|
Post by Jugglerguy on May 20, 2015 5:28:01 GMT -5
2:00 AM is a bed time, not a time to get up.
|
|
|
Post by orrum on May 20, 2015 6:33:14 GMT -5
2 am is the middle of the nite not I say not early in the morning!
Have a great trip and get good pics and rocks!
|
|
|
Post by Jugglerguy on May 25, 2015 11:23:59 GMT -5
Toad, where are the pictures and the trip report?!?
|
|
|
Post by Toad on May 25, 2015 11:57:29 GMT -5
All right, Grant and I survived and made it back to Ohio. First a few stats: - Total miles 1,825: average of 456 per day (but over 700 on day 1 and 4) - 67 gallons of gas - averaged 27 MPG in our 2002 Honda CRV - Brought back 194 pounds of rock First the scenery - rocks will follow in subsequent post. The first stop was Michigan Beach Park in Charlevoix. We found a few small Petoskey stones on the beach, but the water was very choppy, so we had to concentrate on the wet rocks out of the water as the constant waves did not allow for underwater viewing: Also stopped in Petoskey and found some larger rocks that had Petoskey patterns in part of the rocks. Then it was across the Mackinac Bridge to the UP. The bridge is weird - outside lane is paved, middle lane is metal - and it sings when you drive on it, very annoying... The water was beautiful, but I don't think the phone photos do it justice, so not included: Then on to Grand Marais and a great beach at the Woodland Park Camp Ground - found several pieces of unakite. We then drove into Marquette for dinner and much needed sleep after 714 miles. The next day we checked out the old and new ore docks in Marquette before heading out to do some more rocking: Found a pyramid of jaspellite somewhere between Marquette and Ishpeming: Then on to Jasper Knob where we were able to collect some Jaspellite for ourselves. Drove by the walking path to the top several times as there are no signs - just a small break in the wall with several narrow steps and then a trail: We then headed out to the town of Republic to see what was left of the old iron mine - nothing, it's now submerged. There are just some signs telling the history of the mine. We were able to pick up some ore samples for piles scattered in and around an apparently dying town. We then headed straight west to the small town of Toivola and Misery bay to search Agate Beach. Picked up a few unakites, some Thompsonite in matrix (I believe), and various other interesting rocks - skunked again on Lakers though. In the area we saw several graveyards strewn with pink flowers. Never seen that before, so I took some pics - any idea what they are? We then headed north to Houghton to try and find the Beacon Hill Iron Mine - no dice. When trying to find our way back to civilization, the GPS tried to take me across this: We chose a different route... We spent the night in Houghton and only drove 247 miles for the day - some of it lost and some of it off-road (and lost). The next day we crossed the river into Hancock and stopped at the Quincy copper mine. It was still way early in the morning, so we couldn't do the tour, but there was a huge 'poor' rock pile that we explored for a bit. The view of Hancock (near side) and Houghton (far side): We continued northeast toward Ahmeek and the Gratiot River County Park. A four mile drive down dirt roads to a very beautiful beach - again, no agates!! But picked up an interesting rock or two - including Thompsonite, and Grant found a garnet!! While heading through Eagle Harbor/Eagle River we stopped at the Jam Pot (believe Rob recommended that) run by some monks: Then we continued up to Copper Harbor. We meant to explore around some area lakes where civilization ended, but ran into a bit of a problem when the trail was blocked: So we called it a night early and rolled into our motel at only 96 miles for the day. We stopped at a few mines on the way out of Copper Harbor the next morning, but there did not appear to be any collecting sites. We considered driving to South Haven for septarian nodules, but just weren't feeling it. 768 miles to home. WHEW!! Pics of rocks coming next...
|
|
|
Post by Toad on May 25, 2015 12:20:37 GMT -5
And here is what we brought home. Petoskey: Partial Petoskeys: Thompsonite in matrix?? Granites? Unknown but interesting beach finds: Unakite: Jaspelite chunk I carried from the top of the hill. I tried carrying it with both hands in front first but too heavy, so I hefted to a shoulder and switched often. It weighs 88 pounds. Pics don't show the layering well, but it is there: Smaller jaspellite for tumbling: Iron ore from the Republic area. The big piece at the top right will be a yard rock: From the Quincy copper mine, mostly just looks like rock - but some appears to have copper in it: Found this on one of the many beaches we visited. Appears to be agate-ish - closest I got to a Laker the whole trip, besides the rock shops... And here is the garnet that Grant found: Overall a very fun trip
|
|
|
Post by Jugglerguy on May 25, 2015 12:30:54 GMT -5
The pictures were worth the wait! I love the Yooper bridge. That pyramid shaped monument is in Negaunee. Did you stop at the Yooper's Tourist Trap rock shop? Did you go up Brockway Mountain Drive near Copper Harbor?
|
|
|
Post by Toad on May 25, 2015 12:35:54 GMT -5
Stopped by one rock shop that was closed - called itself the Walmart of rocks. Wouldn't have paid a dime for what they had outside, probably kept the good stuff inside. Was on Brockway - beautiful!
|
|
|
Post by DirtCleaner on May 25, 2015 12:43:58 GMT -5
Nice trip. Glad you found the Jampot!
|
|
|
Post by Jugglerguy on May 25, 2015 12:46:55 GMT -5
Just looked at the rock pictures. I hate to tell you this, but those aren't Petoskey stones. They're favosite, sometimes called Charlevoix stones. It's a different type of coral, Petoskey stone has much bigger hexagon shaped cells. It will still polish up just like Petoskey stone though, so it's still a good find. You can tumble them partially if you keep a real close eye on them, but can't finish them in a tumbler. Don't run them for more than a couple days and use very little grit, like one tablespoon. Finish them on a flat lap, cabber, or even by hand with wet/dry sandpaper. The solid green rocks in the upper left of your unknown beach finds picture are epidote. Throw them in with your unakite. They are just missing the feldspar part. The green usually does better in the tumbler than the red. The Thompsonite is probably amygdaloidal basalt. I'm not sure which minerals have filled in the holes, could be prehnite, which is sometimes called U.P. Thompsonite. Look at the bottom of this page for a good picture. The garnet is super cool.
|
|
|
Post by captbob on May 25, 2015 12:58:30 GMT -5
Thanks for taking us along for the virtual vacation. Really enjoyed the pictures. Although, I think you're a sissy for not crossing that awesome wooden "bridge". I don't care what you brought home, the trip with your son was the treasure! < wandering off to find a bigger thumbs up picture because what I have on hand just doesn't quite cut it >
|
|
|
Post by orrum on May 25, 2015 13:03:55 GMT -5
Great report n awesome pics!!! I wanna go!
Now if we can get Chucks report in from his cabin trip weekend!
|
|
|
Post by Jugglerguy on May 25, 2015 13:06:26 GMT -5
Here's a comparison between favosite and Petoskey. The Petoskey is on the right.
|
|
|
Post by orrum on May 25, 2015 13:41:30 GMT -5
Uh oh my Petoskey I bought is Favosite!!!! Oh well you said it still saws and cabs right?
|
|
|
Post by Jugglerguy on May 25, 2015 13:55:55 GMT -5
Yep. Do a search on Etsy for Charlevoix stone and I'll bet you find some jewelry. Zam works well as a final polish for me.
|
|
|
Post by Toad on May 25, 2015 14:37:41 GMT -5
Thanks for the corrections on ID's Rob. Appreciate it!
|
|
|
Post by Drummond Island Rocks on May 25, 2015 19:07:46 GMT -5
I enjoyed the photos. Looked like a great trip. The bridge is always fun and for us its always exciting to know we are finally just one hour from our place when we are on it. The steel grating is interesting to drive on and different tires track different on it too. My last truck with big off road mud tires did not like it at all and would barely stay straight because the treads acted weird on it and wandered all over. When we are stuck at the top in traffic my kids will stick their heads out and look down through the grate to see the water 300 feet below.
I like the unakite best and if I made the trip over that way thats what I would be after. What are your plans for the smaller iron ore?
Chuck
|
|
|
Post by Toad on May 25, 2015 19:49:12 GMT -5
Thanks for taking us along for the virtual vacation. Really enjoyed the pictures. Although, I think you're a sissy for not crossing that awesome wooden "bridge". Sissy?! My wife thought we actually did it until we told her otherwise today. She agreed with you - not very manly...
|
|
|
Post by Toad on May 25, 2015 19:50:10 GMT -5
I enjoyed the photos. Looked like a great trip. The bridge is always fun and for us its always exciting to know we are finally just one hour from our place when we are on it. The steel grating is interesting to drive on and different tires track different on it too. My last truck with big off road mud tires did not like it at all and would barely stay straight because the treads acted weird on it and wandered all over. When we are stuck at the top in traffic my kids will stick their heads out and look down through the grate to see the water 300 feet below. I like the unakite best and if I made the trip over that way thats what I would be after. What are your plans for the smaller iron ore? Chuck Smaller iron ore - I was going to take one of the chunkier pieces and see how it held up to tumbling. Do you have other thoughts?
|
|
|
Post by snowmom on Jun 3, 2015 5:14:50 GMT -5
awesome trip and write up. Precious time together. When my kids were still at home, we did our best talking on long trips in the car. Great pictures, looks like you guys had a blast! It is hard to tell from the photo, your pink flowers may have been spring beauties. They grow in clumps that increase yearly and they are among the first to bloom in the spring. they look almost white when the blossoms first unfold but get more pink as they age, before dropping the petals. Did they look like this? en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claytonia_virginicaThanks for taking us with you. I haven't been to the UP yet, but we are much closer now we live at the tip of the mitt. Its on my bucket list!
|
|
Fossilman
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2009
Posts: 20,681
|
Post by Fossilman on Jun 3, 2015 9:06:31 GMT -5
Liking those little guys!!!
|
|