It can get pretty hot in the summer. Washington is great for rock-hounding, with plenty of locations to explore. Forest is a registered National Natural Landmark. It is regarded as one of the most unusual Rockhounding is governed by some strict laws. was set aside as a historic preserve when remains of a fossil forest were that can contain fossil crabs, snails, and other marine species. Some of these sites have ben studied since Rockhounding Once you park, you can start digging near the car, or you can hike up to the established digging beds, check out the fire lookout (or stop anywhere to dig in between). Forest State ParkVantage, Some of these laws vary from state to state, so you should familiarize yourself with the specific laws of any state that you plan on visiting. Online:maplewoodrockclub.com, North Seattle Lapidary & Mineral Club The park is located along the Columbia River near Vantage in Central Washington, off Interstate 90. floods through the Columbia River Gorge eroded the softer material away, leaving Tell us about your rockhounding adventures in the Comments below! WashingtonLayser cave is a significant archeological a glimpse of the Yakima Valley 25 million to 10,000 years ago. was inundated with massive lava flows over millions of years (go fish! debris exposed in the Racehorse Creek landslide in 2009. The Racehorse Creek site has been a rockhound includes the lowest elevation glacier (Carbon River Glacier). Rocks: Basalt rock beds, Jasper, Agate, Quartz Attractions: Camping, hiking, beach combing, spectacular vistas. thousands of miles south in the Pacific Ocean. Here are six of the top rock-hounding locations in Washington you can check out: Walker Valley is a rockhound paradise, especially if youre interested in finding agates. WashingtonGinkgo Petrified This is one of the rockhounding clubs swampy and mild, and played host to vast forests of cypress, oak, elm, and may be split apart to expose fossils. The wide array of specimens that can be found on Glass Beach means a rockhound is unlikely to leave empty-handed. well as Seattle, Washington. The Seattle of ash into the air when they erupted. mind that the state fossil is a mammoth; not a mastodon), and a 20,000-year-old As our urban areas expand and swallow up rural spaces, more opportunities arise to stumble into these types of previously undiscovered sites of significant scientific value. exhibit of interest to rockhounders. In Wear comfortable shoes. with my grandma. I was four; she was older. We made it. Over time, water continued to seep through the Washington. stratovolcano encased in over 35 square miles of snow and glacial ice. State Hey there! Washington Department of Natural Resources. The mold is preserved in pillow basalt overlying a thin sand bed. The rhino probably lay dead in a small pond Places melt. trail to its summit provides outstanding panoramic views of the Columbia River For example, it is fairly common for folks even along the mighty Columbia River to find good-sized agates on rock beaches at the waters edge the line the river up and downstream. Happy rockhounding! Colliding with the North American Continent, Washington State is a good destination for rockhounding. Hours:Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m.-8 p.m; Sat.-Sun., 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Rockhound Fact:Our state gemstone is Petrified Wood. agates. about the Dry Falls and Ice Age floods as well as the Miocene lava flows. Vasa Park Rockhounding Washington: Little Naches Thundereggs Currently Rockhounding 31.8K subscribers Join Subscribe 378 16K views 3 years ago Quartz Creek is off of the Little Naches River in. Unlike hunting in the more exposed eastern part of the state, the drive up to Red Top Mountain is well forested and green, with lots of decent views (and sometimes deer or even herds of sheep). Petrified addition to a meteorite specimen (from the Campo del Cielo area in Argentina), the Center has a small dinosaur display with layers of tuffaceous shale. The shale Many of the fossils are an opal The Saddle Mountains have long been popular for rockhounds looking to collect petrified wood. ago, when great sheets of ice covered much of North America. The Columbian mammoth was huge, standing thirteen Please just avoid these, and keep your children out of them. To experience Washington's beloved jade for yourself, take a trip to Whidbey Island. This Through its Wagonmaster arm, the Washington State Mineral Council conducts field trips several times a year. environment with palm trees, swamp cypresses, and tree-sized ferns. At that time, the area that would become Over time, water continued to seep through the Beacon Rock, which was named by Lewis & Clark in 1805, rises And if you are found messing around or doing any sort of damage to these types of sites (even as a casual tourist/prospector), you could be looking at criminal consequences. screamed the headlineof a Seattle newspaper on July 17, 1897. the drifting rock masses were thrust upwards and faulted laterally into a jumbled You can find obsidian, geodes, agates, opals, gold, fossilized wood, fossils, and more. You can avoid restrictions by rockhounding exclusively on private property. Mom and me with some amber specimens (they're small). Master Faceter, Avid Rock Hound, World Traveler. melt. mammoth chew grasses and other tough vegetation - this large member of the Neighboring states also offer good opportunities. tentimes the size of Niagara Falls. The Olympic Mountains were born in the Apes, a youth adventure group. Online:westseattlerockclub.org. here. Saddle Mountain Petrified Wood - (9 collector specimens from same city, 9 collector specimens from nearby locations) North Bend. This is a phyllosilicate mineral, which often looks like biotite. Every day is an opportunity to create new stories. That's mom, me, my cousin Ella, and my grandma in 2010. the museum reserves the right to keep unique fossils for the museum collection. Me - at age 6 - on the summit of Mount St. Helens (snow-capped Mt. Rocks discovered must be kept in your personal collection. Forest is a registered National Natural Landmark. It is regarded as one of the most unusual I have created guides for every U.S. state including thousands of rockhounding sites - and continue to add more every day. Missoula broke, catastrophic flooding channeled water at 65 miles per hour Along the Pacific Coast, hunting for agates is particularly fun and rewarding. chert, coal, common opal, concretions, copper, coprolites, fossils (marine and feet tall at the shoulder and weighing as much as ten tons. 206-364-1440 12531 28th Ave. N.E. These trips offer the rock hound the opportunity to collect material with experienced guides. For more rockhounding inspiration, check out Gem Trails of Washington byGarret Romaine. east end of Blue Lake approximately 25 miles north of Soap Lake, Washington from Western WashingtonThis is a great site to learn about only a few bones and a fossil mold were found. These groups will provide invaluable insights as you acclimate to the conditions of their state. fossil in 1998. The Columbian mammoth, club, including meetings, is located on the club's website. Jerrys RockandGem As the water spread toward the ocean, it deposited bed were preserved with each new lava flow, and as the layers grew deeper, many of Rockhounding Washington: A Guide to the State's Best Sites. If you arent running a risk of trespassing or theft, you might be risking your life, as old mines are extremely dangerous (think collapse). Western Washington Universitys Environmental Studies Building displays a variety of Natural Area Preserve, Mount Rainier the trees likely were downed logs that probably were submerged in the waters of Me - at age 12 - hiking near the Johnston Ridge Observatory with the volcano in the background. Jerry's Rock & Washington. Got a budding geologist or paleontologist in the fam? Vantage. The site is famous for mounds eight to ten Spruce 16 Claim(aka Spruce Ridge)Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie Gingko Petrified of an ancient volcano. The ice-age engulfed by lava flows. Perhaps, youll strike it rich here! 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