choochoorocks
starting to spend too much on rocks
Rock hounding
Member since April 2020
Posts: 146
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Post by choochoorocks on May 21, 2021 1:26:19 GMT -5
Hi guys, I'm planning to go on a road trip to Oregon in mid June. I'll be starting from the San Francisco Bay Area and expect the first leg to swing by Lassen and then up through Crater lake and then to the central Oregon area. Any advice for rock hunting opportunities that are suitable for a family in a minivan with kids age 8 and 10? My wife and kids are only semi-interested in rocks, so I'm looking for opportunities to rock hunt for max a couple of hours at a time within easy walks from the car.
Are these areas suitable? Sunstone public collection area, Glass Buttes. I am also quite partial to agates and jaspers, so any advice would be greatly appreciated!!!
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Post by jasoninsd on May 21, 2021 8:38:03 GMT -5
I don't have any advice with regards to the hounding areas...but I do remember tons of road trips as a kid. So my advice would be to invest in some "Road Trip Bingo" cards!! For those ages of kids, it would be an awesome way to keep them interested in looking out the window...and may hold off some of the "Are we there yet?" barrage of questions!
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<'))))>< Fish
Cave Dweller
Gone Fishing
Member since April 2005
Posts: 1,841
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Post by <'))))>< Fish on May 21, 2021 14:52:49 GMT -5
Collecting sunstone in June, going to get very hot up there. Took my family in early July, the ground temp was over 120, thought my boots was going to melt. NO SHADE........... We walked around with the pop up tent. Go to Davis Creek and gets some rainbow Obsidian.
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jasperfanatic
spending too much on rocks
Member since January 2019
Posts: 456
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Post by jasperfanatic on May 21, 2021 16:47:07 GMT -5
Careful at Glass Buttes. They're doing some prep work for a geothermal project (from what I hear) so lots of equipment and big trucks on the main road as they get it ready to bring stuff in. Going off the main road can get risky fast in a mini-van, just make sure you have a good spare and the area you pull off to isn't lousy with ruts/holes, and watch out for the private claims, the BLM maps don't have them marked. Other than that, it's easy pickings, you'll see obsidian in the road just shortly after pulling off the highway, it's everywhere. Not far from there, as the crow flies, you have Hampton Butte for some pet wood, and not far from there White Fir Springs along with some other spots in the Ochocos. Plenty more opportunities if you want to make a longer jaunt to the east-ish.
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Post by woodman on May 26, 2021 9:43:37 GMT -5
A good stop for the kids would be Richardson's ranch. Can no longer dig but they have a huge yard full of rocks. Might geet expenseve thu!
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reelman
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2008
Posts: 114
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Post by reelman on May 31, 2021 12:39:03 GMT -5
There is a large rock show in Prineville, OR. June 17-20. Go to the show and go to the Ochoco Mts for thundereggs while staying in Prineville.
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lookatthat
Cave Dweller
Whatever there is to be found.
Member since May 2017
Posts: 1,360
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Post by lookatthat on Jun 1, 2021 12:48:27 GMT -5
If you have a chance check out Carrizo Plains National Monument. I don't think any collecting is allowed, but very interesting geologically speaking. It's where the Wallace Creek offset of the San Andreas Fault is. You can stand in it. There are some petroglyphs in the Monument too I think, check on their website. Also check with them on the road conditions through. I don't know how much traveling you've done in central/northern CAL, but my advice is bring water, and lots of it! Some of these areas are pretty remote, and a minor vehicle breakdown can become a life-or-death situation without plenty of water on board.
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choochoorocks
starting to spend too much on rocks
Rock hounding
Member since April 2020
Posts: 146
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Post by choochoorocks on Jun 2, 2021 23:04:18 GMT -5
Thanks all for your helpful tips so far! Prineville was a good suggestion and has been inserted into the itinerary.
Not everyone I'm traveling with is into rocks, so in the end it looks like I'll be spending just one night in Prineville. I arrive just after the rock fair alas! I have just the one day to spend in the area before I need to drive to Portland. My wife is more interested in hitting the shad run! With my time constraints in mind, I am planning to visit Lucky Strike mine since that seems like a sure thing.
I plan to camp at Prineville reservoir. Are there any spots around there? Maybe I can squeeze some time in before heading to Lucky Strike.
We will spend several days in the Portland area. Are there any good river bank spots good for kids? I came across Willamette Mission River Beach. Its reviews on Google Maps mention agates so we might visit...
On the way back, we will be camping at Patrick's Point: never been so totally looking forward to that!
This trip is lighter on rock hunting than I would like unfortunately as I have to cater to the sightseeing needs of my family and friends we are traveling with. If anyone has any advice on how to get more rock hunting squeezed into sightseeing, I'd really appreciate it!
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lookatthat
Cave Dweller
Whatever there is to be found.
Member since May 2017
Posts: 1,360
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Post by lookatthat on Jun 3, 2021 11:15:32 GMT -5
Well, if you see a place named, say, Agate Beach, suggest that would be a good place for a picnic... I once stupidly went to "Moonstone Beach" and didn't think to look for any moonstones. I never made that mistake again! Never miss an opportunity to poke around wherever you are. I've found fossils in the bank next to a gas station, and artifacts, crystals, and fossils in parking lots. If you are interested in gold panning, bring one and a trowel along... I panned in a creek next to a hotel once. Didn't find anything (only had a few minutes)but it was fun to try! With a pan and decent technique, you can also find garnets, magnetites, and other heavier minerals even if you don't find gold. Always have little baggies in your pockets just in case, and bring along a couple permanent markers to write location/date on the bags. Good luck!
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jasperfanatic
spending too much on rocks
Member since January 2019
Posts: 456
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Post by jasperfanatic on Jun 3, 2021 14:13:43 GMT -5
Thanks all for your helpful tips so far! Prineville was a good suggestion and has been inserted into the itinerary. Not everyone I'm traveling with is into rocks, so in the end it looks like I'll be spending just one night in Prineville. I arrive just after the rock fair alas! I have just the one day to spend in the area before I need to drive to Portland. My wife is more interested in hitting the shad run! With my time constraints in mind, I am planning to visit Lucky Strike mine since that seems like a sure thing. I plan to camp at Prineville reservoir. Are there any spots around there? Maybe I can squeeze some time in before heading to Lucky Strike. We will spend several days in the Portland area. Are there any good river bank spots good for kids? I came across Willamette Mission River Beach. Its reviews on Google Maps mention agates so we might visit... On the way back, we will be camping at Patrick's Point: never been so totally looking forward to that! This trip is lighter on rock hunting than I would like unfortunately as I have to cater to the sightseeing needs of my family and friends we are traveling with. If anyone has any advice on how to get more rock hunting squeezed into sightseeing, I'd really appreciate it! If you aren't able to make it to Glass Buttes because of itinerary conflicts, I'd be happy to mail you a medium flat rate box of assorted Glass Buttes chunks if you want to just pay for the shipping. I know it's not as good as going there and digging yourself, but would at least give you some material from GB to play with.
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Post by Rockoonz on Jun 3, 2021 19:09:27 GMT -5
Polkadot Agate mine is right up the hwy from Richardsons, and IMO is the best family friendly spot in Oregon. It's a claim, and a fee dig. The scenery is amazing up there as well. An example of some of the blue ice Polkadot agate to the left. There's a wide variety up there.
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Post by amygdule on Jun 4, 2021 16:19:32 GMT -5
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choochoorocks
starting to spend too much on rocks
Rock hounding
Member since April 2020
Posts: 146
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Post by choochoorocks on Jun 6, 2021 2:55:56 GMT -5
Well, if you see a place named, say, Agate Beach, suggest that would be a good place for a picnic... I once stupidly went to "Moonstone Beach" and didn't think to look for any moonstones. I never made that mistake again! Never miss an opportunity to poke around wherever you are. I've found fossils in the bank next to a gas station, and artifacts, crystals, and fossils in parking lots. If you are interested in gold panning, bring one and a trowel along... I panned in a creek next to a hotel once. Didn't find anything (only had a few minutes)but it was fun to try! With a pan and decent technique, you can also find garnets, magnetites, and other heavier minerals even if you don't find gold. Always have little baggies in your pockets just in case, and bring along a couple permanent markers to write location/date on the bags. Good luck! Yes, I do find myself always poking around the rocks wherever I go. The marker is a great idea, since I do have the problem of not knowing where some rocks came from!
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choochoorocks
starting to spend too much on rocks
Rock hounding
Member since April 2020
Posts: 146
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Post by choochoorocks on Jun 6, 2021 2:58:41 GMT -5
Thanks all for your helpful tips so far! Prineville was a good suggestion and has been inserted into the itinerary. Not everyone I'm traveling with is into rocks, so in the end it looks like I'll be spending just one night in Prineville. I arrive just after the rock fair alas! I have just the one day to spend in the area before I need to drive to Portland. My wife is more interested in hitting the shad run! With my time constraints in mind, I am planning to visit Lucky Strike mine since that seems like a sure thing. I plan to camp at Prineville reservoir. Are there any spots around there? Maybe I can squeeze some time in before heading to Lucky Strike. We will spend several days in the Portland area. Are there any good river bank spots good for kids? I came across Willamette Mission River Beach. Its reviews on Google Maps mention agates so we might visit... On the way back, we will be camping at Patrick's Point: never been so totally looking forward to that! This trip is lighter on rock hunting than I would like unfortunately as I have to cater to the sightseeing needs of my family and friends we are traveling with. If anyone has any advice on how to get more rock hunting squeezed into sightseeing, I'd really appreciate it! If you aren't able to make it to Glass Buttes because of itinerary conflicts, I'd be happy to mail you a medium flat rate box of assorted Glass Buttes chunks if you want to just pay for the shipping. I know it's not as good as going there and digging yourself, but would at least give you some material from GB to play with. That's incredibly generous of you! I'll PM you. Thank you! I do hope I can do a proper trip to Oregon within the next few years, and include Glass Butte in that future trip. Until then, it'd be great to have some chunks to admire!
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choochoorocks
starting to spend too much on rocks
Rock hounding
Member since April 2020
Posts: 146
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Post by choochoorocks on Jun 6, 2021 3:03:00 GMT -5
Polkadot Agate mine is right up the hwy from Richardsons, and IMO is the best family friendly spot in Oregon. It's a claim, and a fee dig. The scenery is amazing up there as well. An example of some of the blue ice Polkadot agate to the left. There's a wide variety up there. I know, I really wanted to go, but we will be there on one of the days when they are closed.
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choochoorocks
starting to spend too much on rocks
Rock hounding
Member since April 2020
Posts: 146
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Post by choochoorocks on Jun 6, 2021 3:04:31 GMT -5
Wow, I didn't know those places existed! Thank you! Now I have more interesting stops along the way near Bend! They look great!
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treadledad
Cave Dweller
Member since February 2021
Posts: 48
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Post by treadledad on Jun 6, 2021 12:40:51 GMT -5
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choochoorocks
starting to spend too much on rocks
Rock hounding
Member since April 2020
Posts: 146
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Post by choochoorocks on Jun 6, 2021 19:20:23 GMT -5
I'll put in on the list. Thank you!
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choochoorocks
starting to spend too much on rocks
Rock hounding
Member since April 2020
Posts: 146
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Post by choochoorocks on Jul 1, 2021 1:04:45 GMT -5
Well, I'm back. It was a fantastic trip with many new experiences. It was a bit of a whirlwind tour through Oregon, and unfortunately I missed most of the places recommended (thanks all!) in this thread. Non-rock hunting highlights were Crater Lake and American Shad fishing on the Columbia River. The rock hunting I managed to squeeze in: - I had 1.5 hours at Lucky Strike Mine. We managed to extract only a few thunder eggs from the cliff face but so we took home mostly eggs that had been extracted by others and lying around. - I walked around Prineville Reservoir near the campground and didn't find any interesting rocks. - The real highlight was visiting Maury Mountain. We only had 1 hour there, but my wife found an 11 lb moss agate. I'm attaching pictures below (the whole rock plus close up of an area). Are such large specimens common at all? I think we were probably lucky! - We camped at Patrick's Point on the way back. Is now the wrong season to be there? In almost 2 hours of searching at low tide, I found only 3 agates the size of peas. It was my first time rock hunting in Oregon and I realize I've only just scratched the surface. What little rock hunting I did was super fun and I can't wait to go back!
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Post by woodman on Jul 1, 2021 9:31:31 GMT -5
Real nice Maury Mountain moss!! Me thinks she was very lucky!
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