Well, I guess some info about me would be appropriate here.

I was born in the summer of '62, and that might be the reason I like warm weather better. :-) Grew up in the suburbs of Antwerp, Belgium, where I was exposed to large teeth and bones found in the local sands. These were HUGE, so of course they were dino bones! Later on, they turned out to be fossil shark teeth and whale bones, but that really did not matter, for I was already infected with the collecting bug. That infection is still very active today, to my joy!

Studied geology at the University of Ghent (Belgium), but never practised it. Became a database administrator for the Belgian Army till I retired in 2013. Ever since, I never had such a busy life! People need you everywhere and all the time! :-)

Besides some field collecting, most of my time is spent writing articles and giving talks. I have been invited repeatedly to talk in person on many occasions in the USA (Rochester, Tucson, Socorro, San Francisco,...) and Europe (Belgium, The Netherlands, Germany, ...). I have even given Zoom talks for students at Colombian universities. If you're in need of a passionate speaker, send me a PM! Or if you are in need of articles for your club newsletter, let me know too!

I am also fascinated by the history of minerals, and by their behaviour under the polarising microscope, by fluorescence, and the spectroscopy of minerals. I love learning more and find this hobby to be an endless source of information! I call myself a "recreational mineralogist", because the expression "mineral amateur" has a negative ring to it, at least in Belgium and surrounding countries.

Still living in Belgium with my (way) better half, two sons, a dog and a small garden, in the small town of Hasselt. We love to travel and have spent most of the summers in the USA for the last 35 years. Some of our friends say we know the US better than they do! :-)
When not in Belgium or in the USA, you can find me near Castellon (Valencia, Spain) enjoying life and minerals there!

(Old) Books and magazines on minerals and mineralogy is another passion. My library hosts over one thousand mineral books now (2023), besides many magazines (full sets of Lapis, Min Rec, Min Welt, Bocamina, Mineral Up, Le Regne Minéral, ...). If you are in search of a specific book or article, or are interested in exchanging minerals for books/magazines, shoot me a PM!

Hope you'll enjoy this hobby as much as I have done so far, and look forward to many more enjoyable years!

Cheers, Herwig
Herwig Pelckmans
(Belgium)