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Field CollectingRock & Mineral Collecting Sites in California

21st Apr 2014 15:25 UTCKori Jones

Hi,

I have a seven year old son that is CRAZY about rocks and minerals. We live in NY but will be spending a month in California (Santa Cruz, Sacramento, San Francisco, Irvine, San Diego, Monterrey) in June and July. Can anyone point me in the right direction for mines/areas that we can go to collect and find rocks or minerals? Or any great museums or shows in those areas?

I would love to take him to a few places on the way to and from these areas.

THANKS SO MUCH!

Kori

21st Apr 2014 19:14 UTCeugene reynolds

hi yaaaa kori,,, there are bazillions of collecting sites in the areas you want to go to....log onto cal.fed mineral societies web sit,,& try to contact the local clubs in these areas,,, try to stop a these museums,,,cal st. museum,mariposa,ca. l.a.nat.hist.museum,l.a. cal.,,san diego museum nat.hist.,,san diego,,(this is in balboa park,,san diego,,you can spend all day in this park must spend a day at the s.d.zoo),,,fallbrook museum in fallbrook,cal,,,,,, good luck & have great fun,,, gene reynolds

23rd Apr 2014 06:08 UTCj!

I do love watching kids find rocks!

A really good immediate gratification spot would be the fee digs for tourmaline at either the Himalaya Mine or the Oceanview Mine near Pala, northeast of San Diego. Both are operations where they bring in the pay dirt and you pay to screen. The more buckets you screen, the more gems you find. I'm partial to the Himalaya, and they have a reasonably priced bag of dirt you can ship home for a little winter's suprise activity.

Prety much any of the road cuts on Carmel Valley Road in Monterey will yeild various fossils, ranging from crab to clam.

I assume you'll be driving up highway 1 through Big Sr. Jade Cove is a great place for a kid. The majority of green rock is serpentine and the majoiryt of the jade is the uberdense nephrite variety, but you can occasionally find some nice, translucent apple green pieces (vesuvianite).

I'm sure you and the family will enjoy combing any of the beaches in Big Sur -- and Do stop for burgers and lattes in Nepenthe at the cafe on top of the gift shop.

Do NOT miss the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Best. Aquarium. Ever.

Up around Moss Beach (south of SF), there's some good spots for fossils. A quick web search should give you good directions

Have fun!

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