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Gems of Pala

The Stewart Mine near the center of the famous Pala Mining District, known for its gorgeous tourmalines is no longer actively mined. The owner still makes money from the mine by selling buckets and bags of gravel from inside the mine. On weekends amateur rock hounds can buy some Stewart Mine gravel and sort through it with the hopes of finding their very own tourmaline. Gems of Pala is a rustic set up that operates out of a run-down trailer that also serves as a gift shop. They have a large screening station set-up and offer two sorting sessions a day. We took our bags of gravel with us and screened them at home but the place was packed with people screening there. The best tourmaline crystal we found fell to the ground as the gravel was being shoveled into our bags. After all our work cleaning and sorting through the gravel we found nothing else but tiny chips of color. We had a good time doing it so it wasn’t a total loss. Caution: Call before visiting as operations seemed rather informal and apt to change.

Phone: (760) 742-1356
Address: From I-15 take Hwy 76 east towards Mt. Palomar. After 7.2 miles turn left at Magee Rd, follow signs into parking lot.