Gail A. Butler - Rockhounding California

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FALCON GUIDES

Copyright 1995, 2012 Morris Book Publishing, LLC

Previous edition published by Falcon Publishing, Inc., 1995

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Consulting editor, first edition: W. R. C. Shedenhelm

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication data is available on file.

ISBN 978-0-7627-7141-7

Printed in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

The author and Globe Pequot Press assume no liability for accidents happening to, or injuries sustained by, readers who engage in the activities described in this book.

There are many people who have made the writing of this book possible. To list all of them would require another whole volume. So I will start at the beginning and be as brief as possible.

I thank my grandfather, Alvin B. Butler, a prospector. When I was very young, he nurtured my interest in rockhounding by bringing me wonderful rock and mineral specimens he found on gold prospecting trips.

Thanks to James R. Mitchell for his rockhounding guide, Gem Trails of California, which led me on my first trips into the wilderness to look for rocks years ago.

Thanks to the members of the Bear Gulch Rock Club of Ontario, California, who further encouraged my interest in both rockhounding and turning my found stones into lovely lapidary treasures. I am also grateful for their companionship and fun on many rockhounding trips. A special thanks also to member Bob Kawka, who strongly encouraged me to write my first article.

I wish to thank W. R. C. Shedenhelm, editor emeritus of Rock & Gem magazine, who published my first article in 1985 and then said, Keep em coming. I also thank him for his ongoing encouragement, humor, winefests, humor, sharing of books and maps, humor, his valuable advice, and of course his humor. It was greatly due to him that this guide was written.

To my mother, Barbara Parry, heartfelt thanks from me, my feline friends, and plants for feeding and watering them while I was gallivanting about the state taking photos and detailing site write-ups for this book. Thanks also for picking up the tons of mail delivered while I was away.

Thank you, thank you to my dear friends and partners, Mo and Ed Hemler, who tracked my gallivantings and were prepared to mount a rescue mission should I not return or check in at the appointed times.

Thank you to Scooter Patrick, mechanic extraordinaire, who kept my Suzuki running in top form. In a year of running about the state, often in the remotest reaches of wilderness by myself, the Sooz never failed.

Thank you to my aunt and uncle, Peggy and Ed Butler, who allowed me to use their home as the base from which all the northern sites were collected and for joining me on some of the expeditions. Thank you also to my father, Al Butler, and his betrothed, Sandy Olsen, for more bed and board during my travels.

Thank you to the San Diego Mineral and Gem Society and their junior members for inviting me to accompany them on a trip to one of the sites listed in this guide. I appreciate their ongoing mailings of the Pegmatite Bulletin, which contains valuable information regarding legislation that affects rockhounding, some of which has gone into this guide.

Thanks to the members of the Mount Jura Gem and Mineral Club who gave me directions and information for some of the northern sites described in this guide.

Thank you to Nancy and Howard Fisher of Opal Hill Fire Agate Mine for teaching me their techniques of mining for fire agate.

Thanks go to Herman Schob for his company on several of the southern site trips and for the information he sent on some of the northern sites.

Thank you to Jude Kendrick, with whom I discovered and explored some of the desert sites that subsequently ended up in this book.

Thank you to Garret Romaine for the photos and captions he submitted for this edition.

Also very hearty thank-yous to Ed Ferner, Eric Bonzell, Stephan Telm, Robert Verish, Janelle Williams, Jon Lovegren, Stan Bogosian, Anne Schafer, Fred Ott, Jim Brace-Thompson, and Cyndi Mandellall members of the California Federation of Mineralogical Societiesand CFMS in general for their contributions to the second edition.

The object of this guide is to provide rockhounds with as much up-to-date information as possible to enable them to collect the many interesting gem and mineral treasures that abound in California.

Many of the gem and mineral guides for California are years, sometimes decades, out of date. Legislation continually changes land status and access to areas in California. New roads have been built, altering directions and mileages to many collecting sites.

In most cases the author has visited the sites listed to check on mileages, status, and availability of collecting material. Several sites were suggested by friends of the author who also enjoy a weekend of rockhounding and have their favorite collecting spots.

Most rockhounds have a diverse collection of hammers and picks at their disposal. PHOTO BY GARRET ROMAINE

The information in this guide is presented so that rockhounds and mineral collectors, whether new to the hobby or veterans, will be able to find interesting gems and minerals for their collections and lapidary projects.

By no means does this guide list all the mineral or collecting sites in California. It does list accessible sites the author has enjoyed visiting. These sites also contain a diversity of gem and mineral material. Some sites are included because they are old favorites among rockhounds and are traditional weekend camping and gathering spots. Some were discovered by the author.

Commercial mines are not listed in the site write-ups, as they are not generally accessible to rockhounds. A few that allow occasional collecting are listed under Rockhound Access to Commercial Mines.