There are precious gems all around us, you just have to know how to look for them. Watch this video to learn how to use a sluice and goldwheel to separate sapphires and rubies from gravel. Prospecting can be very lucrative!
Do not discount the "pretty" rocks found along with gold. The sapphires you see are worth many times more than gold. Sapphire (& Ruby, (corundum), is like garnet, a relatively high specific gravity that will catch in a sluice readily. These gems act as gold, they will drop behind a boulder, in bedrock cracks, and set up in the stratiform layers of a bar on the inside bend of a stream. In a perfect (laboratory world) a river bar sets up from front to back: Gold, Platinum, Lead, Iron Ore (black...
if you are looking for a hobby that will pay for itself over time, consider faceting stones. Precious gems like sapphires and rubies are a sound investment that will never lose value, and you can produce them from your home with the right equipment.
