Pebble terrace and Opal Hill Mine and Black Hills Thunder Egg Mine – story and 6 SIX videos!

Rock Hound Run Report 4-13-07 to 4-17-07

We had another great trip, found lots of rocks, a few geodes and two big geodes. There were 7 rigs

Loren and his 2 sons and his father-in-law Mac, Jeep Unlimited.

Rainer and Marianne, F250

Paul and Elise, Rubicon Unlimited

Cara and Bob, Jeep

Jason in Gary’s Jeep

Morris, Pinzgauer

Ronnie and I, Jeep

On Friday it was Rainer and Marianne, Ronnie and I and Loren we hunted for orange agate and chalcedony on the Bajadas just east of camp. Loren went up to the Opal Hill mine and saw a movie crew there shooting a documentary for the discovery channel. Friday night Paul came in and also Morris. Later in the night Cara and Bob and Jason got there. Saturday we headed for Carlson View after some wrong turns we finally found it, what a great view of the desert to the south, one of Loren’s sons found a geode the size of a football with a large clump of druse crystals in the center, about the size of a baseball, right next to the trail. We also stopped at the southern end of the Hauser geode Beds and then took a trail a guy said that was impassable back to the main trail and then back to camp. Later that day early evening before dark Gary and his wife and son arrived. After dinner we all (the Jeeps) went out for a night run and had a blast.

Sunday morning Rainer and Marianne headed for home. Morris also headed for home, before we got up. The rest of us headed down the Bradshaw Trail stopped at the Roosevelt Mine and looked around then on to Pala Verde and Kinney’s Rock Shop. From there we took the east trail to Pebble terrace and picked up some agate and Jasper and then on to Opal Hill Mine, everyone had fun checking out the mine and looking for some Fire Opal. After getting back to camp Cara and Bob, Jason and Wife, Gary and Wife headed for home. Loren and Group headed for home as well.

Monday Paul and Elise, Ronnie and I headed out west on the Bradshaw Trail for the Black Hills Thunder egg Mine, which we did find, we spent some time there I did not find much of anything. So we headed back and took the Ashley Flats trail across the desert to another of the Hauser Geode beds, we all found some small geodes and I found one about 6” in diameter. It rained on us, off and on, most of Monday up until dusk. We shot off the Potato guns a couple of nights, mine went the farthest.

No one broke anything and other then a few wrong turns we found all the spots. The weather was windy on Friday and Saturday, warm on Sunday and Rainy and cloudy on Monday, Tuesday was warm and clear! I took 4 movies and a few photo’s Ronnie took about a hundred Photos’ Mac got some shots of a Deer under a bush. It was great to meet new friends and renew old friendships. I also got to meet a new Ham, Jason! Sorry that I missed some names and possibly a time line or two.

Here are the links to Ron’s photo’s

http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/558735497jOUTAT Coon Hollow pictures

http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/558737659SRTgwG Coon Hollow pictures

I have 1 photo album and 1 Video link, with 3 more in the works.

http://rides.webshots.com/album/558735124NyfOwl new opal mine pictures

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2127909268370130217 opal mine video

Here are the Video’s from the trip;

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3685648526362332964    Carlson’s view and Orange agate

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8023749311597746204     Carlson’s View and back to camp

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2096467910829946806     Black Hills Thunder Egg Mine

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2397323362895293788    Saturday night run

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2127909268370130217    Pebble terrace and Opal hill Mine

Dick, ka7ayt