Rock Hounding - Wassons Bluff Chabazite
Mar 9, 2016 20:53:52 GMT -5
garock, Fossilman, and 7 more like this
Post by 150FromFundy on Mar 9, 2016 20:53:52 GMT -5
I did a little rock hounding at Wassons Bluff near Parrsboro, Nova Scotia last weekend. It was only a few degrees below freezing, and the sun was shining. Add a thermal under layer and a few hot coffees and it is all good.
Two Islands at low tide is just off in the distance. You can see the ice hanging from the cliffs. This freeze/thaw time of the year often means fresh material falling from the cliffs. By next weekend, the tides will be right for a safer crossing.
McKay Head is off in the distance on the far left. That was last week’s stop where I found Quartz and Siliceous Sinter.
The sandstone cliffs on the way to McKay Head are a bit of a dead zone for collecting and don’t yield the famous fossils that are found at Wassons Bluff.
Wassons Bluff itself is a combination of amygdaloidal basalt and red sandstone. The red sandstone contains famous fossils that represent life just before and just after the mass extinction event between the Triassic and the Jurassic. The sandstone is protected, the basalt contains zeolites.
Beneath the basalt cliffs are piles of talus, or rubble that may contain agate, jasper, and zeolites. It’s a little like rummaging through tailings piles.
Wassons Bluff is famous for its Chabazite. World class specimens have been obtained here. There is a wide variation of colour from white, to light ink, to deep red along the exposed cliffs. Some bicolour crystals have been found and penetration twin crystals are common here.
I didn’t find any world class specimens, but I did find a few nice ones for my shelf. The phots below show the overall sample followed by a zoom in of the crystals on that piece.
Chabazite and minor Heulandite – 4.5”x3”x1.5”
Chabazite and minor Heulandite – 3.5”x2”x1.5”
Chabazite and Heulandite – 3”x3”x1”
Chabazite – 3”x1.5”x1”
Chabazite and Heulandite – 3”x2.5”x2”
Chabazite, Analcime and Heulandite – 3”x2”x1.5”
Darryl.
Two Islands at low tide is just off in the distance. You can see the ice hanging from the cliffs. This freeze/thaw time of the year often means fresh material falling from the cliffs. By next weekend, the tides will be right for a safer crossing.
McKay Head is off in the distance on the far left. That was last week’s stop where I found Quartz and Siliceous Sinter.
The sandstone cliffs on the way to McKay Head are a bit of a dead zone for collecting and don’t yield the famous fossils that are found at Wassons Bluff.
Wassons Bluff itself is a combination of amygdaloidal basalt and red sandstone. The red sandstone contains famous fossils that represent life just before and just after the mass extinction event between the Triassic and the Jurassic. The sandstone is protected, the basalt contains zeolites.
Beneath the basalt cliffs are piles of talus, or rubble that may contain agate, jasper, and zeolites. It’s a little like rummaging through tailings piles.
Wassons Bluff is famous for its Chabazite. World class specimens have been obtained here. There is a wide variation of colour from white, to light ink, to deep red along the exposed cliffs. Some bicolour crystals have been found and penetration twin crystals are common here.
I didn’t find any world class specimens, but I did find a few nice ones for my shelf. The phots below show the overall sample followed by a zoom in of the crystals on that piece.
Chabazite and minor Heulandite – 4.5”x3”x1.5”
Chabazite and minor Heulandite – 3.5”x2”x1.5”
Chabazite and Heulandite – 3”x3”x1”
Chabazite – 3”x1.5”x1”
Chabazite and Heulandite – 3”x2.5”x2”
Chabazite, Analcime and Heulandite – 3”x2”x1.5”
Darryl.
