A collection of rockhounding and arrowhead (Indian artifact) field reports from across the nation. Join us for exciting geological and historical adventures involving rocks, minerals, crystals, fossils, and Native American artifacts as we include reports, photos, videos, maps and more. If you love rocks, minerals, fossils, and artifacts, then Rockhounding USA is your new home.
Rockhounding USA: an informative and media-rich blog with articles, photos, videos, and maps to a wide variety of rock, mineral, fossil, and Indian artifact collecting sites across the USA.
Many fossil locations require a long hike into the forest, or an exhausting trip across the desert, or extensive travels into the wilderness. BUT NOT THIS ONE.
Join us as we explore a rich fossil site that sits a few feet off of State Road 146, about 5 miles east of Anna, Illinois. Crinoids, Blastoids, Archimedes screws, and more await even the casual collector:
You can clean limestone fossils (Calcium-based) with weak solutions of acid (Vinegar), but be careful. The acid will dissolve (not only the matrix) but also the fossil itself. To halt the action of the acid, add small amounts of Baking Soda until the fizzing stops, then soak the fossils overnight in fresh water. If your fossils are silica-based (quartz) then you can use stronger acids (Muriatic) to dissolve away the surrounding matrix, since silica is impervious to most acids.
Mention the word "Arizona" to rockhounds, and instantly visions of large chunks of luscious petrified logs will fill their minds. Indeed, there is even a national park in Arizona dedicated to the preservation and enjoyment of an incredible area of petrified wood.
But where can rockhounds legally collect those wonderful bits of wood-turned-stone? In this episode of Rockhounding USA, we travel about 15 miles east of Holbrook, Arizona to the DoBell Ranch and find more petrified wood than we can haul.
NOTE: When using Muriatic Acid to clean your fossils, be sure to wear gloves and eye protection, and avoid breathing the fumes. Always add acid to water, and never add water to acid, and always do your cleaning OUTDOORS. To neutralize your acid bath, use generous amounts of baking soda (until the solution stops fizzing), and then allow at least a few more hours. Once neutralized, pour out the old solution, and then soak your fossils (petrified wood) in fresh water and allow to soak for a few more hours, overnight is best. Never clean fossils containing calcium in Muriatic Acid, as the strong acid will attack your fossil. Use weaker acids, such as Vinegar to clean calcium-based fossils (most fossils in limestone). Only use Muriatic Acid on silica-based fossils, since the Hydrochloric Acid cannot dissolve the silica.
Hailed as one of the last actual rock shows/swaps in the nation, the 21st Annual Missouri Mines Rock Swap (June 8-10, 2018) in Park Hills, Missouri was a complete success.
Dozens of vendors from across the nation showcased minerals, rocks, and fossils from across the United States and the world.
Here is a short video report about this year's event:
For more information about attending or getting a booth:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1249800061698210/
Tourmaline is a huge family of boron silicates that share crystal structure, but vary in chemical composition. It has a hardness of 7- 7.5 , cleavage is indistinct, a white streak, and a glassy luster. Tourmaline is known to be virtually any color. This awesome gem can even be multi-colored, such as watermelon tourmaline, which was was first discovered in 1902 at Dunton Quarry in Oxford County, Maine. The pegmatites of Maine still provide a rich source of this most sought after variety.
Tourmaline can be found in the U.S., Afghanistan, Pakistan, Russia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Africa, and Brazil. Here in the United States, tourmaline can be collected at the:
We’ve all seen crystals small enough to hold in your hand, but how about crystals big enough on which to stand?
That’s exactly what happened to a pair brothers as they were drilling hundreds of meters underground in a mine near Naica, Mexico in the spring of 2000. Eloy and Javier Delgado discovered a horseshoe-shaped cavity in the limestone, and once they had pumped out the water, the two were met with a fantastic wonderland containing the largest forest of free-standing crystals known to exist in the entire world.
It may have looked like a Hollywood movie set portraying an alien planet, but it was right here on Earth, a natural formation almost a thousand feet below ground. News of the phenomenal geological treasure spread rapidly, and scientists literally descended on the unbelievable site, dubbing it the Cave of the Crystals or the Giant Crystal Cave, and with good reason. The enormous structures are composed entirely of translucent Gypsum (Selenite), with the largest crystal measuring in at nearly 40 feet long, weighing an estimated 55 tons.
Conditions in the cave were brutal, with temperatures hovering around 136 degrees and humidity reaching 99%. Even wearing specialized suits, researchers could only remain in the cavern for around 30 minutes at a time. Unfortunately, any samples of the crystals from this specialized environment would quickly deteriorate if brought up to the surface.
Interested in the prospect of visiting the Giant Crystal Cave one day? Don’t get too excited, the mining company ceased pumping operations in February of 2017, and the cavern is once again flooded with hot, mineral rich water. But don’t worry, even if you can’t be there in person, there are a few excellent documentaries available about this geological masterpiece.
It’s the Giant Crystal Cave in Naica, Mexico, another Amazing Tale of Geology brought to you by Rockhounding USA. Check out our other videos in this and other series.
Could it be true that one of the most valuable and beautiful gems in all of human history was once considered a worthless rock and used as a simple doorstop in Australia? The shocking answer is YES. Watch this short video about the amazing history of The Black Star of Queensland:
In 1938, an excited 12-yr-old boy found a palm-sized, dark rock on a hillside in Queensland, Australia. Little Roy proudly showed the stone to his family, but his father, Harry, was so unimpressed that he used it as a doorstop in the back of their tiny shack. But Harry Spencer, (himself a miner in the central Queensland gem fields), should have known better. The rejected rock sat on his dusty floor, forgotten for almost ten years.
But then, Harry learned that sapphires could be almost any color. He finally realized that the stone that his son had found was likely a black sapphire, and quickly put out the word that he had a valuable gemstone for sale. The news of this find garnered the attention of the famous jeweler Harry Kazanjian, who journeyed from southern California in 1947 to Queensland to purchase the one-of-a-kind treasure. Kazanjian paid the Spencer family $18,000 for the gem, which translates to approximately $200,000 in today’s dollars.
Kazanjian spent nearly two months studying the enormous stone, planning his cuts and facets with the hopes of revealing the highly-prized asterism that might be hiding deep within. His patience and planning paid off handsomely, and after removing over 400 carats of surrounding material, a six-pointed star appeared in the center of the 733-carat masterpiece.
Dubbed “The Black Star of Queensland,” the spectacular gemstone was appraised as being worth over $1 million dollars in 1949. Now surrounded by a ring of 35 diamonds, the Black Star of Queensland is currently valued at close to $100 million dollars and sits in the private collection of an anonymous European gem collector. From worthless doorstop to priceless treasure, now you know the amazing tale of the Black Star of Queensland.
Watch our latest episode of Mineral Minute for a quick look at Amazonite, that bluish-green to rich green variety of the feldspar family (most famously found around the Pikes Peak, Colorado area)
Today's mineral: Amazonite.
Amazonite is a pale greenish-blue to deep blue-green variety of microcline Feldspar. Amazonite has a hardness of 6-6.5, cleavage is perfect in one direction and good in a another, a white streak, and a glassy luster. The origin of this mineral's color is debated, but it has been attributed to lead and water in the crystal lattice.
It is probably named after the Amazon River, even though large deposits have never been found near there. Amazonite is commonly found as large crystals with white streaks and is often associated with smoky quartz, especially in the U.S.
There are large deposits in Russia, Burma, India, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Brazil, and the United States. Here in the U.S., Amazonite can be collected at the: Morefield and Rutherford mines in Amelia county, Virginia. Along Gold Camp Road, near Colorado Springs, Colorado. At Crystal Park, near Manitou Springs, Colorado. Along Barr Trail, on Pikes Peak, Colorado. And in Devils Head, south of Denver, Colorado.
