A Day in Dahlonega

The whole 4th grade took a field trip to Dahlonega

and I was able to tag along.

Since it's about an hour away,

I was happy to ride in a car with other moms,

rather than a bus full of 4th graders!  :)

We panned for gold,

took a fun tractor ride,

had a picnic lunch,

learned about the history of Dahlonega & gold mining,

and even bought some fudge at a candy store on the square to end the day!

It was a beautiful day ...

and I was very happy to spend it with Jarrett.

Time spent with him and his class is a rare treasure ...

Our first stop ...

Checking out one of the old fashioned machines that busted up rock ...

LOUD!!

We found out that most men that worked this machine went deaf as they aged ...

I totally understand why!

A fun little tractor ride through the woods ...

Getting directions on how to pan for gold ...

the water was C-O-L-D!!

J-man working hard ...

See those bright little flakes at the top of his pan?

Success!

They also got to mine for gemstones ...

this was Jarrett's favorite out of the ones he found.

Next up was the museum on the square.

We watched a movie on the history of gold in Dahlonega.

I thought it was super interesting ... 

the kids - not so much!

We then went downstairs and had a guided tour of some artifacts.

Again, very interesting!

Jarrett's class - his teacher, Mr. Cone, is on the left ...

So glad to soak up some hours with my oldest ...

time is going by WAY too fast!