Post by helens on Sept 3, 2012 16:44:05 GMT -5
Yesterday, we decided to go rock-hounding!! Tampa is one of the areas that supposedly has Florida agates, so we decided to go there and try our luck, since it's only a 2 1/2 hour drive from here.
We barely make it out of town before we hit this (bumper to bumper far as the eye can see):
We get to Tampa and decide to see if we can find a little rocky spot not in a public park first (because you're not supposed to take rocks from public parks). Uh... no... wall to wall motels and hotels and condos... meh:
So we head for a park (wanted to go to Honeymoon Island park first, but then decided that since there are supposed to be rocks up and down the whole coast, why go to a publicized rockhounding site?), and we settled on Dasoto park.
Wow.. beautiful park at the mouth of Tampa, but hubby and son want to go to the Desoto Fort (guarded the mouth of Tampa Bay, a major shipping port at the turn of the century). That's a big gun:):
We decide to drive around the park first, and found a fishing hole but no rocks:
Gave up and went to the beach where there were also no rocks... but Hurricane Issac threw up billions of PERFECT SEA SHELLS!!!! Being the easily distracted person I am, I forgot about rocks and start picking sea shells... LOL! I forgot to take pix of the beach because I was busy, but Dasoto Beach won one of the 'best beaches in the world' awards, so it's pretty:).
SOOOO many types, and many were FLAWLESS!!!!
We left when it started getting dark. On our way out of the park, my husband remembered we went to get me rocks, so he pulled over at the Ranger station because there was a big pile of rocks holding the sign up.... and wacked a few pieces off their rocks, and got me these (no ranger came chasing us down the highway to my great surprise - but they watched him wacking at the rocks on their signpost and didn't say anything...):
He had no idea what I was looking for, but we actually got a piece of agate!! Not very pretty, but at least I was going home from 'rockhounding' with a rock:P!!
This is the agate washed off:
Side view:
So ok, this isn't exactly a gorgeous agate, but hey! It's florida agate from old stock (that rock pile at the ranger station has probably been there for 100 years:P), so I got a piece of agate on my first rockhounding trip!
We went over the famous Tampa Bay Sunshine Skyway bridge, so I got a few pix while on it.
The famous golden 'triangles':
And sunset:
We may try going to Honeymoon Island next weekend or 2, where we know there are actually rocks:P.
Sok if this leaves you speechless, I know this was a kinda lame rockhounding outing.... but hey... it was a first!!!
We barely make it out of town before we hit this (bumper to bumper far as the eye can see):
We get to Tampa and decide to see if we can find a little rocky spot not in a public park first (because you're not supposed to take rocks from public parks). Uh... no... wall to wall motels and hotels and condos... meh:
So we head for a park (wanted to go to Honeymoon Island park first, but then decided that since there are supposed to be rocks up and down the whole coast, why go to a publicized rockhounding site?), and we settled on Dasoto park.
Wow.. beautiful park at the mouth of Tampa, but hubby and son want to go to the Desoto Fort (guarded the mouth of Tampa Bay, a major shipping port at the turn of the century). That's a big gun:):
We decide to drive around the park first, and found a fishing hole but no rocks:
Gave up and went to the beach where there were also no rocks... but Hurricane Issac threw up billions of PERFECT SEA SHELLS!!!! Being the easily distracted person I am, I forgot about rocks and start picking sea shells... LOL! I forgot to take pix of the beach because I was busy, but Dasoto Beach won one of the 'best beaches in the world' awards, so it's pretty:).
SOOOO many types, and many were FLAWLESS!!!!
We left when it started getting dark. On our way out of the park, my husband remembered we went to get me rocks, so he pulled over at the Ranger station because there was a big pile of rocks holding the sign up.... and wacked a few pieces off their rocks, and got me these (no ranger came chasing us down the highway to my great surprise - but they watched him wacking at the rocks on their signpost and didn't say anything...):
He had no idea what I was looking for, but we actually got a piece of agate!! Not very pretty, but at least I was going home from 'rockhounding' with a rock:P!!
This is the agate washed off:
Side view:
So ok, this isn't exactly a gorgeous agate, but hey! It's florida agate from old stock (that rock pile at the ranger station has probably been there for 100 years:P), so I got a piece of agate on my first rockhounding trip!
We went over the famous Tampa Bay Sunshine Skyway bridge, so I got a few pix while on it.
The famous golden 'triangles':
And sunset:
We may try going to Honeymoon Island next weekend or 2, where we know there are actually rocks:P.
Sok if this leaves you speechless, I know this was a kinda lame rockhounding outing.... but hey... it was a first!!!