My 11 year old son is really into rockhounding, and more specifically digging for crystals. Last year for his birthday I took him to a quartz mine in Arkansas thinking it would get it out of his system. But it had the opposite effect. Now he wants to go all over the country hunting different crystals and fossils.

Does anyone have any recommendations for great spots to go dig? Looking for places that are fairly accessible and where you're sure to find what you came for. I'd be open to anywhere in the country for another birthday trip for him.

Post Oak Creek in Sherman is a famous place for fossil shark teeth. https://texaskidsadventures.com/post-oak-creek-fossil-hunting/


Mineral Wells has a nice, easy access fossil park.
https://www.mineralwellsfossilpark.com

Look up Ladonia Fossil Park on facebook to learn a lot about accessing the North Sulphur River between Commerce and Honey Grove. World famous site for Mosasaur to Ice Age Mammal fossils and pretty fertile ground for stone points. You want to visit during cooler weather.

Crystal Peak near Reno, Nv. When my son was younger, we took a truckload of kids there several times over the years. Cool place open to the public, and a public park iirc. Lots of other spots around Reno to look for rocks, silver , gold, and crystal/ quartz. And the shoreline around Lake Tahoe nearby is loaded with cool rocks.

Silver mines in Virginia City are open for tours.

Did you hit Crater of Diamonds in Arkansas? They are still pulling gem stones out of there. My mom dug out a large topaz when I was into rockhounding as a kid, large and quality enough to make matching multi-karat matching rings for her and her 3 sisters.

Theres amozonite and Smokey quartz that you can mine near mount antero in Colorado. Chaffe county produces world class specimens. There was a TV show years ago that followed some of them around.

We did try Crater of Diamonds but didn't find much. One guy did find a decent size diamond while we were there though.

This would be a cool trip. Do you happen to know where the mines are?

Teller county and the others by Pike's Peak.

Jason_Roofer said:

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Geology major and rock hound here….check out Llano for some cool rocks. If you google llano rocks or llanite, there are some old threads online with a couple of public ranch roads you can drive down and find near specimens. Nothing earth shattering but they are cool enough for me to have my picnic table in my yard topped with them. I'll try to dig up the road.

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Highway 16 north out of Llano, just past Baby Head cemetery, you will find one of the only publicly accessible locations to collect Llanite. The blue quartz phenocrysts in it are pretty unique. There is dike containing it that crosses the road at the pinned location below. Take a decent sized sledge, chisels, and a pry bar or two if you want to get anything decent. The outcrop has been beaten down by decades of geologists whacking away at it with rock hammers.

https://maps.apple.com/?ll=30.890595,-98.658408&q=Dropped%20Pin&t=h

There's an area outside of Temple that is good for finding fossilized shark teeth.

I grew up hunting on the west side of Lake Buchanan and the Llanite all over the place was really cool.

If you go out towards The Grove, there's a lot of hematite nodules all over the place.

Go to Kremerer WY to dig for fish fossils in the green river formation. There are several pay digs. You could come back with a truck full.

Rock hound state park in New Mexico. Place is loaded with cool minerals AND you are allowed to keep a certain amount.

Also, big bend ranch. You aren't allowed to keep stuff but it is very cool to look. The rocks in the solitario are very cool as you drive down the trail. Also in and out of Fresno Canyon. I mean very cool toes of stuff.

The area around the state park I would guess is sort of fair picking, i.e. the gravel county roads made from the local rock.

Can't vouch for the accuracy of this book, but I picked it up in ABQ a few months ago and would like to try it.



https://www.amazon.com/Rockhounding-New-Mexico-Guide-States/dp/1493057235/


Same company has one for Texas, haven't seen it yet.

+

https://www.amazon.com/Rockhounding-Texas-Guide-States-Sites/dp/1493067532


Replying to the thread so I can find it again

And here is a place in Oklahoma that we plan to visit at some point

https://www.travelok.com/state-parks/salt-plains-state-park

In northwest Oklahoma, near Enid.

Quote:

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Salt Plains State Park is one of Oklahoma's most unique state parks. The barren landscape of the nearby Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge is comprised of salt leftover from an ocean that covered Oklahoma in prehistoric times, and the saltwater lake in the park, Great Salt Plains Lake, is about half as salty as the ocean....

The selenite crystal dig area is located southwest of the lake in the Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge, and access roads are available six miles west of Jet or three miles south of Cherokee. The crystal digging area is open from April 1 to October 15 from sunrise to sunset. Located just under the surface of the salt plains, these crystals usually form into an hourglass shape. Oklahoma is the only place in the world where the hourglass-shaped selenite crystal can be found

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Photo from instagram, I have no idea who it is



https://www.narcity.com/oklahoma-salt-plains-crystal-mining-is-open-now

Awesome leads. Thanks. The one in Oklahoma looks cool for sure

The Kokernot 06 ranch in west tx offers guided hunts for agates and such. Ive never been but from what ive heard it seems like people find some nice stuff out there and have an enjoyable time. I think there is a guide that works out there and you just have to book with him personally via FB (or im sure he has his cell # listed). This is his FB acct https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556197602182

ETA: Heres some more info i found online
https://terismithrockhunts.com/tag/06-ranch/

If you ever visit Tahoe, this is a pretty cool spot.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/UzJw4wZQbw8WA2Y6A?g_st=com.google.maps.preview.copy

Did you say rockhounding?

I immediately thought of this place:
https://www.milb.com/midland
Get him a hat.