Travel & Vacation Guide, North Carolina

By David Cowley

Not every buried treasure has been discovered. There still is a remarkable quantity of quality treasures still in Mother Earth, including the semi-precious stones to be found at Gem Mountain in North Carolina. One of the biggest draws to Gem Mountain is aquamarine treasure hunting. You find it - you keep it. It’s as fun and as simple as that.

Aquamarine is a transparent gemstone variety of beryl. It is closely related to the emeral and the most common color is a delicate blue or turquiose that will remind you of the sea. Other colors can vary from yellow to rosey pink. The more intense the color the more valuable it is and can fetch from $120 to $500 a carat.

Rock hounding

One of the more popular of hobbies for Americans and Europeans is called rock hounding, or treasure hunting. You can hunt for any kind of treasure from gold coins, artifacts or semi-precious stones. Although metal detectors are used in other aspects of treasure hunting, they won’t be of much help with aquamarine treasure hunting. You need small pneumatic drills, picks, shovels and brushes … and a good pair of eyes.

Not only does aquamarine treasure hunting combine the thrill of the hunt with a practical skill, you get to meet lots of other people and often get to go traveling in beautiful outdoor locations. Gem Mountain, for example, is located in the outdoors of beautiful Mitchell County, North Carolina. Admission is free and all tools are provided.

Myth And March

If you were born in March, then you will have a special reason to go aquamarine treasure hunting, because it is your birthstone. It is also the stone to give as presents on your 16 Th and 19 Th wedding anniversaries. Legend has it that wearing or keeping an aquamarine on your person not only kept you safe at sea, but kept you from seasickness.

Over the years, aquamarines are said to give whoever wears them courage, happiness and the ability to see into the future. It is also supposed to make your smarter and to make you more appear more youthful. During the Middle Ages, it was thought to be an effective antidote against poisons, which is not currently recommended. However, the pale blues are often very calming and have been used to help anxiety.

According to ancient Indian and Tibetan healing systems, the body has seven centers of energy called charkas. The throat charka is said to be a blue color, and so blue or blue-ish stones like aquamarine are said to help the wearer not only with throat problems, but in help being able to communicate what they really feel.

Bushy Creak Mine

Whatever your reason for aquamarine treasure hunting, you are sure to have a fun time at North Carolina’s Gem Mountain. Tools needed to hunt in the mine query are provided by the mine operators if available. Should you want to bring your own tools be sure to include a shovel, shifting screen, safety goggles, gloves pick, rock hammer and something to carry your treasures in. They will also inspect all of your gem stones you unearth at no extra charge. Gem cutters are on hand to cut and polish your gemstones. If you are unable to get to North Carolina then you can mining buckets ranging from $15 to $120.

Happy Treasure Hunting.

David Cowley has created numerous articles on Treasure Hunting. He has also created a Web Site dedicated to Treasure Hunting. Visit Treasure Hunting

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By H. Tim Sevets

North Carolina, where I currently reside, is a paradise for water lovers. People flock here from all over the United States, as well as from other countries, to enjoy the abundance of boating and fishing opportunities offered by the state’s Outer Banks, barrier islands, sounds, marshes and rivers, as well as the waves and surf of the mighty Atlantic Ocean.

Paddling sports are especially popular in the state, and growing more so. Pam Malec has addressed the need for a good pointer to the area’s best coastal paddling spots with her indispensable book, Guide to Sea Kayaking in North Carolina; The Best Day Trips and Tours from Currituck to Cape Fear.

Malec outlines 35 kayaking routes, each with detailed directions and maps along with estimated round-trip times and difficulty ratings. She also provides tips on nearby sights, places to eat, and so on. This information is accompanied by evocative black-and-white photographs of lighthouses, town waterfronts, bridges, wild ponies and windswept dunes.

As I live in the central part of North Carolina (known as the Piedmont), I do most of my paddling at a nearby lake. The first time I went to the coast after buying this book, I leapt at the opportunity to put my kayak into the salt water and to follow one of Malec’s suggested tours – which happened to be the trip from the mainland to Bear Island and Hammocks Beach State Park. The route was exactly as she described (right down to her warning about how changeable the tidal current is in that area!). I’m looking forward now to going back and trying some of her other suggested routes.

Pam Malec had been kayaking for more than 25 years at the time this book was first published. She is considered one of the leading authorities nationally on surf kayaking, and she wrote the curriculum for one of the top recognized surf kayaking instruction courses.

Guide to Sea Kayaking in North Carolina is published by The Globe Pequot Press of Guilford, Connecticut; ISBN # 0-7627-0817-4.

H. Tim Sevets is books editor for the Solid Gold Info Writers Consortium, where he specializes in objective reviews of the top money-making reports available over the Web. Recently, he reviewed an e-book that claims to show how to make money by tearing up old books and magazines and selling them on eBay. Read his opinion at http://www.solid-gold.info/tear-up-old-books-sell-ebay.html.

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