tour began outside, walking around a ridge behind the Hidee Mine, where we viewed a few other mines (including the Pittsburgh Mine), while our guide described what it was like during the gold rush, and how/when/why the gold rush ended. What an insightful view into history! After donning hard hats, we proceeded into the mine entrance. The mine was muddy – and our guide explained that it is almost always muddy during summer/tourist season – so you should wear appropriate shoes, and bring other shoes to change into before getting back into your vehicle.The interior mine tour included several stops for viewing historical tools of mining. If you are tall, watch your head, as the tunnel lowers to just over five feet in some places. Several hundred feet into the mine, we headed down a flight of very narrow stairs. This was actually the most impressive part of the tour: as we started down the flight of stairs, our guide instructed us to look up at the ceiling. Above our heads, clear as day, was a winding, three-foot-wide trail of glittering gold ore! I always wondered how miners knew when they “hit gold,” and now I know! At the end of the stairs, we reached a more recently-opened part of the mine, where we used pick axes to knock off a souvenir gold ore chunk – great photo opportunity, and fun for all ages.After the tour, we could “pan for gold,” in nearby bins with trays – we didn’t, but younger kids might enjoy it. There is a small gift shop, which is worth visiting for trinkets and pamphlets describing Colorado mine history and dangers/deaths. If you are interested in history, mining, minerals, geology, science, gold, etc. ... do not miss this hidden gem!

We are residents of Colorado and wanted to take the kids on a fun day of exploring. All of us were excited to do something we've never done. Hidee Mine is a quick day trip from Denver. We arrived a half an hour early and enjoyed the surrounding. Although the mine wasn't 'officially' open it was open for Memorial Day weekend. We were lucky to be part of a group of 8, making the tour seem very intimate. The first 15 minutes of the tour was getting to see the back side of the mine. There are old mining shafts and buildings from the late 1800's, as well as modern mining shafts. The very experiened guide, Mark took as much time as we needed answering questions. He also gave us a very detailed explanation of how many came to Colorado once they started finding gold in the rivers, how the miners filed a claim based on their gold vein, different ways of mining from the 1800's through current time. We were shocked to hear that within weeks 5000 people moved to the mountains in the Central City area to start staking their claim and trying to find gold. My daughter had just studied CO in her 4th grade class, so it was very informative to her as well. We then got our hard hats and set foot into the mine, where we spent a little under an hour exploring, seeing the gold vein and getting to use our own chisel and sledge hammer to find our own piece to take home. At the end of the tour, for a nominal fee you could pan gold. My daughter and husband had ra blast doing that and bringing home a small bag of gold dust. Would recommend a light jacket and tennis shoes. Very reasonable tour cost and kids had a blast!