London - He toiled day and night in icy streams around the mountains of Scotland.
John Greenwood was searching for gold with one aim in mind - to make engagement and wedding rings for his sweetheart from the thousands of tiny specks of precious metal he was collecting.
It was a pure labour of love. And today, as he returned with his delighted new bride from a Caribbean marriage ceremony, it was clear it had all panned out okay.
Greenwood and Morag Shearer tied the knot when the explosives technician slipped a beautifully crafted band on his fiancee’s finger, and she put a matching ring on his.
Yesterday the man with the Midas touch (not to mention a rare romantic streak) looked back on his time knee-deep in the upper reaches of Highland rivers and declared: “I put a lot of effort into it... but it was worth it.”
Greenwood wanted to pop the question with a unique ring. Not for him, however, the cheapskate trick of sawing off a piece of copper pipe, or popping to Argos. During three months from September 2011, equipped with just a trowel, shovel, rake and pan, he quietly went for gold - and emerged a winner.
“I was driven by it,” the 48-year-old said. “They talk about gold fever – I was panning for gold in my dreams. Some days I’d be camping next to the river and I’d start as soon as the sun was up, and carry on for 14 or 15 hours. Everybody says I must have beginner’s luck to find so much but I was out there every weekend and in the evenings in freezing cold water. I reckon I spent about 20 full days getting enough for the engagement ring.”
By December, the Perthshire native had 34g of flakes, dust and the odd small nugget for Mull of Kintyre goldsmith Grant Logan to melt, shape and embed with diamonds.
The following Christmas Day he surprised Miss Shearer, 42, with the ring. Then, it was back to the chilly waters of the River Tay and the Highland Boundary Fault.
Over 18 months, he found almost 70g for wedding bands. Logan told him: “A lot of people spend a lifetime panning in Scotland without finding enough for a ring.”
The rings cost a bargain £500. But to Shearer, they are priceless.
“I feel very proud of John and very lucky,” the physiotherapist said.
The bands were proudly engraved “Scottish Gold”, a provenance that will greatly increase their value. Gold from Scotland is relatively rare, and is not available commercially.
Last Thursday, the intrepid prospector and his bride flew to Antigua to become Mr and Mrs Greenwood. “It was an amazing feeling to put the ring on her finger,” he said. “I was really overwhelmed.” - Daily Mail