On Saturday May 11th we had a field trip to the DNR property known as First Creek. It was a clear day with temperatures in the mid to upper 70s. Kind of getting a bit hot for me, but a nice westerly breeze made it tolerable. We ended up with a small group for one reason or another. Maybe the previous night’s Aurora Borealis contributed to that. A spectacular late-night light show that I missed. Anyway, we hiked to the 2-mile ravine and went up on the east side first. The pit where we’ve taken out so many waterline agate nodules and crystal plates is all caved in now and not yielding much. I moved over to the large rockslide and collected some seam agate. The rockslide is very difficult to walk in due to steepness and loose rock. After a couple of hours I went up on the western side of the ravine to some pits near the top. I did get a few nice chunks but the yellow jackets and bees were getting more aggressive there. It was about 4:00 when I decided to head down. I didn’t see any wood ticks on me throughout the day, but on Sunday morning I found a wood tick on my shorts where I had left them in the garage. He was patiently waiting for the former occupant to reoccupy those shorts. After a ceremonial flush I bade him farewell and good riddance.
Michelle M., Jarrod D., Loren M., Phillip T., and Barbara M. (new member) joined me on this trip. We pretty much stayed spread out so I didn’t see what others collected.
On Sunday May 19th Loren Merriman lead another trip into First Creek. It was a cooler day with temperatures in the upper 50s to low 60s. Seemingly perfect for the hike and digging, but at some point a storm cell moved in and dumped hail and up to 2.5 inches of rain. Just a small localized system. Joining Loren on this trip were Hannah G., Heather M., James R., Michael , Josh D and sons.
In June we have 2 outings scheduled. The first one on June 8th to Little Naches for thundereggs, Lily Pad jasper, and leaf fossils. The second one on June 15th to Redtop for agate, jasper, and crystal.
Pictures seen here are from the May 11th trip.
Submitted by Roger Danneman Field Trip Guide
