The wife and I have been going to Duke's for over 20 years. They taught me how to pan, they wife how to find that beautiful gem stone, and it has been worth it. It all started as fun and still is. Watching others that come in and helping them learn and have a lot of fun while doing so brings a smile to my face. No you won't get rich but some of the gold over that I got when it was less than $1k is now worth much more and locked in a safe. I bring bags home to pan over time. Go and have fun a watch the little ones faces light up when finding that first piece of gold or a nice piece of gem stone. read more

Dukes Creek Mines is well worth the price!!!! We did the large Gem bucket white tier and split it between the two kids. They both got an amazing amount of rocks and gems. The man working that day was so amazing to our family and let our kids crack open two Geodes!!!! Dukes is located right outside of Helen and Clarksville and absolutely worth visiting!!!! read more

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This was a fun afternoon adventure for our family - we loved finding everything in our bucket!

We had a great time Friday morning doing Gem and Fossil mining with my 7yo. Lots of beautiful stones, and they didn't rush us out at all. Really nice gentleman there who helped us identify many of the stones and fossils in our buckets. great experience! Sad it was only open Fri, Sat, Sun as we may have gone more than once! read more

When you go to a place like this, you should know that it is a tourist trap. So you go with the idea that you are getting to experience a piece of history. You are getting to experience a small part of old world culture. You are there to have fun. So if you spend $10 to $20 on a bucket, so be it. Enjoy yourself and have a little fun. You aren't going to strike it rich. But you get to enjoy people that are spending some time with people that are extremely friendly and throwbacks to a time gone by. Again, it is a tourist trap. But who cares if you had fun. It is a fun distraction for kids and they really feel like they have struck it rich with all the gems the get. So, if this sounds like your thing, go for it. As for me and my family, we had a blast. read more

Dukes Creek Mines - Dukes Creek Mines - Jewelry Near Me - Helen, Georgia

My kids were kept enthralled for at least an hour. The owner spent a huge amount of time with them identifying the different rocks. They had so much fun they talked me into a fossil bucket. It's was a geology lesson for us all. read more

Dukes Creek Mines - Sifting - Jewelry Near Me - Helen, Georgia

Great place to pan for gold or look for gems everyone found what they were looking for and had a blast while mining id recommend this place to everyone. read more

We bought a large bucket for $18 and got more fun surprises than I would have expected. The buckets are prefilled and contain many large "gems." 2 happy kids and a good amount of entertainment for $20 read more

After reading the Yelp reviews we stopped here for our gem paning and were richly rewarded. There are 4 of us so we paid $50 for the big family bucket and got A LOT of big crystals! One of my boys had 2 zip lock bags full. We loved the wandering cats and the gentleman who worked there was quiet but friendly. We kinda rushed it and probably spend only about 30 minutes but could have easily stretched it longer if we took time to see what each crystal or gem was. read more

Great place. We went last summer. This summer we went to their sister place called Outpost Mining which is in town. The older gentleman there was very helpful and nice. The kids loved it and wanted to keep doing it after our $80 family bucket ran out. They scored huge amethyst and other gems. Would highly recommend it! read more

Went there this weekend and both our boys (ages 11 and 9) loved it. We were there for over an hour with them looking for gems. The lady working there helped them identify the different types they were finding and was super nice. Not too busy, worth the stop. They could've spent the whole day there, we will definitely be back!! read more

The kids loved this place! The man running the shop was very helpful with identifying the stones and even taught my daughter the stones and how to tell the difference. Great experience. read more

My husband, two boys, and I panned for gold and sluiced for gems and had a blast! The owner spent some time showing us the proper way to pan and it payed off. In our little $12 bucket we found 4 pieces! David (the owner) is as nice as can be and VERY knowledgeable. Don't pass this place by! read more

I agree with the other reviews. Yes, it's a tourist trap but your kids will love it! We paid $20 for a large bucket and my kids thought it was the best thing ever sifting through the dirt and finding little treasures. We also bought a small keeper bag inside so they'll always have those rocks/memories of the trip. read more

This is great. Mr. Dale is lovely and its a relaxing outdoor activity that kids really get into. It was our favorite thing in Helen. Very rustic and peaceful and just real nice people running it. Every one was just relaxed and smiling and laughing the whole time. Bring a change of clothes for messy kids cause they will get a little messy and love it. read more