Post by callmerob on Feb 8, 2021 23:42:12 GMT -5
I have been absent from RTH for a while, and neglected to post the Gemfield followup to the Nevada trip report #2 - Goldfield.
LINK… forum.rocktumblinghobby.com/thread/89085/nevada-trip-report-2-goldfield
My bad, so…
The day after meeting Sharon in Goldfield, and getting permission to visit her Gemfield mining claim, I came back alone from Tonopah to hunt for jasper. Four miles of good dirt road west of US95 is no problem for any car, but a long motorhome would drag its tail in the gullies.
View of the Big Empty from the mine site.
Sign-in at the big Joshua tree.
Gemfield is known for its red/yellow/gray jasper, but there is another area a few hundred yards away where, when these rocks were formed millions of years ago, I guess the water chemistry was different, resulting in green/gray jasper. I searched there and found rocks big enough to grind spheres. Didn’t have to dig at all. It’s everywhere around within 20 yards of the van. The ground is littered with the stuff, mostly small pieces.
Zoom in on the center of this photo for a horned toad, desert horned lizard (Phrynosoma platyrhinos). They eat those mean red desert ants like popcorn. Watch out for rattlesnakes. Give the bushes a wide berth and go slow. You’re a long way from a hospital.
Somebody worked hard on this. This area (and a lot of Nevada really) is full of hazards like this. On the dirt road on the way to the site, I saw a motorhome family unloading ATVs and dirt bikes. No way would I ride cross-country here. And always be wary of lumber or boards laying on the ground. They can cover an abandoned vertical shaft, so No Step!
Camped overnight here by a fruiting Joshua tree (Yucca brevifolia).
The light-colored ground is littered with green/gray jasper. It’s a widespread exposure. A little digging will get below the freeze/thaw line, maybe resulting in larger pieces and fewer fractures. Sharon requests that you refill any holes you dig - to restore the surface contours (because the desert is fragile), and fill injury hazards to people and the wild burros. The burros are not pets, but everybody likes them anyway.
I think I got about 100lbs of green/gray. The next day I moved back to the red jasper area, and found about another 100lbs of suitable rocks. Went back to the first big Joshua tree to leave some cash in the mailbox that’s nailed to the sign, and Sharon showed up with a fresh sign-in sheet and more hand-drawn site maps, So I got to talk to her again, and pay her directly. Knowing that the green boulder I’d bought from her earlier was 25lbs, I estimated 10 or so pieces each of the red and green variteies. They were stashed and crammed in the van wherever they would fit and not roll around, so we guessed at 200lbs. At $1/lb it seemed fair to me, and Sharon seemed pleased. Maybe covered her Nevada and BLM mining fees for the year, but didn’t make a dent in costs to maintain the site, like grading the road and fuel. She asked if I’d found the agate area, but I was too fried to follow up on that - kicking myself now.
Red Gemfield jasper. These I bought from Bryan the day before because they were already cut to show the inside, and I didn’t yet know if pieces this size were common or rare at the site.
I’m pleased with my haul. Professional rock haulers use the technical term “butt-load of rocks”.
EDIT - Weighed all the loot from Gemfield…
Green = 115 lbs.
Red = 170 lbs.
————
285 lbs.
I really underestimated the weight of the rocks.
Looks like I owe Sharon some more money.
It’s hard for me to find good material to play with. I hope these will saw and grind on my tools. Mostly they just look like dirty old rocks, but the polished spheres can be spectacular.
Also, here’s a link to an article about the history of Gemfield…
LINK www.clarkscustomcampllc.com/activities/
And…I got to mess around on a dirt road.