July 17th, 2021 Greenwater Field Trip Report

Field trip reports

On July 17th we went up to the Greenwater area for black agate, jasper, and common opal. There were 25 people in 13 vehicles. We had good weather – overcast and about 60-65 degrees. The black agate site is on an unmarked spur road off of 7222 and goes deep into the woods 1 1/2 miles having a couple of Y intersections. So we unfortunately had a couple of vehicles that got separated and lost the group. I’m going to have to be more proactive in implementing and explaining a signaling method using light flashing up the “wagon train” so that this doesn’t happen again. I’ll also bring a pair of cobra radios to use between the lead car and the caboose. We did manage to recollect everyone further up the hill on the way to the 2nd site.
Anyway, the black agate site was very productive. Everyone found some nice material. Some of my haul is colorful, which I haven’t had a chance to cut and polish yet, but looks like a combination of agate and jasper with black, gold, and red. Quite a bit of opal was dug by the group as well.
The 2nd site was up near the top of FR70 by Government Meadows. The spur road has been gated as of this year and now requires a 1/2 mile walk to the dig sites. We had about 6 or 7 vehicles that continued up. I collected a little bit of the red opal, some of the grey, and found a few pieces of petrified wood.

 

Submitted by Roger Danneman CMS Field Trip Guide.  Roger.Danneman@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Updated: August 15, 2021 — 5:53 pm

Presidents Message

  • From the Top of the Rock Pile Our annual club picnic went off great. The grass and Arboretum area was not wet or muddy, plus it didn’t rain while we were there. We had the usual club members attend, plus a few new faces. I forgot to count how many people attended, but I estimate around 40. Thank you, Angie and Brian, for shopping for the food and setting everything up. Thumbler’s Tumblers donated a tumbler for our picnic auction and another one for our holiday auction in December. The new double-barreled 15# tumbler sold for $120, approximately one-third the …

Meeting Announcements

  • We are going to show a video of the most unusual and amazing things found in Amber. It isn’t just insects. We are also going to have a recap of how our Gem Show did last month. Show ‘n Tell: An item that has something trapped inside or a picture rock, thunder egg, or geode that looks like it has an insect, animal, or face inside.

  • Maureen will speak on the geology and the movement of the Washington coastline over millions of years. Show ‘n Tell: Favorite rock or mineral from Washington

  • Glen Ripper is a leading authority on Obsidian. He is a walking encyclopedia which should make this an interesting and educational meeting. Show ‘n Tell: Obsidian – let’s see your colors.

  •   We start the day off with a potluck holiday meal. The club provides roasted turkey and ham. Members fill in with their favorite holiday potluck dish. We follow our meal with the election of officers for the coming year. Our final activity is our club auction. It is a great time to pick up great bargains on rough rocks, polished rocks, slabs, fossils, opal, etc. Our Young Tumblers can use their Rock Bucks to purchase auction items. This meeting is also our semi-annual food drive for the Kent Food Bank. Please remember to bring something. The Food Bank has informed us that they need feminine hygiene products and grape or strawberry jelly. People donate loads of peanut butter but never jelly. They also receive very few donations of feminine hygiene products.

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