[Rockhounds] Owyhee County, Idaho and Malheur County Oregon

[Tim Fisher]

Cool, it's about time. Maybe they won't destroy the roads before the 
Ontario AFMS show in June. Last June the road up the "hill" (If 
you've been there you know why I say that lol) to the Hardtrigger 
thunderegg beds had been thoroughly trashed by a "yahoo" a month or 
so earlier. Guess it's as good a time as any to invite anyone who 
cares to make the trip to the Fairgrounds, the Mt Hood Rock Club will 
be there led by Keen Clay and yours truly for the entire week of the 
show, for field trips most every day, hooking up with the Owyhee club 
for their show field trips the end of the week and into the weekend. 
So far the plan is June 14, 15 or 16th-22nd. Our trips are open to 
all who care to attend; last year we had participants from Seattle, 
Olympia, Pasco, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and California (at least). We 
will probably stay at Snake River RV south of Homedale on 95 until 
the show gears up, then relocate to the Ontario FG. I will be looking 
to hook up with at least one of the commercial picture jasper mines 
in the area; last year we hooked up with Gene Mueller and thoroughly 
trashed his Graveyard Point plume agate tailings piles for a great 
price ($2/lb.). We will do the area even if Gene isn't there; I left 
some awesome seams of plume in the ground in the vicinity of the 
Regency Rose that were going, going, going... and getting fatter :) 
Sorry Boise Gem Clubbers; if we left anything for you guys it was an 
oversight! :D

At 05:19 PM 2/29/2008, you wrote:
>This from the *other* Rockhounds List. I thought it a good heads up.
>
>John
>Santa, ID
>43" of snowpack and dropping fast
>
>Owyhee County, Idaho and Malheur County Oregon are two of the best 
>places to collect jasper, plume agate, fossil leaves, invertebrate 
>fossils, thundereggs, and geodes. With all the snow and rain we have 
>had this winter and now it's starting to warm up we have had a lot 
>of muddy roads and people with spring fever. Some avid rock hounds 
>and ATV - motor cycle enthusiasts are making a mess when they get 
>stuck in these desert back areas.
>
>Owyhee County is sparsely populated, thus not a lot of tax money for 
>their search and rescue. The county gets stuck with lots of overtime 
>for rescue missions. This is one way to cut back on rescue and maybe 
>collect a little revenue from offenders.
>
>If you are planning a rock collecting trip to Western Idaho, wait 
>for the ground to dry, this could take another month. We will be 
>getting more snow and rain for at least the next six weeks.
>Tony Griffin
>Field Trip Coordinator - Idaho Gem Club (Boise)
>
>This is from KTVB news, Boise Idaho.
>"It's starting to warm up. Everybody's getting spring fever and they 
>want to be the first. There's always this guy that says, 'I can get 
>out there, I don't care what they say. I got this big truck and I 
>got these big tires," Owyhee County Commissioner Richard Freund 
>said. "That guy needs to stay home and get in his backyard and spin 
>cookies til he's buried to his axles and he can destroy his own backyard."
>
>Road closure signs are going up across the county -- including 
>nearly everything south of Highway 78.
>If you get stranded on those closed roads, you will be liable for 
>the cost any rescue efforts.
>
>Not only that, you could be charged with a crime.
>
>The county says it will reopen these areas just as soon as possible.
>
>*CLOSED AREAS*
>
>- South of the "A" Canal to Highway 95
>- South of Sommercamp Road from Highway 95 to the power line
>- South of the 500kw power line to Upper Reynolds Creek Road
>- South and west of Reynolds Creek Road to the intersection of 
>Rabbit Creek Road
>- South of Rabbit Creek Road to Murphy
>- South of Highway 78 to Oreana Loop Road
>- South of Oreana Loop Road to Oreana Cut off Road
>- South of Oreana Cut Off Road to Mud Flat Road
>- South of Mud Flat Road between Oreana Cut Off Road and Shoofly Road
>- South of Shoofly road to Highway 51
>- South of Sugar Valley road to the Bruneau River

Tim Fisher
Ore-ROCK-On!
Email address at http://OreRockOn.com