[Rockhounds] Collecting techniques questions

[Ted Kowalski]

Kevin:
My additions to the other excellent suggestions:

Look for the visible signs of mineralization. Such as faster weathering in
an area. Please understand that minerals are emplaced/formed under widely
different mechanisms. So, as Kreigh and Tim point out, know the geology of
the area you are searching, so you know which signs to watch for. Stop and
chat with road crews working on roads, especially if they are county or
state crews. Doughnuts go a long way to opening conversations with crews so
long as you are not interfering (showing up around lunch can help). The guys
working on the roads can tell you if they've seen anything, within reason,
that is if you can show them what you are looking for. 

Some of my hot buttons while driving or walking:
Sedimentary; rust spots and solid items in a sedimentary layer. Especially
if it is a known layer for fossils. In some places like Pennsylvania, the
layers are very rich in fossils and anywhere you can stop safely is worth
checking out. Get to know the productive layers and watch for their
outcrops.

Pegmatites: Slumps in the ground where pockets have collapsed, quartz float.
Especially if the float are crystals. Ditto for feldspar fragments and large
mica flakes. Large veins/clumps of feldspar in the host rock.

Copper: Greenish or olive colored soil/rocks. 

Sulfide: Rust colored soil, especially if quartz and mica are also present.

Anywhere where large chunks of feldspar especially albite are exposed (home
building sites) in pegmatite country.

Go to the local library and if there are colleges, the college library. Look
for publications, often old, that describe local geology. Most of these are
extremely limited distribution publications and are not available anywhere
else but are real treasures for understanding the area you are in. There are
often local publications describing the area geology before it has been
built up.

Check your state publications. Every state has a geology department and
often an active/archived list of publications. While many of these may be
commercially valuable mineral focused, they are still valuable for checking
out.

Get the Geological Highway maps for the areas you are searching.  These are
usually available from the state geological department.

Visit the local Forest Service office and pick up any maps you are
interested in, if you live near BLM lands visit the BLM office too.

Get Gary's masmils and import the data for your area. It is a real boon to
knowing the mines/minerals in an area and places where they have been.

Lastly, ask around at the local rock club. While many rock clubs are rather
conservative in their activities, there are often members that are very
active outside of club functions. Get to know them and you may get some good
hints or even invites. 

These are rudimentary suggestions. The better you know an area and the
minerals you are looking for, the better you can target opportunities.

Good hunting!

Ted Kowalski
Fredericksburg VA USA


-----Original Message-----
From: rockhounds-bounces at lists.drizzle.com
[mailto:rockhounds-bounces at lists.drizzle.com] On Behalf Of
Paintricks at aol.com
Sent: Wednesday, August 01, 2007 5:07 PM
To: rockhounds at lists.drizzle.com
Subject: [Rockhounds] Collecting techniques questions

Hi there,
  I see a lot of collecting sites given about our favorite place and  love 
all that I learn here.
  I have a question about collecting techniques.   How are  some of our 
favorites recovered?  What are the signs to look for in the  country rock
that give 
us details about a minerals location?  How to dig  it, how to pick out areas

driving by at 50 or better?  Anything.  A  lot of prospecting I do driving 
down old country roads off the beaten paths or  hiking.
  Any info on this would be good.  And any unusual ways to find  things in 
our areas.
  Thanks in advance,
   Kevin



************************************** Get a sneak peek of the all-new AOL
at 
http://discover.aol.com/memed/aolcom30tour


--- StripMime Report -- processed MIME parts ---
multipart/alternative
  text/plain (text body -- kept)
  text/html
---
-- 
_______________________________________________
Rockhounds at drizzle Mailing List
Subscription Services:
http://lists.drizzle.com/mailman/listinfo/rockhounds
List Home Page, with a link to the List Usage Policy:
http://www.eclecticlapidary.com/Rockhounds/index.html