Here is a short update on what’s going on in AS Granit and Bjørndalen quarry, in Tvedalen. Despite bad weather, cold wind and rain, I went to check the quarries today, Saturday 24th.

I started walking to the top of AS Granit, as I could see they had made a major blast on the summit of the hill, just next to an pegmatite where we have found nice hambergite. But it was pretty disappointing, plenty of pegmatite material, but no interesting minerals. I decided to follow the roads on the back of the quarry, with fresh tire-tracks, to se if I could find where the materials from the “behoite pegmatite” have been dumped. I found some samples and one nice behoite, but most of what have been removed from the pegmatite has been buried.

From this side of the quarry it was only a short walk to get down to the Bjørndalen quarry, so I went on to check it out. It was pretty much the same as last time I visited it early in the summer, nothing to be found… The level they are working is almost without pegmatites, and the few there are, are very thin and small.

Returning back to AS Granit, I had to check out the “behoite pegmatite” of course. Almost all the pegmatite material from the blocks where removed now, with only small parts here and there. I almost just passed it, because I was getting hungry, but went over to a small pile where I could see some pegmatite material. The first rock I picked up had some good “spreustein” spots with cavities in it, and checking with my loupe I saw one behoite right away! After digging and hammering, my backpack was filled to the rim again, with two nice litharge samples, at least four behoite samples and ca 20 kg of “spreustein” with cavities…

On the way down I had to check a couple of blocks at level 3 as well, just beneath the behoite pegmatite. It is probably the same vein, but in this part there is no trace of beryllium minerals. In the block I found a couple of ok natrolite samples, that was all.

Back home now, I have checked about half of the spreustein material, and 10 behoites have been found so far.

For the fun, here is a list of the minerals I have collected or observed so far today:

Molybdenite
Arsenopyrite
Galena
Sphalerite
Magnetite
Litharge
Behoite
Böhmite
Calcite
Rhodochrosite
Aegirine
Analcime
Annite
Natrolite
Albite
Microcline
Nepheline
Sodalite
Cancrinite
Wøhlerite
Zircon
Eudialyte group mineral
Chlorite group mineral
Amphibole group mineral

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