crow creek mine

OK, so I know the gold they give you to try your hand at mining is foil, but who cares! You are here for the experience and at the very, so very, slim chance that you may find a nugget or two. This place is great for kids to get in the river and for those who are seriously trying to find that yellow stuff. We rented a sluice box and some pans, another in our party went on a photographers dream shoot. All of us had a great time and we actually did find a small piece of gold, (I'm talking sand grain), but how many people can say they spent the day panning for gold in Alaska! The grounds are beautiful and the road is not that bumpy. Come on people, it's gravel with some pot holes. If you aren't afraid to have fun and get dirty this is the place. Some nice hiking spots along the road to the mine, but we were to focused on getting rich to stop. If you really want to get a SHINER, make sure you do the kiss the river ceremony before you start ** not recommended or encouraged for anyone, just happens when you are to excited! The rocks are slippery, but there are many areas with easy access. I would recommend for the serious hunters to bring a metal detector. They do not rent them, but you can get everything else. The girl who helped us check in was not very friendly and appeared to be bored with the repetitive annoyance of tourists, but everyone else in the place was happy to give advice and show you around. Nice relaxing day...

This is a must see if you like history. I learned so much about the state settlement by going to this site. Take time to go in the museum.

Okay you're sat in a river but this is a great way to spend an afternoon. If nothing else you start to appreciate how tough the early prospectors had it.Beautiful location and helpful staff. Worth a look.

This was a little 'real' piece of heaven. Stop and smell the roses kind of places that isn't appreciated by the 'fast pace' that most people are used to these days. Kinda makes one slow down and enjoy the surroundings and think of just how patient the old miners really HAD to be when panning for gold and what a wonderful miracle it must have been when one really struck gold! Personally, I did find some gold there, whether big or small, just being there and being in that serene setting was quite enough for me... I'll always have those memories implanted in my mind.... and I'm writing from an experience I had back in 1988!!! Want to go back and LIVE there... that's my kind of living and appreciating life and just keeping things simple.... RU still there Cindy? Love you.... Gail (Harris) Duffany, Nashua, NH

Expensive to mine.$20pp,$10 to watch. Beautiful area. kids liked looking for Gold as we relaxed. there was a picnic table down by the river

A great fun place for the kids. Note: Adults with kids - you don't need to purchase a panning option. Just get it for the kids. Our kids had fun finding the gold flakes, and then spent over an hour just playing among the rocks and water. Nice quiet time for parents to relax and chat. Remember to have extra shoes for the kids in the car.

We had a great visit at the Crow Creek mine. We spent about two hours here. Many people have mentioned that it is kind of cheesy, but what do you expect if you are panning for gold? They teach you the fundamentals of panning, and you pay for a presorted bag that has some gold in it. You're guaranteed to find some. If you truly want an authentic experience of being on the river, this is not for you. The people that own the place are very educational, take their time, and do a great job with the children.

A friend texted me while we were on vacation in the area and said "you've got to go here. My friend, Nate, runs the place!" So we called Nate (super nice guy!) and made arrangements for our 15 1/2-year-old son to work the creek with a sluce box. Because our son had already done some gold panning on other Alaska creeks he understood the dynamics, but the staff showed him a few pointers and inside tricks. Once on the creek he waded out to the sand bar, set up the sluce box, and within minutes was rewarded with a flake of gold! Yureka! While he spent several hours happily slucing anf panning my husband and I explored the beautiful grounds, admired the flowers, and wandered through the exhibits and restored buildings. The place has a very laid-back feel and the staff are welcoming/happy to answer questions. I had a very nice chat with Nate about how he had come to be in the gold mining business and how the "professional" mining was done during the winter months. Fascinating. COLD! Specifics: easy to get to from Anchorage, reasonably priced, well-maintained/organized, FUN! There are very few commercial places that allow you to take a pan down to a river unsupervised and pan your heart out. Or, who will work with you on a "mining expedition" (additional cost, book ahead) where you can pan with experts. Can you guess what my son wants to do on our next trip?

We stopped here a bit late in the day, so we were only able to walk around and take pictures. We would have liked to have spent more time there. Very rustic and picturesque.

Staff were enthusiastic about showing you how to pan for gold, had a good practice, then walk through village to Creek which was very scenic. Souvenir shop lacked imagination my 14yr needed more going on and of course a chance to get a nugget!

My kids, ages seven and eight and I went to crow creek today. The grounds are very pretty. The kids got a short demonstration of how to pan for gold then got to practice with the small bag. We headed to the creek to pan afterwards. My daughter got bored with the actual panning pretty quickly, but built a fairy house along the creek while my son panned. We did not find anything, but he loved it. It was the highlight of his trip so far. You really don't need more than a couple of hours here unless you have lots of patience. The cost was very affordable. I paid ten because I did not pan. My daughter was 10 because she is seven and they charged 15 for my son. The staff was very nice. We packed a lunch and ate at the table near the gift shop when we were done.

This is a true working mine. The property is kept nicely with beautiful flowers and restored buildings. The staff are very helpful training the customer to use the gold pan. Everyone gets a few flakes of gold in their practice dirt! Then it's down the path to the river to try your hand at real gold panning! A great way to spend a few hours!

we spent a couple of hours here during our trip. like others have said, the road to get there is unpaved and bumpy but it's not too bad. at the base area there are a lot of beautiful flowers and old historic buildings. we took some of our best pictures of our trip walking around here. there is a small gift shop there and they host events such as weddings, etc. if you pan for gold, you get a little 5 minute training session at the base and they give you a small vial with 2-3 shavings of gold to practice panning with. you get to keep those shavings in the vial...and it will most likely be the only gold you find! after that you walk down about a 0.5 mile trail to the river/panning area and you're kind of on your own. there are tools for digging down there and pans. you just kind of walk around and pan until you realize that you're not going to strike it rich. when we were there a large group of school kids or kids from a camp were there so it was kind of chaotic and crowded down by the water. we really only stayed for about 20 minutes to pan.it's worth the money to go here just for the beauty of the grounds. definitely don't go though if you plan on paying for your trip with your gold findings! it ain't gonna happen.

We did the sightseeing plan only - panning for gold cost extra for supplies, etc. But there was plenty to see. Historic buildings are very interesting, and the Crow Creek was beautiful. Be forewarned - the road to drive here is unpaved.

We are so thrilled that we chose to have our wedding at Crow Creek Mine. We couldn’t have asked for a more naturally beautiful, rustic setting for our special day. We had 75 guests and we felt that there was plenty of space for everyone. I think the venue could easily have accommodated up to 100, maybe more. The contacts at the mine will know better than us since they host many weddings of various sizes. Our point of contact, David Green, was so friendly and helpful throughout the whole process. The weather held up for us thankfully. Our guests were so impressed by the venue and the setting. We cannot wait to see our professional photos, but the ones our friends and family took have already come out so great. It is hard to take a bad picture at Crow Creek Mine. It was a magical day. Thanks for everything! ~Natalie and Kyle