In the 1860s, the Lomax operation used hydraulic pressure to blast gold-bearing gravels out of this gulch, washing the hillside apart to separate gold from lighter sand and dirt. The preserved site keeps that era close at hand: a miners' cabin, historic equipment, and a fully equipped assay office where ore samples were once analyzed for gold and silver content.

The draw for most visitors is the gold panning. Breckenridge History interpreters demonstrate the technique, then hand you a pan and turn you loose in the flume — and every guest leaves with a vial holding whatever flakes they find.

Sessions run by reservation, June through September. The site is a 15-minute walk (or two-minute drive, with free on-site parking) from downtown Breckenridge, making it one of the easiest ways to put your hands directly into the town's founding industry.