google_color_border="1B1B1B"; However, there are no charges for attending club-led outings, and you dont have to be a resident of Wyoming to join. Rockhounding Wyoming by Kenneth Graham. Gold can also be panned in Douglas Creek in the Medicine Bow Mountains of southeastern Wyoming, or the Sweetwater River and tributaries in the southern part of the Wind River Mountains. Members can participate in outings, monthly meetings and be a part of a fantastic rockhounding community. This is a simple guide to my website. Should I be digging ? google_color_text="FFFFFF"; Most of the geodes in Wyoming tend to be lined with chalcedony, and more rarely with microcrystalline quartz. Wyoming is home to Yellowstone National Park, which spans over 2 million acres. Im going to try and find a shark tooth location to surprise my husband. Zirkel Mesa to the west is actually remnants of exposed cinder cone volcanoes. I am in Farson WY and went to check out the fish fossil/shark tooth location listed. Blue forest petrified wood near Granger, WY: 11.) I recommend accessing the area from highway 414 to the west, turning right just above Behunin Reservoir. Opal is found near Smith Creek in Carbon County, and if you want to find quartz minerals, they are located from north of Saratoga along Wyoming Highway no. If youre really nice and want a piece, maybe Ill send you some. WSMGS Affiliated Clubs when planning your visit. google_ad_type="text_image"; If opals are something you hope to find, check around Smith Creek. Important Disclaimer: I have not been to these locations myself, and I do not know if they are currently open for collecting. If youre looking for gemstones and crystals, Wyoming is home to quite a few that will make good additions to your collection. In the Bighorn Range part of Natrona County, you may discover pegmatite, while the igneous rock pumice-pumicite is located in the Split Rock area of Natrona County. Gold can also be found in Park County, specifically the Wood River and Sunlight Basin areas. Copyright 2022 Rockhound Resource | Birch on Trellis Framework by Mediavine, Greybull, area washes and draws btwn Big Horn River and Mountains, Lovell, E to Big Horn Mountains in draws and washes, Fremont County, all regional washes and draws. The GPS coordinate I put up is right by a place called Black Rock, which is an ultrapotassic, lamproite volcaniclastic exposure. HowtoFindRocks.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Atlantic City, area stream gravels, draws, etc. If you want to find gemstones, such as amethyst, a great place in Park County is Amethyst Mountain. BTW: Check out this amazing metal sign (Amazon link) which is perfect for everyone who loves rockhounding in Wyoming! Buy on Amazon We earn a commission if you click this link and make a purchase at no additional cost to you. You can also find other types of agates like moss agate and Sweetwater agate, another variety that is unique to the state of Wyoming. Tip: Not sure if the rock youve found is a geode? The GPS coordinate I put up in the map at the top of the page is right by a place called Black Rock, which is an ultrapotassic, lamproite volcaniclastic exposure. If you would like to read some of the source material for yourself I have listed them below. Winton petrified wood near Rock Springs, WY: 5.) To determine what type of public land a particular location is on, I would recommend starting with the Wyoming Game & Fish Departments Public Access Summary. google_color_bg="1B1B1B"; TIP:Rockhounding is much easier when you use proper tools and equipment. But sometimes you can mistake feldspar with quartz. So, this saves us precious time. The ant hills are basically everywhere if you get out and walk around, and your biggest issue will most likely be needing 44 to get there, and especially across the creek to the north. The higher hills to the west (the mesas and buttes) are all ultrapotassic and mafic rocks. Find out more in the article below:Difference Between Real & Fake Geodes: Focus on These Signs. You can find agate, allanite, lithium minerals, magnetite, manganese minerals, uranium minerals, and bentonite. Monthly educational meetings are held during the autumn and winter on the second Monday of every month. Rockhounding is recognized as a legitimate recreational pursuit on nearly all of the 18 million acres of public land in Wyoming. 05-01-11 Water line and fortification agate and calcite geodes and selenite phew!! amzn_assoc_marketplace = "amazon"; These rockhounding sights of Wyoming are mostly on public land but a good. ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. We also hope to find Jade on same trip. Near the Sierra Madre Mountains, in the Hot Park Area, barite is commonly found, a couple of miles southwest of Encampment. The Owl Creek Mountains, Fremont, and Hot Spring counties also have jade. See my details at this link. The majority of counties in Wyoming contain numerous minerals, rocks, gemstones, and fossils. If you want to know more about rockhounding in Wyoming or you prefer paper books, I recommend buying the book Rockhounding Wyoming: A Guide to the States Best Rockhounding Sites (2nd Edition). was featured in the November 2012 issue of Jade State News. South of Douglas in Converse County is where you will find jade as well. Ammonite-like fossils, kimberlite, etc. If you sign up for GaiaGPS (free, takes about 2 clicks, and Ive never gotten mail from them, as its a husband+wife team that runs it), you can download the GPS data in the map to use on your phone or to import to Google Earth. The ACEC encompasses approximately 41,500 acres, of which about 23,600 acres are public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Barstow Field Office. We wont be over that area probably until June but I like to plan ahead. They are some of the most popular rocks to tumble, and its easy to see why with their intricate banding and unique designs. Through quite a bit of research and cross-referencing of available literature, I have compiled this list of some prospective locations in Wyoming which I would recommend to people looking to do some rockhounding. While much of the region is difficult to access, a large portion of the land is managed by the National Forest Service and is largely open to the public for collecting. For reference, Ive explored both directions in a small, Cheep Patriot [sic]. You can probably find it just about anywhere in the area, though I had good success looking along the eastern flank of Black Rock. Rainbow agates have been found along the Wind River near Riverton. I am modifying this post to include a GPS map which shows how I drove, as well as the two main places I walked which had good anthills. Agate, Chalcedony, Chert, Jasper, Petrified wood, Silicified wood, Quartz crystals, Agate (Turritella agate), Agate, Chalcedony, Chert, Jasper, Quartz crystals, Silicified wood, Agate, Chalcedony, Jasper, Silicified wood, Agate, Chalcedony, Jasper, Petrified wood, Agate, Jasper, Opalized wood, Silicified wood, Silicified algae, Agate (Turritella agate), Chalcedony, Jasper, Quartz crystals, Petrified wood, Agate, Chalcedony, Jasper (red, yellow), Quartzite, Agate (Turritella agate), Chalcedony, Chert, Jasper, Quartz crystals, Petrified wood, Silicified wood, Coffinite, Ilsemannite, Autunite, Pyrite, Uranophane, Uraninite, Cobaltite, Erythrite, Linnaeit, Pyrrhotite, Agate, Chalcedony, Gastroliths, Jasper, Petrified wood, Quartz crystals, Azurite, Bornite, Chalcocite, Chrysocolla, Malachite. google_ad_format="120x600_as"; . In that case, you might want to explore the Kortes Dam area and the Sierra Madre Mountains. After a little bit it will split; right goes to Superior, and left goes to Winton. google_ad_height=600; TIP:Agates are one of the most popular minerals among rockhounds in the United States. However, anywhere in the area around Black Rock should be good, and maybe to the west, too, which I havent checked yet. Agates also happen to be some of the most commonly collected rocks in the United States, including Wyoming. It looks as though theres something interesting around every bend within every county. Still, if you know where to look you may be able to find one for your collection. or Forgot password? Petrified wood occurs in the Specimen Ridge and Amethyst Mountain area of Yellowstone. It states that the road is very rough, and to not attempt it during a rain storm. Check out how to cut and polish petrified wood in the article below:How To Cut & Polish Petrified Wood: Follow These 3 Steps. At the same time, some reports of meteorite findings are also standard in this region. You can also find agatized and opalized wood specimens here. Anyway, follow that Jeep trail down toward the bottom, where it first starts getting pretty flat, and youll find a ton of fossils. Black jade is a real prize to find. The state of Wyoming is noted for its copper minerals, lithium minerals, uranium minerals, feldspar minerals, manganese minerals, mica minerals, and quartz minerals. It is going to take me a while to get all the locations in here. Guide to Prospecting and Rock Hunting in Wyoming There are a couple of metamorphic rocks that you can find in the state of Wyoming. //-->, , , Sign in|Recent Site Activity|Report Abuse|Print Page|Powered By Google Sites. Rockhounds can explore most of Wyoming's geologic products up close because over 50% of the state is public land! You can find plenty of minerals in Wyoming, especially in the mountains, such as Casper Mountain, Absaroka Mountain, Laramie Range, or Medicine Bow Range. I have tried to take care not to list locations within National Park boundaries since collecting is illegal there, but please remember that it is up to you to make sure you have permission to collect wherever you are. Specimens may become depleted from other collectors, the location may have been built on or altered, locality information in literature may be inaccurate, and property ownership may have changed hands. Albany County is located in the bottom easter part of Wyoming, having its border with the northern Colorado state line. The Wasatch Formation is a great place to find manganese and uranium minerals. Cracking them open reminds me of opening a Kinder-Egg with a surprise toy inside. These public lands administered by the BLM are open to everyone to take limited amounts of rock material for noncommercial purposes without charge. In Wyoming, you can find sedimentary rocks such as bentonite, chert, coal, concretion-geode, conglomerate, gypsum, limestone-dolomite, oil shale, shale, taconite, or trona, among many others. Located east of Boysen reservoir on the south flank of the owl creeks. what are the host rocks associated with watermelon rock and the labradorite? NOTE! Thanks!! Posted on Published: September 29, 2020- Last updated: July 26, 2022. Below is a list of rockhounding locations in wyoming with a description of the minerals found there and pictures. The higher hills to the west (the mesas and buttes) are all ultrapotassic and mafic rocks. You can also find it in the Wiggins formation of the Oligocene age near the head of Frontier Creek in the Absaroka Mountains. google_color_link="000000"; You may want to look in the Kortes Dam area or the Sierra Madre Mountains for jades. However, it is legal to hound the areas surrounding this famous park. google_ad_host="pub-6693688277674466"; Rocks there have a different variety of lab than down below. However, Jade can be located in the Sweetwater River district, just southeast of the Wind River Mountains. I would probably start by contacting the assessor in whatever county youre interested in and getting whatever contact information you can for the landowner. Calcite for making lamps and also nice bots in roadside cut near Lander. Concretion and geodes are common in many of the sedimentary rocks in the state, but a good way of finding geodes in Wyoming is to search for the conglomerate in limestone or sandstone.
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