Having signed up for ATA's gold panning and salmon bake combo, we met our guide right on schedule on a mid-week afternoon at the tramway station near the docks. Our guide was Garrett, and he provided an interesting running commentary as we drove through the old town up to Gold Creek. Your reviewer was impressed that he made the effort to note where to find the locally-owned businesses amidst the glitzy main shopping drag facing the port.
He got everyone up to the creek and efficiently broke out the needed equipment and waded right in, literally, toward getting everyone set up with pans, dirt, and good instruction on the technique to use. Of course, the group was a wide range of ages and capability, and Garrett seemed to stay attuned to that, spending a bit more time with folks who needed some assistance at the panning tables, and just checking in now and then with those of us who had no problem sitting at the creek's edge with our pans and dirt. In the hour or so panning (I wish it'd been longer), we did indeed find honest-to-gosh gold flecks to carefully squirrel away in the small bottles provided. He was also glad to dig an extra shovelful of mud for folks who completed the initial pan's-worth and wanted to sift even more.
Finally, time was up, and we returned to the van. After dropping off some of the folks back at the port, he drove the rest of us to the Salmon Bake location, which is an outdoor all-you-can eat dinner experience. At that point we bade farewell to Garrett (who, in this reviewer's opinion, ought to get a free pass anytime he wants to the salmon bake!).
The bake was well organized and the food was tasty. Besides the never-emtpy grill full of two types of salmon (with optional glaze), there was also chicken, and a number of side dishes on hot tables, and lemonade. Blueberry cake was available at another table. Near the entrance was a booth ladling out excellent clam chowder (if no one's there at the moment, just ask one of the many other servers around). There was live music, which was okay, and a gift shop in the same small building as the kitchen. Rest room were around on the right side of the building.
After dinner, we took a stroll down the path along the creek toward the waterfall, and took the opportunity to pan for a little more gold while there was still a little daylight, using the pans thoughtfully provided by a water-filled trough along the trail (although note some of the pans might be rusted through, and even a pinhole can allow your specks of gold to drop out of the old pan).
Overall, an excellent experience: well-handled, informative, and fun, with a satisfying salmon dinner to top of the evening. Can it get any better?