What You'll Get
Without the ingenuity of gem miners, prospective grooms would be forced to fish for precious stones from the bellybuttons of trolls. Avoid upsetting unsuspecting ogres with today's Groupon: for $16, you get a two-gallon bucket of mixed gemstones and more for panning (a $32 value) at Copperhead Creek Gem Mine and Rock Shop, located in Nashville on the southwest corner of the Iris Garden Complex (44 miles south of Indianapolis).
Located in the beating heart of Brown County, Indiana, the Copperhead Creek Gem Mine and Rock Shop puts wannabe prospectors in the scraggly-bearded panner's seat. Present your Groupon and a rocker will hand over a giant bucket of mining rough, which you'll take to the old-fashioned water sluice. Therein, you'll slowly pan through your dirt to discover a guaranteed bounty of gemstones, arrowheads, minerals, Vitamin C tablets, and other lauded geological finds, a composite mixture gathered from more than 12 mines. Each digger also receives an identification card, enabling visitors to match a bonanza of earthbound treasures to their names and previous mothers.
Personal mining trips don't require a creaky subsurface rollercoaster or fluency in stalactite dialects. All of the painless excavation takes place on Copperhead's friendly premises, resulting in a relaxing, educational activity that is fun for families. Use your newfound shiny geodes to trick out a boring Trapper Keeper, or pawn them off as currency to gullible aliens.
The Fine Print
Promotional value expires Jul 9, 2011. Amount paid never expires. Limit 1 per person per visit. Tax not included. Not valid with other offers. Merchant is solely responsible to purchasers for the care and quality of the advertised goods and services.
About Copperhead Creek Gem Mining Company
Where prospectors once used the running waters of a river to search their hauls for gems and gold, Copperhead Creek Gem Mining Company employs a winding wooden sluice. Deputized geologists shovel scoops of raw material sourced from 12 mines into wire mesh sifters, allowing the current to carry off the dirt and reveal the colorful stones that lie within. The company also offers bags of mining rough that are likely to contain fossils and arrowheads, along with geodes that visitors can crack at home by using a hammer or throwing them really hard against a tree.