spruce pine mining district

this weekend, we're following the black urbanite road to see the wonderful wizard of the spruce pine mining district. yippee! this trip even includes a night-time trip to a mine in search of fluorescent minerals! the spruce pine mining district is a swath of the valley of the north toe river in northwestern north carolina that is home to one of the richest deposits of gems and minerals in the world. if you want to know more... this site has a great description and history: http://www.mitchell-county.com/festival/spminingdistrict.html BTW, for some reason my blog will not let me add photos or videos anymore... or hotlinks. if this has happened to anyone else, please let me know! too weird!