On a recent tour of Eldorado Gold Mine near Fairbanks, Alaska, not only did I discover a few flecks of gold in my gold pan, but I also enjoyed one of Alaska’s most entertaining and informative day tours.
It was mid-morning as I waited with about 70 other tourists to board an old replica of the Tanana Valley Railroad, laid out on a closed track adjacent to some historic gold fields of the early 1900s.
Guests pan for gold at Eldorado Mine
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Before the train left the station, Earl Hughes, considered by many to be the Ambassador of Alaska, entertained passengers. With his guitar and violin, he played a variety of Alaska songs and spouted frontier witticisms that had the crowds shouting and laughing. And we hadn’t even left the station.
Once we were under way, Hughes told us how the original train served more than 24 gold camps scattered throughout the river country and flats of Interior Alaska.
With the train’s open windows and sides, there’s much to see. I had close-up views of old gold dredges, wagons and boilers that were frozen in time like rusty ghosts. Workers were busy along the tracks, as this route still supports an active mine, where excavating and maintenance are done each day. We stopped at several locations to hear from local miners on the details of Alaska gold mining, including the geology and the equipment involved. I especially enjoyed the trip into the permafrost tunnel, where a miner explained how mineral and gold deposits were often found in the vicinity of saber-tooth tiger bones and mastodon ivory tusks more than 30,000 years old.
The next stop was El Dorado Camp, an active mining operation. We disembarked the train, and watched a front-end loader dump gold-bearing soil into one end of a huge sluice box lined on both sides by eager tourists. This process is eagerly explained and demonstrated by the husband-and-wife mining team of Dexter and "Yukon Yonda" Clark. While the ground may contain gold, Dexter and Yonda are the true gems of the camp with their colorful insights and humor. Theirs is a family operation, with more than 25 years of experience.
Guests are patiently taught how to pan for gold by attentive assistants before getting a poke of pay dirt to find some "color" for themselves. The water is warm and, even if it rains, covered areas ensure that hands are the only body part that gets wet.
Everyone is guaranteed to find gold, and when they do, they take it to the Cook Shack to have it weighed and priced. While waiting, visitors can take a look at the 19-ounce gold nugget on display valued at $25,000; the impressive photo gallery featuring historic photos of the Tanana Valley Railroad; or the various ice-age mammoth tusks and fossilized bones on display.
Guests enjoyed a handful of hot cookies before boarding the train for the short ride back to the depot. The tour ended with a few final songs from Hughes.
This year, the mine is open from May 12 to Sept. 19. Tours are $34.95 for adults and $22.95 for children ages 3 to 12. Children under 3 are free. Tours depart the train station at 9:45 a.m. and 3 p.m. daily except Saturday, when there is an afternoon tour only. Tours are commissionable to agents.
866-479-6673
www.eldoradogoldmine.com
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