Denver\u2019s Own \u201cProspectors\u201d <\/span><\/div>\n

Introducing Prospector Amanda Adkins Anderson<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n

<\/a><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
The Prospectors is self described as <\/span>a television show that <\/span>\u201c<\/span> follows a rag-tag gang of miners searching for the rarest gems in the U.S. in order to strike it rich.\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
The show which airs on The Weather Channel is based in several locations in and around Denver,CO. <\/span>The Busse\u2019s Mt. Antero claim; the Dorris Family\u2019s claims in Lake George and Mt. Antero; the Aquamarine King Steve Brancato\u2019s work on Mt. Antero; the many claims of Rich Fretterd and the perilous Mt. Antero claim of Amanda Adkins Anderson. We are going to take a few minutes to get to know Prospector Amanda better.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
It was great to start an interview by being able to congratulate Amanda on Prospectors being picked up for a third season! …but life has not always been perfect for Amanda Adkins Anderson. <\/span> <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Your\u2019s is a \u201cWorthwhile Journey\u201d a story of courage and perseverance…Amanda fill us in on the major detour your journey took.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda:<\/span> <\/span>I had a very unexpected shake up in my life that I wasn\u2019t sure how to come back from. In 2009 my husband was diagnosed with leukemia, and the kids and I spent as much time with him as we could and I still had to pay the bills and keep the family going. I worked harder than I ever had before and faced with a new set of challenges, the digging and the kids kept me going even after he passed away. I learned how short and precious life is and I don\u2019t take one minute for granted. I never thought I would find someone to share my life with again, someone who could understand what it is to dig full time and to work in the elements and elevation like gemstone miners do. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
I think that the viewers last season really enjoyed watching your relationship with Travis blossom.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda: <\/span>When I met Travis. I had gone from digging alone most of the time and learning that is the very scary, very quick way to get injured and stranded! I had to learn the hard way to not go digging alone after several falls, cuts, severed crushed finger and breaks. Digging alone is the worst thing a rockhound can do! Travis has taken a huge amount of worry off my mind in my daily work and life now, as well as brought his expertise, also being prospector and miner since he was a small child. He had a similar upbringing to mine, digging and mining with his father as well. We were married April 24th 2013 and he has been an amazing, uplifting bright light in my life for over a year now. I never thought I could see this happy ending in my life but I\u2019m sure glad to be living it now! As a couple, we hike farther, dig faster, and produce more gems than ever before on our own. This is an amazing new chapter in my life that keeps bringing new digging adventures our way. We have produced an incredible amount of gemstones and mineral specimens over the past year and continue to work on new locales. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
Where did you get the \u201crockhound\u201d bug? <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda: <\/span>I began mining at the age of 12 and although I had been a rockhound in West Virginia before that, 12 is the age I actually made my first gemstone sale, a brilliant garnet parcel that I had collected from the La Veta, Colorado area, not far from where we lived. My father, Greg Adkins and my cousin Oakley Adkins decided to take me on their gold panning and prospecting trips. I soon began to see the very tiny flakes of gold in my pan and my attention quickly turned to the brilliant, fiery red gems that also turned up with the black sand and gold in the pan. I would keep them in a small vile and show my father and cousin, who would just smile and let me know that those red gems were January\u2019s birthstone. I was fascinated, and HOOKED! While the gold was fun, I found hunting gemstones to be way more fun! Oakley then shared with me his many pegmatite, prospecting, and gemstone secrets and my father continued to take me hiking and gem hunting. In over two decades of prospecting Colorado now, I will never forget that first gemstone I found, or the jumpstart of knowledge and locations at a young age that I will be forever grateful for. No matter where life has taken me in the time between then and now, one thing never changed. I have always been pursuing the next gemstone locale, finding new areas, hiking a bit farther, steadily learning as I go until I turn up enough gems to keep my family going. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
But taking on prospecting as a career versus a weekend hobby is a huge step – what are some of the things you found necessary to make the leap?<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda: <\/span> <\/span>I have to say that the jump between a rockhound\/hobby and gemstone mining as a career is a huge, life altering jump. It has taken all of over two decades for me to gather the inventory, buyers, and resources needed to make this a full time job. In 2012 I was honored to win the 3rd Year Prospecting Competition by the Greater Denver Area Gem and Mineral Show. I was blown away and never expected to place in that tough competition but very honored and excited to! <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Most women would not think of full time miner when confronted with raising a large family.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda: <\/span>Raising my children while being a full time miner has its challenges but overall I think it has been good that I get to spend larger stretches of time with them when I am home, and even the times I get to take them digging with me. When the kids are sick, I do not have to call a boss and beg for time off so that has been the main plus in this particular form of self-employment. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
The Weather Channel\u2019s Prospectors must be a welcome paycheck?<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda: <\/span>The reality television series PROSPECTORS has been a most interesting event over the past couple years! Now there is a large audience following us to a couple of our favorite gemstone mines as we locate and extract gemstone pockets for the world to see, since the show is not only on the Weather Channel in America but it is also on National Geographic worldwide! <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Has your role on Prospectors opened any other doors?<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda: <\/span>This year I had the honor of being a guest on Jewelry Television (JTV) to showcase and sell, and help be the voice for American mined gemstones in their new American Splendor collection. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
I will continue to make guest appearances with them in the future. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
I always like to finish up an interview with recommendations – books and anything else my guest recommends:<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
For info on gemstone and pegmatite mining, Amanda suggests Jim Clanin\u2019s book The Fundamentals of Mining for Gemstones and Mineral Specimens. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
For prospecting supplies, mining equipment and tools, Travis and Amanda use Doc\u2019s Detecting Supply as he has generously helped us along with our tools and equipment. http:\/\/www.docsdetecting.com …you\u2019ll see these tools in action on the upcoming season 3 of Prospectors that airs in November. <\/span><\/div>\n
An edited version of this interview was printed in the 2014 Denver EZ-Guide<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Denver’s Own “Prospectors” <\/span><\/div>\n
Introducing Prospector Amanda Adkins Anderson<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
The Prospectors is self described as <\/span>a television show that <\/span>“<\/span> follows a rag-tag gang of miners searching for the rarest gems in the U.S. in order to strike it rich.”<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
The show which airs on The Weather Channel is based in several locations in and around Denver,CO. <\/span>The Busse’s Mt. Antero claim; the Dorris Family’s claims in Lake George and Mt. Antero; the Aquamarine King Steve Brancato’s work on Mt. Antero; the many claims of Rich Fretterd and the perilous Mt. Antero claim of Amanda Adkins Anderson. We are going to take a few minutes to get to know Prospector Amanda better.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
It was great to start an interview by being able to congratulate Amanda on Prospectors being picked up for a third season! …but life has not always been perfect for Amanda Adkins Anderson. <\/span> <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Your’s is a “Worthwhile Journey” a story of courage and perseverance…Amanda fill us in on the major detour your journey took.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda:<\/span> <\/span>I had a very unexpected shake up in my life that I wasn’t sure how to come back from. In 2009 my husband was diagnosed with leukemia, and the kids and I spent as much time with him as we could and I still had to pay the bills and keep the family going. I worked harder than I ever had before and faced with a new set of challenges, the digging and the kids kept me going even after he passed away. I learned how short and precious life is and I don’t take one minute for granted. I never thought I would find someone to share my life with again, someone who could understand what it is to dig full time and to work in the elements and elevation like gemstone miners do. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
I think that the viewers last season really enjoyed watching your relationship with Travis blossom.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda: <\/span>When I met Travis. I had gone from digging alone most of the time and learning that is the very scary, very quick way to get injured and stranded! I had to learn the hard way to not go digging alone after several falls, cuts, severed crushed finger and breaks. Digging alone is the worst thing a rockhound can do! Travis has taken a huge amount of worry off my mind in my daily work and life now, as well as brought his expertise, also being prospector and miner since he was a small child. He had a similar upbringing to mine, digging and mining with his father as well. We were married April 24th 2013 and he has been an amazing, uplifting bright light in my life for over a year now. I never thought I could see this happy ending in my life but I’m sure glad to be living it now! As a couple, we hike farther, dig faster, and produce more gems than ever before on our own. This is an amazing new chapter in my life that keeps bringing new digging adventures our way. We have produced an incredible amount of gemstones and mineral specimens over the past year and continue to work on new locales. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
Where did you get the “rockhound” bug? <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda: <\/span>I began mining at the age of 12 and although I had been a rockhound in West Virginia before that, 12 is the age I actually made my first gemstone sale, a brilliant garnet parcel that I had collected from the La Veta, Colorado area, not far from where we lived. My father, Greg Adkins and my cousin Oakley Adkins decided to take me on their gold panning and prospecting trips. I soon began to see the very tiny flakes of gold in my pan and my attention quickly turned to the brilliant, fiery red gems that also turned up with the black sand and gold in the pan. I would keep them in a small vile and show my father and cousin, who would just smile and let me know that those red gems were January’s birthstone. I was fascinated, and HOOKED! While the gold was fun, I found hunting gemstones to be way more fun! Oakley then shared with me his many pegmatite, prospecting, and gemstone secrets and my father continued to take me hiking and gem hunting. In over two decades of prospecting Colorado now, I will never forget that first gemstone I found, or the jumpstart of knowledge and locations at a young age that I will be forever grateful for. No matter where life has taken me in the time between then and now, one thing never changed. I have always been pursuing the next gemstone locale, finding new areas, hiking a bit farther, steadily learning as I go until I turn up enough gems to keep my family going. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
But taking on prospecting as a career versus a weekend hobby is a huge step – what are some of the things you found necessary to make the leap?<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda: <\/span> <\/span>I have to say that the jump between a rockhound\/hobby and gemstone mining as a career is a huge, life altering jump. It has taken all of over two decades for me to gather the inventory, buyers, and resources needed to make this a full time job. In 2012 I was honored to win the 3rd Year Prospecting Competition by the Greater Denver Area Gem and Mineral Show. I was blown away and never expected to place in that tough competition but very honored and excited to! <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Most women would not think of full time miner when confronted with raising a large family.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda: <\/span>Raising my children while being a full time miner has its challenges but overall I think it has been good that I get to spend larger stretches of time with them when I am home, and even the times I get to take them digging with me. When the kids are sick, I do not have to call a boss and beg for time off so that has been the main plus in this particular form of self-employment. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
The Weather Channel’s Prospectors must be a welcome paycheck?<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda: <\/span>The reality television series PROSPECTORS has been a most interesting event over the past couple years! Now there is a large audience following us to a couple of our favorite gemstone mines as we locate and extract gemstone pockets for the world to see, since the show is not only on the Weather Channel in America but it is also on National Geographic worldwide! <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Has your role on Prospectors opened any other doors?<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
Amanda: <\/span>This year I had the honor of being a guest on Jewelry Television (JTV) to showcase and sell, and help be the voice for American mined gemstones in their new American Splendor collection. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
I will continue to make guest appearances with them in the future. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
I always like to finish up an interview with recommendations – books and anything else my guest recommends:<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
For info on gemstone and pegmatite mining, Amanda suggests Jim Clanin’s book The Fundamentals of Mining for Gemstones and Mineral Specimens. <\/span><\/div>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n
For prospecting supplies, mining equipment and tools, Travis and Amanda use Doc’s Detecting Supply as he has generously helped us along with our tools and equipment. http:\/\/www.docsdetecting.com …you’ll see these tools in action on the upcoming season 3 of Prospectors that airs in November. <\/span><\/div>\n
An edited version of this interview was printed in the 2014 Denver EZ-Guide<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":102,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/userblogs.ganoksin.com\/jewelrygemartisans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/userblogs.ganoksin.com\/jewelrygemartisans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/userblogs.ganoksin.com\/jewelrygemartisans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/userblogs.ganoksin.com\/jewelrygemartisans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/102"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/userblogs.ganoksin.com\/jewelrygemartisans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/userblogs.ganoksin.com\/jewelrygemartisans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":102,"href":"https:\/\/userblogs.ganoksin.com\/jewelrygemartisans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101\/revisions\/102"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/userblogs.ganoksin.com\/jewelrygemartisans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/userblogs.ganoksin.com\/jewelrygemartisans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/userblogs.ganoksin.com\/jewelrygemartisans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}