Question for rock hounds (rock/gem/mineral collectors)?

Question

Is there a website that lists mines and such that the public can go digging about in?

I've tried Googling it, but that just seems to come up with millions of results about oil and coal and pollution and stuff like that.

Answer 1

try a yahoo search

Answer 2

Unfortunately, the best mines for mineral collecting are usually privately owned and are closed off to the public. But there are still plenty of places open to the public where you can find good specimens. Finding the right location to look can be a challenge, though. Although the internet is a great repository of information on many topics, I've never had much luck finding localities on the web, but it is possible. Here's a site that lists most of the well-known mineral localities that you're likely to hear mineral collectors talk about:

http://www.galleries.com/minerals/fabloc...

You can check to see if you are close to any of the locations listed on this page, and it should at least give you somewhere to start.

A better way to go about things, believe it or not, is to either go to your local library and look up a book about local mineral deposits or, if you live in a sufficiently populated area, chances are good that your city/town has a rock and mineral club. If you can contact someone from an organization that already does these kind of things, they will have plenty of information about nearby places to look for rocks and minerals. You might try googling "rock/mineral collecting" along with the name of your town, county, or state. I've done a lot of mineral collecting around the U.S., so if you tell me where you live, I may be able to suggest places for you as well.

In any case, happy hunting!!!