Western North Carolina is known for its hills full of hidden treasures. From rubies and sapphires to emeralds and gold, the region is stocked with gems, stones and minerals still waiting to be ...

This story was published in partnership with The Maine Monitor, a nonprofit and nonpartisan news organization. To get regular coverage from the Monitor, sign up for a free Monitor newsletter here. The ...

A quiet Gold Rush continues in Oregon’s high desert. Serious rockhounds, weekend prospectors and people selling the state’s official gemstone are staking claims and digging for sunstones. Sunstones?

Rockhounding is not a hobby you hear about every day. Loosely defined as the practice of recreationally hunting for gems and semi-precious stones in their natural habitats, it's primarily seen as a ...

What is now desert was once under water, back when giant marine reptiles swam freely in a shallow sea that would later become Nevada’s Great Basin. Major geological activity happened, making way for ...

To mark International Women’s Day we’re digging into an often overlooked, but critical sector for the global economy, and for many millions of women: Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM). From gold, ...

EMERALD GLOW At 11 685 ct, Imboo was unearthed by skillfully breaking the emerald free from the surrounding matrix by hand Gemstone miner Gemfields has mined its biggest emerald from its Kagem Mining ...

From this Virginia village with peaceful trails and a picturesque vineyard to "The Hiking Capital of Western North Carolina," the Blue Ridge Mountains offer so much culture and natural beauty to ...