Fieldtrip Report:

JXR Five Dollar Dig
October 15th, 2006

Written by Steve Barr
Photos provided by Steve Barr, Becky Rodgers and
Rodney Moore

As usual, our fieldtrip started out on Saturday evening with a roaring campfire. Quite a few members who had been at Graves Mountain that day drove the short distance to JXR from Lincolnton and camped on site. We had some great conversations sitting around the fire as the temperatures began to drop dramatically. Romin leapt into action and warmed us up by building another fire in the recently installed woodburning stove nearby.

Just as we were all beginning to unwind and getting ready to slip off to sleep, Geode Pat roared in from Florida and woke us all back up again. Several of us stayed up until the wee hours of the morning, swapping tall tales and anticipating the next day's dig. Eventually, we all drifted off to sleep listening to the sounds of a gentle breeze drifting through the trees and coyotes howling off in the distance.

A few hours later, just as the sun was coming up, the legendary John D drove into the site and in his usual manner, woke us all up. He had his trusty magic rake with him, and was ready to swing into action.

We staggered over to the new propane stove, brewed some strong coffee and attacked the pit and dump piles with a vengeance. There was a huge turnout for this dig, more people than I think I've ever seen at this location in the past. Quite a few locals from the Tignall area had heard about the event, and they streamed in throughout the day to see what all the fuss was about. Their presence just added to the fun of the day, and many MAGMA members pitched in to show them the ropes, teach them how to look for gems and encourage them to join us in this fascinating hobby. The kids who were there had a blast, and many went home with nice specimens to show off for their efforts.

MAGMA members Ed and Cathy Stamey attacked the main pit and spent hours working the boulders.

For safety reasons, hardhats were required to enter the pit, which has been greatly expanded and opened up recently. That meant most of the "newbies" were relegated to searching the massive dump piles (which paid off quite nicely for several of them), while the MAGMA members in attendance got to attack promising places in the main hole.

Romin didn't have his hardhat with him, so he drove into Washington and bought protective headgear. As you can see in this photo, he created his own fashion statement that is sure to be "all the rage" in Paris next fall. The bicycle helmet provided excellent protection for his skull, while the baseball cap under it shaded his eyes from the bright sunlight.

True to form, many of the folks in our group teamed up and worked together to move a huge amount of earth and rock, deciding to split their finds at the end of the day. I'm always impressed with the sharing nature of this club. Working as a team always yields better results, and the unselfish attitude everyone has helps build a new generation of rockhounds. Children are always given special attention,taught good gathering techniques, and even allowed to borrow expensive tools while they search for gems to take home.

Dave Cobb's son Dylan found quite a few nice specimens. This is just one of the many that he found. Once again, he proved my theory that being closer to the ground than most grownups can really pay off for kids.

Romin was at JXR when I arrived late Saturday afternoon. He had been collecting for a few hours already, and was planning to go home that evening. But once other MAGMA members began to arrive, he was too tempted by the allure of those elusive amethyst crystals to leave. He ended up borrowing some camping gear from several different people, and staying to dig again on Sunday. It proved to be a wise decision. He ended up going home with some really nice crystals to add to his collection.

As he said when he uncovered this dark specimen, "That was the best five dollars I ever spent in my life!" Romin reports that when he got home and cleaned this baby up, it turned out to be a unique blend of amethyst and skeletal quartz, something quite rare for this location.

Matt had driven down from Asheville. We hadn't seen him on a dig for quite some time, and it was good to have him back with us. He found several nice small pieces, but late in the afternoon he let out a whoop when he unearthed a really nice one in the tailings piles. Many more people were soon screaming too, as more and more amethyst was uncovered.

Geode Pat and the legendary John D spent hours working in one spot on the tailing piles together. Pat reports that she went home with some awesome specimens, and says John found quite a few as well. Gene Jeffers dug with them for a while, then went to find another spot. After he left, Pat jumped in his hole and immediately uncovered another nice crystal.

Pat showing off one of her treasures.

Lonnie ("Flintnapper") drove down to Georgia from Tennessee to join in the fun. He worked a "honey hole" on one of the dump piles, and was amply rewarded for his efforts. Those amethyst crystals he has in his hands and laying on that cloth are just a small part of what he took home with him at the end of the day.

Meanwhile, back in the pit, the MAGMA folks were hard at work. Marcy shows off a nice specimen while Becky contemplates which boulder to crack open next.

Romare opens up a nice hole while Becky takes a brief break from rock busting to help clear things out with a shovel.

After a few hours of preparatory work, pockets of amethyst began to pop out of the wall.

Ed Cansler with just one of the many
crystals his team started to unearth.

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