M a r c h THE INSIDE SCOPE. Jennifer Nishimura. Chuie Nishimura Carolyn Duncan. Wiley s Well field trippers at the Lost Agate Claim

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1 M a r c h THE INSIDE SCOPE Jennifer Nishimura Chuie Nishimura Carolyn Duncan Wiley s Well field trippers at the Lost Agate Claim

2 ROCKHOUNDER The Prez Sez: arch is already here and spring is not far behind. The days are getting M longer and a little warmer. Fieldtrips have been planned and hopefully we ll be able to go on all them. I urge all members to write to the President of the United States to use the line item veto, to veto The California Desert & Mountain Heritage Act, The Eastern Sierra & Northern San Gabriel Wild Heritage Act and The Paleontological Resources Preservation Act of the Omni Bill. You may want to include the Vice President and the Secretary of the Interior as well as they may be able to persuade the President to veto the above mentioned Acts. You could tell him what it means to you, your kids and your grandchildren to be able to go into the various places and collect. You may want to mention that the Federation gives scholarships for earth sciences studies, since we are educational clubs (501c3 classification). How most of the fossil beds now under study were found by amateurs like us. Perhaps even invite them to join us for a fieldtrip, so they can experience what we already know, just how great it is to be out there. And how if this is all locked away and there are no roads to these places no one will be able to see what you have seen and explored. Just to give you some ideas about what to write about. If you or someone you know is into off pavement driving, a mineral collector, prospector and yes even a hiker/photographer should write as these outdoor activities will be affected as well. Now is not the time to be silent! The Senate bill and the House bill have not been voted on by the other houses. The senators and representatives are trying right now to hammer out the final version to be voted on by both houses before it can go to the President. It is my belief that all members of the Regional Federations should write to the President as well. For more information on this talk to your Federation Director Bill Burns. This month the Pasadena Lapidary Society as well as other clubs are having their shows, let s go and support them. Who knows we may get some ideas for our show. Joe Goetz Page 3

3 WGMS General Meeting Thursday, March 26, 2009 at 7:30 PM Marcia Goetz Presents THE INSIDE SCOPE ave you ever wondered what goes on inside the AFMS and CFMS? What H do they do? Tea parties? Rock parties? Intense discussions? Well, we won't have to wonder any more because Izzy is going to tell us. Having been president of both of these she will be able to explain how the groups relate to us. Marcia Goetz Rockgabbers Report R ockgabbers met on February 28th 2009 at Jerry and Kathy s home. The project for the month was foldforming. Everybody made leaves using the foldforming technique. Some people fabricated their leaves using copper sheet, whilst others used tin sheet. The project was successful with everybody learning the new techniques and making pretty and unique leaves. As always the meeting concluded with a delicious potluck dinner. The next meeting of the Rockgabbers will be on April 4 th 2009, and will be held at Tony and Sandie s home in Altadena. The project for next month will be to make a locket. This is a project that we have looked at several times before, and this time we will be planning on three sessions to complete the project. The first session we will cut, texture and shape the outer covers of the case. The second session we will fabricate the inner panels of the locket with the cut outs to hold your pictures. The third session will attach the hinges, the clasp and the bail. We will also look at some other designs for lockets in books and discuss how they could be fabricated. We look forward to seeing everybody at the Rockgabbers meeting on April 4 th. Page 4 Tony and Sandie Fender

Later, he was the leader on several of the long, memorable trips to Oregon, Nevada and New Mexico, to name a few.

4 Happy 100th Clarence Pool larence Pool celebrated the 1 century mark on Sunday, February 8 C surrounded by family and friends. Clarence joined the Whittier Gem & Mineral Society in 1959 and gravitated toward the field trips. Later, he was the leader on several of the long, memorable trips to Oregon, Nevada and New Mexico, to name a few. He had an interest in making cabochons and tumbling stones, so he invented his own vibratory tumbler and cab performer under the Tagit product name. Clarence sponsored cabochon making competitions in the Club and created the Tagit Trophy for the winners. For many years he and Frieda hosted the annual summer pool parties. So congratulations to Clarence on his many achievements and longevity. It is an amazing milestone in an amazing life. Views from Rockgabber s February Workshop Art Ragazzi makes an impression! Sandie Fender demonstrates the foldforming techniques. Page 5

5 I So what makes this agate interesting? By Jay Valle took a group of rockhounds and guests to a classic agate collecting location, an area which has produced some amazing nodules containing sagenite and other inclusions. Really good pieces can be few and far between and they tend to be on the small side, but to a knowledgeable collector the time spent is well worth the effort. We entered the collecting area. I showed them what we were looking for and sent them off to seek treasure of their own. After a while, one of our rookie rockhounds came back and asked why we were looking for such small pieces of agate when just a few hours before we had collected much larger and plentiful amygdales of agate from another location. I attempted to explain why the rocks found here were just as interesting as what had been found earlier. She did not appear convinced. After all, agate is one of the most common and easy to find minerals that rockhounds collect. So what was it that made this particular agate special enough to spend time seeking it out? I considered her question all the way home. Agate is a catchall term that describes a form of chalcedony which is usually translucent, with or without fortification lines in it. Pieces can be large or small, any color of the rainbow, have thick, multicolored fortification lines or fine lacy layers. It may form the heart of a geode or be in a seam several feet thick Beginner rockhounds like agate because it is easy to find and there seems to be an inexhaustible supply. Frequently, for a new collector, quantity and size trump quality. I should have explained that for a rockhound who wants to collect something different and special, Mother Nature has provided some spectacular examples of natural art. These amazing gemstones contain minerals which can mimic moss, trees or landscapes and when properly cut and polished are highly desirable. They may have bands inside which may be very close together and when properly cut will produce a rainbow iris. Some have eyes which can be oriented to produce startling results. The specific variety of agate we were looking for contains a needle-like inclusion which occurs as red and black sprays. These special types are relatively rare and can be difficult to find. Pat McMahan calls these special stones "Agates with Inclusions" and on his webpage he presents photographs of hundreds of different varieties. Next time you visit a local rock club's annual gem show look for examples of fine agates on display, many of which may have been collected by the person presenting the case. So what I will tell the next rookie rockhound in a similar situation is that the Page 6

6 agate found at this location is rare and special and it is worth your time to find some, but only if you what you are looking for and why. Wiley s Well Field Trip Report t was an interesting group that ventured out of rainy Southern California I and enjoyed the fabulous blue skies at Wiley s Well, We had twelve rockhounds in three campers, including six kids, all under the age of seven. Carolyn Duncan & Charlotte (Pasadena Club) kicked off the weekend by arriving early and setting up camp where we stayed last year. I arrived Friday morning and, after setting up the tent trailer, took the ladies on a survey of a couple of possible collecting location for the group. When we got back to camp we found notes on our campers telling us to either pay $40 to the Wiley s Well Camp Host or move to the free camp area. We decided to spend the night there and move the next morning, which we did. Rex & Chuie Nishimura and kids Jennifer, Jared & Alyson arrived sometime during the night and were there to greet us when we got up Saturday morning. I was thinking unkind thoughts about the camp host as we broke camp and headed for the free camping area. But the new campsite we selected turned out to be far superior both in location and seclusion (it also had an awesome fire ring - it was about 2 ft wide and 5 ft long - we had some amazing campfires.) After waiting until 9 AM for any latecomers (there were none) we headed for the Lost Agate Claim for agate & jasper, then over to the Straw Beds for geodes. While we were exploring the Straw Bed area, Jollen & Richard Sprouls (off-roading friends of Rex & Chuie) with their three little ones, Andrew, Riley & Wyatt, found us in their all terrain camper pickup. That night we enjoyed a fine potluck around the blazing campfire. Sunday morning Carolyn & Charlotte headed for home so I loaded the Nishimura s into my pickup and drove on out to Chuckwalla Springs for agate nodules and amygdales. The nodules contain clear agate, frequently banded in various shades of blue and sometimes containing hearts of quarts crystals. Everyone collected all they wanted and seemed pleased with the location. After lunch we spent a short time at the Graham Pass collecting area then split up to head for home. Though the field trip was underattended, the participants and field trip leader had a good time. The weather was wonderful and it was a lot of fun being around a herd of junior rockhounds again. Oh, and rock was collected. Page 7

7 March Field Trip Lavic Siding March 24-25, 2007 On March 24-25, we will have a field trip to Lavic Siding off the I-40. Come and collect jaspers in red, green, yellow, orange and brown. Some are mixed color, others have agate "windows" with flecks of color in them. Jaspers are abundant on the campground (!) and in the surrounding area. Also, we may visit the nearby abandoned mines and look for malachite, azurite, chrysocholla, and other South Cady Mountains specimens. Please bring firewood for the campfire and prepare for a variety of weather conditions. TOOLS: Rock hammer and collecting bag. DIRECTIONS: Take I-40 east out of Barstow about 32.3 miles and go off at Hector Road. Turn right to the stop sign and go left onto Route 66. Continue about 10 miles to where Rte 66 crosses I -40. DO NOT CROSS THE FREEWAY. Instead, turn right and follow the signs to camp. NOTE: Though this is a great place to camp, motels are available 40 miles away in Barstow. If you want to collect but don't want to camp, the motel option works fine. Joe Goetz Page 8

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9 Agates (Part II) - Some Classifications By Ron Gibbs ast month we talked about fortification agates and moss agates, and this L month we ll explore plume agates, and dendritic agates. Another well known agate variety is the plume agate. The characteristic feature of this agate is basically another organic like growth that may appear as a tree, plant or feather duster floating in transparent to translucent chalcedony. Again it is likely that the plumes (mostly mixed metal oxides and hydroxides) are formed after partial solidification or gelling of the silica media. Under basic (as opposed to acidic) conditions many metal salts will produce flocculent oxyhydroxy precipitates. If these are produced in a gel with limited migration, they might appear to be trapped as plumes or flow structures. Although plumes are found in nodular agates they are often found in seam or vein agates too. Many times the plumes seem to be anchored to the edges of the vein or originate at the point of contact between the agate vein and the host material. There are several possible causes for this, including that the sides may offer a point of nucleation for crystal growth, or may provide the point(s) at which seepage of a basic solution intrudes in to the forming agate. Thundereggs are another great source for plumes. Thundereggs are likely created in high-silica rhyolitic welded tuffs, where gas bubbles are frozen in time, and then filled in by silica solutions. Like most plumes, the brownish varieties are usually some form of Fe (oxy-hydroxide) (goethite, limonite, etc.), and the black varieties consist of mixtures of Mn (oxyhydroxies) (romanechite, vernadite, etc.) White plumes appear to contain no metal(s) and are likely different phases of silica (likely hydrated) in the chalcedony. (varieties of opal.) Similar to plume agate is dendritic agate where the encapsulated material looks like feathers of ferns. Dendrites are often found in conjunction with other types of agate. In the Sheep Creek Plume agate photo below there are black dendrites mixed with the orange-brown plumes. These colored elements are usually made up of manganese or iron oxide. They may form via slow precipitation and metal migration caused by slow ph change in the silica gel. These may have been formed after the bulk of the chalcedony was in a semi-rigid state, or perhaps in way similar to the moss Page 10

$agate, but with more limited mobility or fewer fractures. The process may also be aided by electrochemical displacement.$ (reduce: means to cause ionic precipitation to the metallic state.

(reduce: means to cause ionic precipitation to the metallic state.

If an iron nail (solid metal) is placed in a solution of copper (e.g. copper sulfate) the copper will plate out on the iron.

Synthetic dendrite structures induced in agate have been described by George W. Fischer (http://www.ganoksin.

10 agate, but with more limited mobility or fewer fractures. The process may also be aided by electrochemical displacement. Metals can be ordered in an activity series where they are rated in their ability to reduce other metals. (reduce: means to cause ionic precipitation to the metallic state.) Thus in the following series Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, are in order of their ability to reduce the metals below. If an iron nail (solid metal) is placed in a solution of copper (e.g. copper sulfate) the copper will plate out on the iron. Some iron going into solution to replaced the reduced copper. Synthetic dendrite structures induced in agate have been described by George W. Fischer ( and V i n c e K i n g ( h t t p : / / w w w. b o v a g e m s. c o m / e c l e c t i c / HTML/ _FISCHERSTN.html ). From The Goldrush Ledger, 12/07 Stinkingwater Plume Agate (Oregon) Sheep Creek Plume Agate (Oregon) Sheep Creek Dendrite (Oregon) Page 11 Paiute Creek Dendrite (Oregon)

11 Editors Spread the Word By Trudy Martin, SCRIBE President his may not be a topic you want to put in your December newsletter but it T might be something you can file under New Years Resolutions or use at some time in the future. As Public Relations Director and Newsletter Editor, I get 95% of the phone messages and s for our club. It makes sense -direct all the enquiries to one person who can then pass them on to whomever can answer the question. Have you ever received this phone call? My father was a Rockhound. He passed away last month. We are trying to clear the house and there is all this ROCK we don't know what to do with. OR My husband was a club member years ago. We are selling our home and moving into a Seniors Residence. The movers are coming TOMORROW! Can you come today and take all this rock & stuff? Well, let me tell you, over the years we have become very adaptable and, since we are both retired, we can come and go at a moments notice. At times, I wish we had a TRUCK rather than just two cars to pick up all these items. It would be helpful if people would think ahead and notify us, in advance, not just at the last minute. We recently went to help the son of a club member. The dad had passed away. The son was not a rockhound and had no idea of the value of the rock, slices, silver or equipment that was left in the boxes and bins in his dad's rock room. The mother had been a silversmith. She had passed away 10 years previous yet there was still all these tools and silversmithing equipment. The dad was a collector and hadn't thrown anything out in 40 years! So, as you can imagine, there was a lot to be done. The room had to be cleared as the house was up FOR SALE. Hence the purpose of this article. ROCKHOUNDS -YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU! There is no way, when your number comes up, that you can take your Rock Collection with you when you go to your heavenly reward. It has to stay behind for your family to dispose of. Page 12

12 What are they going to do? Most of them have no idea what the rocks are or what they are worth. As the old saying goes, they will probably throw out the baby with the bath water! They have no idea what is gem material and what is leaverite. It is up to YOU to make sure your collection is correctly identified. PLEASE, put labels or stickers on your rock, slices, faceting rough, minerals, fossils and silver. An uninformed person can't tell the difference between a piece a sodalite and a piece of lapis. Nor can they tell the difference between genuine, gem quality faceting rough and glass. To the novice, slices of jasper are just that - jasper. They can't identify Bruno Jasper, Biggs Jasper, Rainforest Jasper from the run-of-mill jaspers found in the local gravel pit. When it comes to Agate - well, that's a horse of a different color! Some agate is priceless because the area it was found in is no longer available for hunting. Minerals and Fossils are another major problem. If they don't have a label or a sticker to identify what they are and where they are from, the family will be at a loss to put a value on the specimens. Other collectors, museums and dealers, will be hesitant about purchasing the collection if it is not properly identified. So, Rockhounds, it is up to you, while you are still here on earth, to properly identify your rocks, minerals, fossils, gemstones and jewelry. If specific pieces are to go to specific relatives or organizations, write it down. An inventory sheet with approximate dollar value would be helpful, too. Don't put it off - do it now while you are still here. Your family will thank you when the time comes. Thanks to Don Ogden for sending this over. ED All I Need to Know About Life I Learned from a Snowman It's okay of you're a little bottom heavy. Hold your ground, even when the heat is on. Wearing white is always appropriate. Winter is the best of the four seasons. It takes a few extra rolls to make a good mid section. The key to life is to be a jolly, happy, soul. It's not the size of the carrot, but the placement that counts. We're all made up of mostly water. Avoid yellow snow. From Rockhound Special 12/04, via Golden Spike News 02/05 Page 13

13 Upcoming CFMS Gem Shows Mar 7-8 Mar 7-8 Arcadia, CA. Monrovia Rock Hounds, Inc. LA Co. Arboretum & Botanical Garden 301 North Baldwin Ave. (1 block South of I-210, Foothill Freeway) Hours: 9-4:30 both days Ventura, CA. Ventura Gem and Mineral Society, Inc. Seaside Park, Ventura County Fairgrounds Hours: Sat. 10-5, Sun Mar Stoddard Wells, CA. Victor Valley Gem & Mineral Club Held off Stoddard Wells Road in Apple Valley Hours: 10-5 Daily Mar San Marino, CA. Pasadena Lapidary Society San Marino Masonic Center, 3130 Huntington Drive Hours: Sat. 10-6, Sun 10-5 Mar Escondido, CA. Palomar Gem & Mineral Club Army National Guard Armory, 304 Park Ave. Hours: Sat. 9-5; Sun. 9-4 Mar Torrance, CA. South Bay Lapidary and Mineral Society Torrance Recreational Center, 3341 Torrance Blvd. Hours: Sat. 10-5, Sun Apr 3-5 Apr 3-5 Apr May 1-3 Bakersfield, CA. San Joaquin Valley Lapidary Society Kern County Fairgrounds 1142 South P. Street - Corner S. P & Belle Terrace Hours: 9-5 Daily Vista, CA. San Diego Co. Council of G&M Societies The Tractor Museum, 2040 N. Santa Fe Ave. & Museum Way Hours: Fri. Noon-5; Sat. & Sun. 9-5 Lancaster, CA. Antelope Valley Gem & Mineral club Lancaster High School, nd St. West Hours: 9-5 daily Bishop, CA, Lone Pine Gem & Mineral Society Tri County Fairgrounds, Bishop Corner of Sierra St. & Fair Drive Hours: Fri. 6-10; Sat. 9:30-4; Sun Page 14

14 WGMS MEETING LOCATION! Whittier Community Center 7630 Washington Ave. Whittier Editor: Jay Valle, 1421 Latchford Avenue, Hacienda Heights, CA Home: (626) ; Bulletin exchanges are welcome and should be sent to the editor. Page 15

15 Whittier Gem and Mineral Society, Inc. Post Office Box 865, Whittier, California Editor: Jay Valle, 1421 Latchford Ave. Hacienda Heights, CA Date: March 26, 2009 at 7:30 PM Location: Whittier Community Center (See page 4 & 15 for info & map)

Central Oregon Rock Collectors

C.O.R.C. Central Oregon Rock Collectors September 2015, Newsletter It s in our name it s what do we do we collect rocks!!!! The CENTRAL OREGON ROCK COLLECTORS is an informal group dedicated to sharing