(The next few days, I will be posting from the road as my son and I drive back from Iowa to Oregon. Tonight we are in Rapid City, South Dakota) 

Gave a nice tip to our tour guide for the Big Thunder mine in Keystone, SD. It is easy to forget the importance of the guide to bring life and character to a tour. 

My son wanted to pan for gold. Given that we are staying in one of the most important gold mining regions in the United States, we did not have to look far.

Th Big Thunder Gold Mine, in Keystone, South Dakota is a restored mine, first founded in the late 19th century. Ironically, the mine is vastly more profitable as a tourist attraction than it was as a working mine. The original miners only found 10 ounces of gold in 30 years.

Our tour guide was a nice lady who was quite well informed about the history of the mine. Although she was not an eloquent speaker, she enjoyed her work and her enthusiasm showed when answering our questions. (btw – Miners were quite dependent on Honey Wagons)

After the tour, she taught my son and I how to pan for gold. She checked in on us several times even though we were there for several hours. I appreciated that.

The best way I could say thanks with more meaning was to give her a generous tip. I hope it conveyed my thanks for putting effort into her job. When she saw it, she smiled. For me, her smile was golden.

As the sign said, “Tips aren’t expected but they are appreciated.”