alysia711
starting to shine!
Member since January 2016
Posts: 31
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Post by alysia711 on Jan 13, 2016 14:06:53 GMT -5
I'm in New Orleans, and I'm not sure if anyone is familiar with the geography, so I'll do my best to describe. The Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain are the 2 main water sources for the city and both connect to the Gulf of Mexico. There are waterways that in between the river and the Lake, most of which is swamp, and at some point a spillway was built in these waterways. So, when the river gets too high, they will open the spillway which allows the river to flood through the swamps and into the Lake. The spillway remains open until the river has leveled out. Okay, now to my question, which may be a stupid one, but please be patient with me because I am truly a beginner in rockhounding and rock tumbling. Once the river recedes, is that a good time and place to go hounding? Do y'all have any advice as to where to look when going to City and/or State Parks?
Thanks, Alysia
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Post by 1dave on Jan 13, 2016 15:10:41 GMT -5
Never been there, but my guess is that what rocks are in the area are buried under tons of sand and mud. Check out: New Orleans Geological SocietyEVENTS Joint SGS-NOGS Luncheon – January 14, 2016 Holiday Inn, 330 Loyola Ave.@ 11:30 AM Admission: $30.00 - $3.00 Parking Reservations: Click Here To pay online for your luncheon, Click Here Guest Speaker: Andrew S. Madof Chevron Energy Technology Company Houston, Texas Contact Information Address: Suite 300, 810 Union Street, New Orleans, LA 70112 E-mail: info@nogs.org Telephone: 504-561-8980 Office Manager: Annette Hudson, annette@nogs.org www.ce.berkeley.edu/projects/neworleans/report/CH_3.pdf
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Fossilman
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2009
Posts: 20,685
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Post by Fossilman on Jan 13, 2016 15:35:10 GMT -5
I would look for any gravel bars by the river,etc...Maybe a fill where they brought gravel in from quarries.....Even ask around, someone knows where the spots would be... Google your area for rock clubs and shops....Good luck..
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Post by 1dave on Jan 13, 2016 16:01:41 GMT -5
Quotes from Berkeley:
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Post by toiv0 on Jan 13, 2016 22:56:27 GMT -5
I was just working in Picayune, MS about an hour from New Orleans. They were dredging for sand where I was working and then screening out the rocks. The rocks on the large size were about 2" but nothing larger. They were dredging down up to 60 ft. The piles of gravel after washing ranged from 1/8 inch to 3/8 inch (too small for tumbling) the next pile 3/8th to 2 inch had some nice fossilized corals, a little petrified wood, and a few agates. There was lots of blackish and brown chert and some white quartz. The owner said at his plant in town he had lots of rocks from south america, I think he uses them in construction of swimming pools and such. Usually they won't let anyone in the gravel pits due to liability and they have to be MSHA certified...kind of like an osha but for mining. If he has hauled the gravel to his yard maybe on a week end you could look, I should be talking to him in the next few weeks.
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alysia711
starting to shine!
Member since January 2016
Posts: 31
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Post by alysia711 on Jan 14, 2016 16:18:47 GMT -5
Oh jeez, I had this long reply typed out, but I must have forgotten to hit post. Well, the gist of it was thanks for the awesome and great info Dave. Fossil and Dave, I've checked out. A couple of shops in the city, but they're mostly focused on lapidary and selling jewelry to tourists. I'll have to get away from the city peeps to find people that like getting their hands dirty. I did find a club that I'm going to look into more, hopefully the Nola chapter is still active.
Toivo, I've been wanting to start taking my kids on little day road trips. I haven't been able to give them a vacation in several years, so i thought starting trips like this would be a great alternative. But, I haven't really figured out where or how to get started. Picayune sounds like a great place to start. I want to use these trips as a way to show my kids what's out there beyond our little intercity neighborhood. Im hoping these could be educational as well as a great family experience. Besides that, my kids and I are a bunch of country coonasses at heart stuck in a sort of big city.
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Post by Jugglerguy on Jan 14, 2016 16:28:02 GMT -5
I had to look up "coonass ".
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alysia711
starting to shine!
Member since January 2016
Posts: 31
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Post by alysia711 on Jan 14, 2016 18:59:55 GMT -5
I had to look up "coonass ". You learn something new everyday! But, you probably never expected to learn that from this board.
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Post by broseph82 on Jan 14, 2016 22:51:19 GMT -5
Look up the Toledo Bend area for rocks. I know it's a bit of drive but we found lots of pet wood small tumbling sizes but was still fun. On the state line of LA and TX is where a lot of rocks are.
Vernon Parish is another hot spot supposedly.
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alysia711
starting to shine!
Member since January 2016
Posts: 31
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Post by alysia711 on Jan 15, 2016 19:46:09 GMT -5
I might plan a trip out to vernon parish soon and check it out. If I do, I'll let you know how it goes. I was thinking about trying Tunica Hills once hunting season is over. For now, I'll stay close to home while I'm just starting out.
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rockncajun
spending too much on rocks
Member since September 2009
Posts: 344
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Post by rockncajun on Jan 15, 2016 20:00:51 GMT -5
The best advice I can give you is to join the gem club in New Orleans. I know many of them and they go on outings regularly. I have been on a few trips with them and they are always helpful with locating and identifying rocks and fossils. My first rockhounding adventure here in south Louisiana was with them. As for the spillway, I would not expect any rocks wold be found. It tends to silt up with sand once the water subsides.
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alysia711
starting to shine!
Member since January 2016
Posts: 31
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Post by alysia711 on Jan 18, 2016 22:07:25 GMT -5
The best advice I can give you is to join the gem club in New Orleans. I know many of them and they go on outings regularly. I have been on a few trips with them and they are always helpful with locating and identifying rocks and fossils. My first rockhounding adventure here in south Louisiana was with them. As for the spillway, I would not expect any rocks wold be found. It tends to silt up with sand once the water subsides. Is this the club that meets at UNO on the 2 Monday of each month?
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rockncajun
spending too much on rocks
Member since September 2009
Posts: 344
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Post by rockncajun on Jan 20, 2016 18:38:26 GMT -5
yes it is.
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