Please click on a location for a link to the post about that area…
These are not approximations. I have made every effort to mark these points as close to the actual areas as possible (usually within a few feet). If you ever have any trouble locating any of the places on the map please feel free to comment below or shoot me an email from the contact form.
Any information on locating allowable areas to rockhound Picasso marble in southern utah?
Minersville Utah
Thank you so much for the incredible detail and care that went into creating this page, it’s seriously amazing. I’m excited to take my kids out and explore Utah looking for treasures and with all of this info, we’re bound to find some! Thanks again! 🙂
Hollie, please do your additional research on which of these locations are on private claims. I know specifically that there are at least a few. You can look it up on mylandmatters.org.
I would like some GPS coordinates as well please. I will learn how to GPS things.It’s just my husband and myself and we have just caught the rockhounding bug!!!
We are 62 years old and almost retired and would to have a hobby we can do together.
This seems like a lot of fun and we love the outdoors. Although we are older and don’t get around very well I think this will be the most fun we can have in our older age.
Thank you so much! Jeff and Karen Scott
ps. What is Lake Mountain banded mean? We live in Eagle Mountain on Lake Mountain Rd.
Thanks!!
Hi Karen! The Lake Mountains cover that whole mountain range along the Western side of Utah Lake. It is just the location. Banded calcite is the mineral found there at that particular location. As opposed to other forms of calcite such as dogtooth calcite, optical calcite, etc.
banded calcite. google rootbeer onyx
Hi Karen! I did purchase a GPS a year or two ago and haven’t had the time to figure out how to use it yet ha ha ha. My friend is pretty experienced though so I’m hoping he can give me a crash course. I hope to be able to add GPS coordinates for all the locations very soon. In the meantime, I know there are a few websites that will translate a google pin into actual GPS coordinates. I might suggest trying that as I know I’ve done that before and it was pretty accurate.
Thank you for all your help. I retired 8 years ago and got the hounding bug about the same time. I love being outdoors and I am amazed at the beauty that surrounds us. Along with the beautiful rocks when polished. Thanks for sharing your locations.
Hi there! We are looking to grab some selenite slabs while in Richfield….any particular suggestions?
Thank you!
Hi Maren! That is an area I still have yet to explore! If you do have any luck hit me back. I’ve heard of hills down by capitol reef just covered in selenite, but I’m not as familiar with the Richfield area unfortunately I’m sorry to admit. Let us know how you do!
This is such a great site. We are coming to Utah for a vacation from CA and I have a rock-obsessed 14-year-old who wants to go rockhounding every day. While we won’t be able to placate him in that way, we’ll definitely take him out. We went to Topaz Mtn once about 5 yrs ago and liked it, but with the different activities we have going on I doubt we’ll have time to venture that far. We’ll definitely target Eureka, but do you have any other good recommendations for kids relatively close to the Provo/Orem area? Thanks so much!
Hi Joe! Thank you. I have been recently been scouting out places closer to Provo/Orem area since that is where I live, but have mostly come up empty. The Goethite Pseudomorphs at Pelican Point are really fun and there is a lot of other material around that area. Or you could always try the Vernon Wonderstone. That is fun for kids because of all the different patterns and such. Other than that you could try Spanish Fork Canyon for some fossils. I hope to find some other locations closer to home very soon. Eureka is a good choice though. You could spend weeks there if you wanted and still find new things.
My wife and I drive from Layton Utah to visit our kids and grand kids in Parachute Colorado frequently and would like to stop at some of the sites you have listed here. I am particularly interested int the pigeon blood agate!!! You don’t list any directions to this spot. We could take the lifted Jeep if it is rough trails!!!
Hi Rob! I haven’t been able to make a post about this site yet unfortunately. The good thing is that the marker on the Google Map is SUPER accurate. If you make it to that marker you’ll see material all up and down that wash there, but I’ll put this location next on my list of posts to write up.
what marker on google maps are you referring to…one for the pigeon blood agate or agate in general?
I do not see any locations in northeast Utah (Uintas), are there any places to collect rocks and minerals?
Hi Matthew. I spent a lot of time up in the Uintahs as a kid camping and fishing well before I was into rock hounding. Now, I really want to go back. You can probably Google and find some UGS mineral surveys and even read about different finds around that area. I do know that there is (or was) a location for a fibrous honeycomb calcite although I’m not sure of the exact spot (or its current ownership status). Perhaps someone reading this might be able to help. I’ve also heard of a very thin layer of shale containing emeralds similar to the ones found in Colombia near that same calcite location. I expect the bigger draw to this area are legends of old Spanish gold mines and treasure troves that anyone might stumble upon any day. But that is a story for a different day I suppose. It is interesting though because none of the books I have and none of the material found online contains any information about this area. Sorry, I wish I could be of more help. Maybe we should all plan an exploration trip out there sometime?
Check out Nobletts trailhead area for banded calcite.
I like the site. You have quite a bit of information, however is there a way to get gps coordinates?
Hey Gary! Great idea! I was actually thinking of adding that into each entry on the map…probably between the description and the URL. I will get right on that!