Eagle Mining Company
2320 C St
Julian, CA 92036
Eagle Mining Co. preserves two of the region’s few remaining gold mines open to the public. For $10, visitors enjoy a 1-hour guided tour of the conjoined Eagle and High Peak Mines.
Mining In Julian and the Eagle Mine
The Eagle and High Peak Mines were part of a gold rush in the region that saw around 200 gold mines established in a single year at the conclusion of the Civil War. Former confederate soldiers, freed slaves, and other Georgians traveled west, looking for new opportunities. The concentration of mines in this mountainous section of Southern California, 60 miles north-east of Sand Diego, lead to the establishment of modern Julian, California by Mike Julian and his cousins, the Baileys.
Tour the Eagle Mining Company
Tours of the Eagle Mining Co. include a yard full of period tools with a display on the milling and extraction process, a walking tour through the historic 1870 mining operation, and gold panning.
While many tours include panning for gold, the Eagle Mine’s rich catch and release gold panning is particularly illustrative for those inexperienced in gold panning. The trough is generously salted with gold flakes so that visitors can easily watch the gold and black sand settle to the bottom of the pan as they gently wash wash away extra material.
Getting to the Eagle Mining Company
Visiting Eagle and High Peak Mines is a little over a 1-hour drive north-east of San Diego. The small downtown area of Julian is worth including in your visit for the historic buildings, cute shops, and homestyle cooking.