Article from
VOL. 44  NO. 7     JULY  2003

 

Report on the Tri-Federation Rockhound Rendezvous
by Inez Berg
 

Richard Pankey, and I am sure his wife Betty, spent two years setting up the Tri-Federation Rockhound Rendezvous, scheduled to run May 22nd through May 29th. This was at Texas Springs, near Jackpot, Nevada. He arrived in camp on Wednesday, May 21st, put up many orange signs with arrows painted on them. He also put up orange plates and streamers along all the routes to the many rockhound sites. He had at least six sites marked. He had an information board with a map, schedule, campfire dinner menu, etc. in camp. There was a table with samples of material to be collected. 

On Thursday night he had organized a potluck dinner and a talk by a BLM ranger. On Friday night, it was arranged that a BLM ranger would demonstrate campfire cooking and feed everyone in camp. The ranger arrived with bags and bags of charcoal, a large cooker for meat, lots of cast iron pots and tri-tip, ribs, chicken, potatoes for baking, pork and beans, a salad and dessert, all packed in the back of his truck. He brought his son along, and his son did have a chance to collect some rocks. They pitched their tent and stayed in the camp overnight. People arrived on Thurs and every day after that. By Saturday about 185 had signed in. There were rockhounds there from Washington, Oregon, Montana, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico and California. Some of the New Mexico people had to leave early, but they left samples of selenite and Pecos Valley clusters for everyone. They will also sponsor the CFMS Show in June, 2007 at Roswell, New Mexico. The advice from New Mexico was to clean most of the dirt from the selenite crystals, then put them in the toilet tank for 3-4 days and let the flushing action finish the cleaning. From the more local California area, Antioch, Contra Costa County, Nevada County, Roseville and Sutter Buttes clubs were represented. 

Most of the participants had signed up to dig pink limb casts. Some people did get some nice large pieces of pink and some of the darker colors. We picked up bog agate, snakeskin agate, onyx and geodes. The group would arrive on a hill and scatter like ants, each to dig in a favorite spot, or to pick up what they could from float. The geodes could be easily raked out of the hillside and there were pieces and pieces of broken geodes. These geodes apparently fluoresce in shades of green. In talking with a lady from one club she said at their show they give each child an egg carton and they can pick out their own rocks. If they pick a piece of geode that does not fluoresce, at the fluorescent booth, they are given another piece.  Despite the wind blowing (and it was wicked), I believe everybody left with plenty of rock. Thankfully the afternoon rainstorms were only a few sprinkles on our side of the mountain. Thank you Dick and Betty for a great field trip.

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