Spring Rockhounding

[Occidental]

I don't suspect there are a lot of trip reports being written (or experienced) right about now. We did get out for a couple short trips to walk the sage and look for rocks before recent events curtailed going out and about.

First trip was out to Glass Buttes to get a little obsidian for the tumbler: https://www.occidentalist.org/glass-buttes-2020/

Then we went searching for sunstones, Oregon's state gem. The searching wasn't too difficult: https://www.occidentalist.org/searching-for-sunstones-2020/

There's a few other winter, not so truck camperish type trips posted over the past few months on the site as well. (Just in case you are looking for reading material or an escape)

Enjoy! I hope all of you are well, considering.

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

Ed, I’m glad you got out, but jealous. That looked like a nice circuit for rock hounds. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Vic Harder]

Nice to read a trip report again! I didn't know what sunstones were, so I looked it up - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunstone

Are you tumbling them all, and/or looking for large crystals?

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Thanks ,nice trip.
Great to have a spot to collect.
Frank

 

[Occidental]

Hi Vic, Well, we won't be able to fit them all in the tumbler we have, at least for the first batch. Finishing up obsidian now. I'm not certain how we'll decide which ones go in, likely it will be largely random, but a variety of sizes and colors, then we'll see how it goes! (Unless someone has another suggestion, which I'm open to). I think the real gems (pun intended) come from the 3 commercial mines in the area that open up to the public later in the year.

 

[dorocks]

When you can't rock out with people, rock out in nature. Link from a trip to DC we took before the "virus." https://keithbarnes.smugmug.com/Vacation/2019-Natural-History-Museum-DC-Gems-Only/

 

[ski3pin]

Yes, thanks for the reminder there's a big wonderful world out there when all this virus stuff is over!

Thanks for the view of nice country.

 

[Vic Harder]

When you can't rock out with people, rock out in nature. Link from a trip to DC we took before the "virus." https://keithbarnes.smugmug.com/Vacation/2019-Natural-History-Museum-DC-Gems-Only/

great and beautiful "rocks" - thanks for sharing!