Latest findings.. (3- 26 -11)

  Dug out ( chipped out rather) of one of the quartz veins on our claim.

    Different views of the same two Ore Specimens. 

The first one is Covellite (or Azurite?) in Quartz. 

The second is Gold and Pyrite in Quartz ..

Quartz with Covellite

Ye Ole Rock Shop ...

 Ye Ole Rock Shop ...

  After the lode claim was officially ours we invested in some used lapidary equipment (A rock saw, trim saw and grinders) and we did some rock trading for a tumbler.

 

He is restoring the old equipment so we

 can cut our rocks into slabs like this.....

 

Trim the slabs into shapes like this...

Than grind the shapes 
into cabochons like this!...

 

 So the cabochons can be made

 into jewelry like this!...

   Our entire back patio 

became a Rock Shop...

  I plan to make a sign that says "BOBS ROCK SHOP"

but we actually refer to it as "The Sweat Shop"

 

 I am told that is normal, and "that's how it starts". And it is also normal when it overflows to the back yard! But nobody warned us until after it happened!

Once our "Rock Shop" was set up we began producing slabs and cabochons..

 

 

Desert Hues Mine.." On Location"

January 26 2011

Desert Hues Mine.." On Location" 

 After a little over an hour driving off the grid on packed dirt roads, sandy washes the truck decorated with more  "desert pinstriping" ... 

 .... We arrive at the base of  a small mountain 

where The Desert Hues Mine awaits...

If you look closely you can see little people hiking towards the top.

  Than the hike. Up, up, up to the top 

where the the quartz veins are 

nestled between solid granite rock ...

Did I really say this was  "Fun" ?

   Before anything else you have to just pause...

and take in the view...

    The quartz vein is fairly easy to spot but not so well in a photo so I darkened the image where the vein is to make it easier to locate...

The vertical line of lighter colored rocks 

within the dark area is the quartz vein.

 The higher percentage of gold deposits within the

quartz vein are not found at the surface tho....

Solid granite must be removed on one side of the

quartz  vein to expose it so it can be removed...

It is a heck of a lot of work to make the quartz 
vein accessible to remove the ore...

  And we do it with a hammer  and steel mallet, chisel 

and pick ax just like they did over 100 years ago!...

It's NO PICNIC!..

 

It takes several hours of removing the granite to get one or two 5 gallon buckets of ore out. And there isn't necessarily many "nice specimens" every time either. To actually collect gold out of it we have to crush it down to the size of sand and then pan it.

 

   So unless there is a real nice chunk of solid gold in there this is not a good thing to "invest" in. Yes it's a gamble. But we already knew that going into it. 

 It's mostly a hobby with possible benefits.  But along the way we get enjoyment out of the adventure of it all. (And EXERCISE!)

  Yes enjoyment as crazy as it sounds.

 While Robert "nibbles" into the granite I 

have my own "project" going,

Path Building! ...

 

 I have put about 3-4 hours into it so far and gained about 40 feet of pathway 1-2 feet in width. I am making switchbacks so we can walk easier up the side of the mountain. 

    It is a very steep slope and it is covered with loose rocks. Your feet slip out from under you if you don't take each step very carefully. It takes some time getting up to the mine because of this. (Probably why no one else had never discovered this location in the first place.)

    I may never get the path finished but it's another challenge to add to the adventure.And I make more progress that chipping at granite! 

 We have also been spending a lot of time educating ourselves about gems and minerals and prospecting. Slow but sure we are learning how to identify rocks and how they were formed.