Day 10 Fossicking at Rubyvale

The day dawned bright and sunny and we were in miner's mode. Full of expectation we headed off to the Miners Heritage.  It is a walk in mine so we did the touristy thing first and inspected the mine. The mine is about 40m underground and was a working mine before being converted to a tourist attraction.  We were able to see sapphires and zirconia in what they call the wash.  This is a bed of gravel, sand and clay from an original creek bed which overlays the granite base rock.  The gems originate from what were local volcanic eruptions, millions of years ago.  The lava was eroded over time, depositing the gem crystals in the creek beds.  

We bought a bucket of wash for $20 and fossicked in style for whatever gems might be present.  We found small sapphires but nothing of value of course.

160414 A bucket of wash ready to go to the surface

160414 The narrow wash layer above granite basement

160414 Two make believe miners with make believe gems

160414 A tunnel from which wash has been mined

160414 Vertical vent to enable air to circulate

160414 A vertical hole to take wash to the surface

160414 Fossicking in style and comfort at Miners Heritage at Rubyvale

160414 The fruits of our labour - genuine sapphires but of little value, except for the experience