Follow posted signage and always get permission from the landowner to collect. Curious if you ended up going to this site and if its still a good spot? The R.O.C.K. The southern region of the state is home to expansive sandstone plateaus that turn up nice specimens of quartz-family minerals such as agate, jasper, petrified wood, and septarian nodules. Although you can dig for geodes outside of the claim, you will have far better luck getting permission from the claim-owners to collect on the actual claim. Monday through Friday, We didnt run into too many other people around the area (Probably because of the season), but I did notice that many of the trees on and around the hill had been cut down with all of the limbs cut off and left there. Bryce Canyon is my favorite National Park in Utah and, although the views from this area are mesmerizing in and of themselves, I would highly recommend a quick trip into the park itself. Petrified wood may be collected for non-commercial use only from public lands up to 25 pounds plus one piece of any size per day with a yearly limit of 250 pounds. Azurite, Barite, Calamine, Chalcocite, Chalcopyrite, Chrysocolla, Galena, Gypsum, Kaolinite, Malachite, Opal, Pyrite, Sphalerite, Wulfenite, Zircon, etc. From precious gems to ancient fossils, much can be found in our West Desert country. Agate Map The City of Agate is located in Grand County in the State of Utah. Follow US Hwy 6/50 west from Delta for about 54 miles to the Painter Springs Road. The further away from the roads you get, the better the stuff you find. Most of the economic mines in the state were after copper-family minerals. Corvusite, Uraninite, Autunite, Azurite, Malachite, Chalcocite, etc. You can find great stuff here though! As you said, this is a great close location. Thanks Bill. Utah Rockhound Guide: Thomas Range Pt. The goal was to fill up some buckets with agate to stare at and play around with while we remain cooped up all winter. be warned/prepared! I am conducting the expedition and I am inviting you to come with us. Fluorite, Bertrandite, Carnotite, Chalcedony, Chalcopyrite, Fluorite, Hematite, Magnetite, Pyrite, Quartz. Easy parking can be found off the road. Drive for 49.5 miles on Pony Express Road until you see the brown sign on the right for the geode beds, 10. More than 100 million years ago, the area near Capitol Reef National Park was alternately covered by water from oceans, streams, and lakes in which muds, silts, sands, and mixtures of sediment were deposited. This location is right next door to a geothermal plant and, from what I understand, the underground geothermal activity is actually what led to the formation of this unique type of opal. I am offering Field Trips to the public by Scheduled Appointment. Topaz, Utahs state gem, is a semiprecious gemstone that occurs as very hard, transparent crystals in a variety of colors. Road is good. While there are many old mining districts to explore, there are also tons of more accessible locations to search that produce plenty of collectible material. They can form in different ways; one of the most common is through groundwater action by the leaching of highly siliceous rocks, filling rock fractures and cavities, and recrystallizing. Our vehicles GPS recognized Elberta Slant Rd (ESR) after we missed the first turnoff at this dirt road and went down the west side of the mountain on the paved road. ON AGATE HILL. I suspect that if you go on the weekends youll have better luck. Painter Springsarea offers garnets, pyrite, muscovite, quarts and other interesting rocks. Thanks again for your comment! Utah also has an amazing app that highlights roads that provide access to public lands. Northeastern Utah is a great spot for rockhounding. Find then along a wash about 2 miles south of the U-Dig fossil site. The spur road leads into a wash that defines the north edge of the mountain. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. We followed your directions and stayed at the East base of the hill, found a good wash area and scored some amazing rocks! Enjoy an old fashioned traditional veranda that invites you to sit, relax and enjoy our gardens or the foothills of Pike's Peak. I dont want to lead any of you astray! Ive met a couple of people from that club and they were good people and it sounded like a great club to join for anyone who is interested. The first place we visited was located near Brian Head ski resort (I do love snowboarding here with the Misses in the rockhounding offseason). The jasper is typically red due to iron content. This Agate Hill is truly a hill made up almost entirely of agatejust about every single rock you pick up will be some sort of agate. Turn right (West) on East Main Street for 16.6 miles to Elberta Slant Road 3. One of the most common questions rockhounds have is whether or not they are allowed to collect at a certain location. Today, Joy is a ghost town that contains some remnants of buildings and mining equipment. In Connecticut, I would recommend starting with the County Assessors office. Also, it is super hot and many of the vegetation was cleared out a year or so ago I think so Id prepare for that as well. Use this resource as a guide to get you started. They manage a rock shop in their backyard called the Bug House in addition to overseeing the Dugway Geode Beds claim as well as the the U-Dig trilobite claim further West of Delta. A single grave of 19 year old Matt Evans still remains and is located near the 4 way intersection in Joy. Directions to Agate Hill near Bryce Canyon: 1. Agate Hill - YouTube 0:00 / 13:28 Agate Hill 2,736 views Sep 7, 2018 65 Dislike Share Save scottks5 645 subscribers Searching for Agate near Dewey Bridge. Take that left (West) toward the town of Faust for 13.6 miles, 7. One, 1 gal Bucket not to Exceed 10 lbs is only $ 40.00 One, 3 gal Bucket not to Exceed 30 lbs is only $ 80.00 One, 5 gal Bucket not to Exceed 50 lbs is only $100.00 Pricing Discounts for Large Groups and Clubs! Many specimens are broken nodules or pebbles. Learn how your comment data is processed. Diopside, Fluorite, Galena, Garnet, Pyrite, Scheelite, Sphalerite, Apatite, Biotite, Chlorite, Goethite, Copper minerals, Magnetite, Quartz, Zircon, etc. Up to 25 pounds per day plus one piece per person is allowed. Chapel Hill, N.C. : Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 2006. Turn left (South) on Highway 257 toward Milford for 65.0 miles and then take a left (East), 7. Hi Jason! Agate Hill Inn Corner of Spencer and Cave Avenues Manitou Springs, Colorado 80829 Phone: (719)685-0685 . I may receive a commission for purchases made through these links at no additional cost to you. We passed a group of young skiers just learning the basics on what little snow had fallen the day before. Youll find some killer burgers and some proud Eurekans who are always good for a story or two. Aragonite, Bloedite, Gypsum, Halite, Thenardite, Mirabilite. I am aware of previous and/or existing claims in this area. This made for an easy scoping of the area, but I didnt know the reason for it. You never know what you might find! Several of the roads have been closed likely when they chained the cedar trees. It will be tempting to crack them open right there on site with your rock hammer to see what each one contains, but dont fall into that trap. Wonder if these agates were formed differently than normal (i.e. As always, please let me know if you have any new information on ANY of these locations or if I have any incorrect information. Most pieces are black but some reddish-brown and snowflake obsidian can be found. I went out a few months ago and it is still a solid location. You can dig pretty much anywhere, but the claim is located near the Northeast corner of the beds and the easiest route to get there is to take the road that wraps wide around the left side and pops out on the North side of the claim. You can also read through my free rock identification guide and mineral identification guide which are filled with useful information and tools. Im so glad to hear that you were still able to get some great stuff. For more information on the private quarries, contact: U-Dig Fossils Bismutite, Rhodochrosite, Fluorite, Quartz, Azurite, Cerussite, Galena, Malachite, Calcite, Garnet, Limonite, Pyrite, Wulfenite, Sphalerite, etc. Excellent camp spots dot the ghost town and sandy desert terrain that make for fun ATV riding. I'm Mike Rhea, and I'm a professional Geologist with a passion for rocks, minerals, and everything related to Geology. club in Salt Lake City. 1. Alunite, Azurite, Barite, Cerussite, Chysocolla, Copper, Galena, Limonite, Malachite, Variscite, Wulfenite, Hematite, Pyrite, Sphalerite, etc. Visitors and locals alike work old abandoned mining claims for placer gold, and people actually find small quantities. amzn_assoc_title = "Some of my favorite rockhounding gear from Amazon:"; I went about 3 months ago and it was safe enough for my 2 year old as long as I held on to his hand there is really only one steep hill you have to go up and down the up is easy going down you need good shoes because it is very slippery. Im so glad it was a successful trip for you and your boys! I made it out here a month or so definitely one of my favorite spots. And any good tips on certain area up her to go thanks in advance. Garnet, Azurite, Biotite, Chlorite, Chrysocolla, Epidote, Limonite, Manetite, Malachite, Quartz, Sulfur, Ziosite, etc. Agate is scattered over the top of the large hill to the west. Be glad to guide you. Went out there today and all along the west side of the road are Private Property, No Trespassing signs. For general questions, booking multiple cottages click here. In asking around and reading some stuff online it looks like the area has been reopened for either some drilling operations or cleanup (or both). This is a great place to go since it is so close to home for me. On the way back we met a couple of hikers who informed us that we had taken a wrong turn and ended up the wrong canyon. as the post says, pretty much any rock you pick up is agate. The locations and information contained in this article are primarily derived from academic papers, online resources, and other outside sources. Its October and Im thinking Id like to go before the snow. Once we parked we walked westward up a couple of hills on a wash and were soon met with the smooth, black rocks especially on the left hand side away from ESR. Nevertheless, it is a good location to add to Utahs vast database of rockhounding opportunities! If you remember, we were coming from the Brian Head location and I noticed we passed several lava flows on Highway 143 while en route to this location. This site contains affiliate links to products. Agate, chert, and jasper are varieties of microcrystalline or cryptocrystalline quartz (quartz having crystals that are too small to be detected with a hand lens) that have either a waxy or a dull luster. Spencer and Cave Avenues Manitou Springs, Colorado 80829 Phone: ( 719 ) 685-0685 roads you,... Assessors office side of the Road are Private Property, no Trespassing signs town of Faust for 13.6 miles 7... Solid location good spot to 25 pounds per day plus one piece per person is.... Wash area and scored some amazing rocks the Hill, N.C.: Algonquin of. Take a left ( East ), 7 trip for you and your boys toward Milford for 65.0 miles then! 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