Cowee Valley Ruby -- Franklin, NC

Hey Gold Adventurers...

Several years back I had the chance to take leave in January from my Air Force duties in Charleston, SC, and hit the hills......in North Georgia and Southern North Carolina.  I did some fly fishing in freezing weather and enjoyed the hills, time away from the office.

While in North Georgia I came across literature touting the BIG gem and mineral history of Franklin, NC, which was just across the border, so I drove up there one morning, hoping to work/dig in one of their pay-to-play gem mines.....maybe find me a nice sapphire or ruby to get mounted as a gift for my super wonderful wife Dee.

Sadly, it was a Sunday and about everything was closed down.  Bummer.....  Finally, I did find one local gem shop that opened up at noon.  They had an AMAZING array of precious & semi-precious gems stones......on display.....in their raw form, cut form and in jewelry.

I ended up buying a nice Cowee Valley ruby in the shape of a teardrop....about 3.1 karats, if I remember correctly.  I had the jeweler mount it in a 14Kt yellow gold holder. Yeay, it has some black inclusions in the stone, so way less than perfect, but that kinda adds to its uniqueness in my book.

Here's a few pics:




When I got home I took Dee out to a fancy dinner, gave the ruby to her as a toke of my love.  She was more than a little surprised I came back with such a cool gift for her.  To this day she wears it all the time, probably one of here most favorite pieces of jewelry I have ever given her.  

Maybe next time I'll hit Franklin, NC, on a day other than Sunday and dig/wash my own gems stones...

Randy  "C-17A"  

I have a similar Ruby from Georgia that I bought from a good friend in need!