Washington is known for its diverse geology and the abundance of crystals, fossils, and petrified wood. One such fantastic site is only a few minutes drive from Seattle. Hansen Creek trail is located in the Mount Baker Snoqualmie National Forest just west of Snoqualmie Pass on Humpback Mountain. It’s a perfect location for adventurers who […]
About 10 miles north of Okanogan, Washington, is the site of one of this states most exciting boomtowns. While little is left now, the site of Ruby City sits along Salmon Creek. This was one of Western Washington’s most exciting mining camps back in the late 1800s. There had already been several gold and silver […]
Gold has been known to occur along the Pacific Coast for centuries. In fact, there have been some considerably rich gold strikes all along the coastline stretching from Alaska to Mexico. Perhaps the most famous would be those at Nome, Alaska, but other short-lived gold rushes occurred in Southern Oregon (Gold Beach and Northern California […]
The Selkirk is an expansive mountain range that cuts across the border of the United States and Canada. The scenic mountain range starts off from the northern part of the Idaho Panhandle and stretches across the eastern parts of Washington State before reaching across the border of British Columbia. The Selkirk Mountains have long been […]
The town of Metaline Falls, a pale shadow of its former self is situated in Pend Oreille County. This active town of just 250 residents once stood as the trading center for mines that produced silver, gold, lead, and zinc. The availability of minerals and easy access to the miners prompted the settlers to name […]
The city of Republic in Washington State was founded by gold prospectors over 110 years ago. Although it is known for its proud mining history, it also has a strong logging history and many recreational activities. Republic is a beautiful open wilderness tucked along the valley between Wauconda and Sherman Passes, just at the intersection […]
Gold deposits aren’t widespread in Southwest Washington, but there are a few locations where a diligent prospector can find a bit of color. There was never much of a “gold rush” here. There was some small short-lived excitement in a few areas, but the deposits were never rich enough to attract much interest. Yet if […]
Seattle is also known as the Emerald City, but if there was any rare mineral that put this city on the map it has to be gold. The gold rush to Alaska had a direct impact on the development of several of the port cities along the Pacific Ocean. Seattle in particular was geographically situated […]
Gold was discovered on the Olympic Peninsula in the 1850s. By 1859 there were reports of discoveries of gold traces in several places along the Peninsula and especially in the region around the Olympic Mountains. Most of the discoveries were in the rivers and creeks that drain the mountains especially to the south and the […]
There is gold throughout the state of Washington, but most of the large, profitable mines are found in the northeastern part of the state. There are still some remote locations in Eastern Washington with good opportunities for gold miners. Let’s look at a few of the historically rich areas to mine for gold. Republic, […]
Gold can be found all throughout the U.S., and the state of Washington is no exception, although it gets much less attention than most other locations. One reason for this is the overall lack of any sizable gold nuggets in most of the state. Most of the gold in the state is only found as […]
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