Amethyst Mine Panorama

Amethyst Mine Panorama - just west of the city of Thunder Bay, in Northwestern Ontario - is a *ahem* GEM of a tourist attraction.

I’ve been there several times over the decades, starting when I was a young kid. I know we visited at least once, en route from my hometown of Winnipeg, to see my great aunt in Ottawa.

IMHO, it’s my favourite of the must-see destinations that we make a point of going to, whenever we’re in the area. Amethysts and the Terry Fox Memorial, anyway!

We went last year when staying at Sleeping Giant Provincial Park, and this year again when staying at Kakebeka Falls.

Anyway, the mine is an operating amethyst mine and quarry, but offers both conducted and self-guided tours, a super cute gift shop, and - most importantly - pick your own amethyst!

It’s been owned by the same family since the early 1900s, and it’s just a really fun thing to do.

Oh, and visiting as an adult - with credit cards! - is a WILDLY different experience than visiting with your economically challenged mother, as a child.

If you’re basically a human magpie.... you know, just be forewarned.

Anyway, let us tell you about it!

The Basics:

Location Name: Amethyst Mine Panorama
Address: 500 Bass Lake Rd, Shuniah, ON P0T 2M0 (Take the East Loon Road exit off the Trans Canada Highway)
Website: Amethyst Mine Panorama
Price: $10/person to visit the outdoors area. Free if you’re just shopping in the store.
Reservations: N/A

Logistics

Some basic information to help you plan your trip to Amethyst Mine Panorama:

Registration and Check In

Upon arrival at Amethyst Mine Panorama, you’ll check in at the gift shop, and one of the friendly owners - or , in the case of our 2024 trip, their daughter - will get you checked in.

You don’t need to book ahead - unless you’re bringing a group of 10 or more.

Maps and Signage

This is a very small attraction. Once you turn on the road from the highway, it’s really obvious where to go.

That said, there are cute little road signs along the way, updating you on how much further you have to go, and.. Cheering your progress.

There were no maps as far as we saw, but it’s a really open layout - you can basically see everything from just outside of the gift shop.

Parking

There’s a large parking lot in front of the gift shop, with plenty of room for pull-through RV parking. You will not need to worry about backing out or having to turn around.

That said, the road up to the parking lot is long - 8 km! - rough, and steep in places. If I recall correctly, the signage said a 10% grade.

Washrooms

The public washrooms are a couple of outhouses in the parking lot... and they look straight out of a horror movie.

I would seriously rather risk a bladder infection and HOLD IT for as long as needed, than to even peek in there to see what terrors they contain.

Accessibility

So... not the most accessible activity ever.

There is an accessible parking space, and the gift shop is wheelchair accessible. Also, they provide free admission for support persons.

The outhouses outside don’t appear to be wheelchair accessible, though - to be honest - I didn’t get close enough for a good assessment.

Beyond that, the tour isn’t all that accessible - unpaved walk, steps up to the truck - but it’s short and easy enough for those with non-wheelchair mobility issues.

As for the mine your own, it’s not at all wheelchair accessible, and walking on the rocks is VERY hard on the feet, if you have any mobility issues. My arches tend to hate me after just a few minutes.

Also, you’ll need to bend / crouch a lot, to pick your amethysts.

Connectivity

We had decent cell service when we checked our phones at a couple points, but we were just checking weather, mapping, that kind of thing.

Not sure how the connection was in terms of bigger upload/download needs.

Pets

Dogs are allowed at Amethyst Mine Panorama, as long as they’re leashed, well behaved, and picked up after.

Entertainment and Activity

Some information on the things you can see and do at Amethyst Mine Panorama:

Amethyst Mine Gift Shop

The first - and last - stop at Amethyst Mine Panorama is the cute little rock shop.

This is not only where you pay for your admission on the way in -and your “dig your own” amethysts on the way out - it’s also a full out gift shop, with all manner of amethyst goods.

You can get everything from fairly cheese “pet rock” amethysts - Googly eyes and all - to jewelry, all at great prices.

There are even tables upon tables of garden stone pieces for sale, outside.

Amethyst Mine Panorama makes a lot of the items they sell, and sends their stone away to crafts people to make the things they don’t.

Beyond finished goods, you can also buy straight amethysts. These can range from bags of raw stones, to smooth, tumbled amethysts.

They even have gorgeous “points” of amethysts - nicer quality crystals, some pretty large.

So many pretty things!

Amethyst Mine Tour

Semi-private tours are in included in the price of admission. Sometimes there’s a group, sometimes it’s just your own party. No set schedule, they just run them as needed.

Our 2024 trip was the first time we’ve actually taken the tour, usually opting to walk amongst the displays ourselves.

The signage is fantastic - we learned that Amethyst is the official gemstone of Ontario, that amethyst crystals are always 6 sided, that amethysts can range in colour from light lilac to almost black, and that IRON is what causes the purple colour of the quartz crystals.

There was also a sign detailing the legend of the mine, which involve Bacchus - yes, the god of wine - and a princess that went to Lake Superior to worship at “Diana’s Grotto”.

Um. Ok. I suppose Roman Gods hanging out in Ontario isn’t necessarily the weirdest thing we’ve heard lately...

Anyway, our tour was conducted by the owner of the mine, and it was just the 3 of us.

The owner led us along the displays, stopping to talk a little about each one, and tell us more about the geology of the gemstones.

The quarry was actually operating at the time of our visit, which was really cool to see.

They’d just uncovered a big vein of amethyst, which was REALLY clear to see, even from that far away!

Amethyst Mining

Aside from the commercial mining going on down in the quarry below, the BIG draw of Amethyst Mine Panorama is the opportunity to dig your own Amethysts.

No real need for mining gloves or any special equipment, though - Loaders dump big piles of rocks in the DIY amethyst mine area, and you just walk over them and take your pick.

Literally!

There is something just incredibly cool about walking over piles and piles of amethysts, as far as you can see! Really a unique experience.

Usually, there’s an area that’s more “fresh” - a more recent dumping of rocks, that’s been less picked-over. I’ve never seen a time where it was in any way difficult to find amethysts, though!

Once you’ve filled your bucket with as many rocks as you care to, you can head over to the washing station.

Here, you use water and little scrubbers to remove excess dirt, evaluate your haul, and downsize - if needed.

(Note: There was also a hose running, out in the piles of rock, for more instant rinsing!)

Once you’ve narrowed down what you want to keep, it’s time to get it weighed in the amethyst shop.

Then, you pay the - incredibly reasonable! - rate of $5/lb for your rocks, and you’re done!

Birding, Wildlife, and Nature

At one point, a large bird was soaring overhead, but I wasn’t able to identify it. Probably some kind of hawk?

That was the only wildlife we saw during our stay, but - let’s be real - we don’t go to an amethyst mine to go bird watching!

Niantic Games

There’s a single Pokestop / Ingress Portal at the mine - the Gift Shop - and another one partway along the road to the mine.

Final Thoughts

I just asked Porter for his final thoughts on the mine, and he - with a grin - told me it’s a GEM.

Poor guy, had to tell him I already made that corny pun. Ah, the downsides of sharing a brain.

Anyway, we love Amethyst Mine Panorama. We’ve been there several times as a couple - even in addition to my childhood visits - and it’s definitely something we look forward to when visiting the Thunder Bay area.

Each time, we have a great time hunting for amethysts, buy far more than we intend to, marvel over how affordable it actually was (probably some degree of justification involved here), and make some big plans for what we’re going to do with our haul.

Then we find the bags months later, forget the previous plans, stash them... and repeat the whole cycle!

I’m probably not selling it, but trust me - you should definitely check it out, when in the area!

More Places to See

Looking for some nice sights to see and great places to visit while you're out on your camping adventures? Here are a few of our favourite day use parks, attractions, etc.

Batchawana Bay
Big Bay, Ontario
Bruce Peninsula National Park
Canada's Dinosaur Park
Chippewa Falls
Falls Reserve Conservation Area
Flowerpot Island
Gariepy Creek Falls
Menesetung Bridge
Mink Creek Falls
Onaping Falls
Petroglyphs Provincial Park
Point Pelee National Park
Provoking Falls
Sand River Falls
Scenic Caves Nature Adventures
Scenic High Falls
Screaming Heads
Spirit Rock Conservation Area
Temagami Fire Tower