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GINKGO MEETING PLACE AND TIMEFRIDAY May 15, 2015, 7 pmDouglas County Fire District #2377 Eastmont, East Wenatchee
TUMBLING GRIT FOR CLUB MEMBERS
Graded 30 Grit $4 lb.Un-Graded 60/90 Grit, $3 lb.Graded 220 Grit, $4 lb.Graded 600 Grit $5 lb.Tripoli Polish. $3 lb.
Available at the monthly meetings
The Petrified DigestValerie Hampton, EditorPO Box 303Wenatchee WA 98807
Send your article ideas, trip notes or photos to [email protected]
The Petrified DigestPublished monthly by the Ginkgo Mineral Society, Inc.
PO Box 303, Wenatchee, Washington 98807
MEETINGS
3rd FRIDAY of the Month, 7 pmDouglas County Fire District No 2
377 Eastmont Avenue, East Wenatchee, WAOFFICERS
President Bob Spurrier 881-8096Vice President Roy Porterfield 679-2606Secretary Cheri McMillan 860-0009Treasurer David J. Earhart 884-4667
COORDINATORS
Field Trips Shop & Equipment Bob Witt 669-0819 & Bob Spurrier 881-8096Program/Education Publicity Valerie Hampton 884-3578SocialChelan County Fair BoothMuseumNewsletter Valerie Hampton 884-3578
Newsletter email address: [email protected] Site Jill Timm 663-2961 [email protected]
The Ginkgo Mineral Society was formed to promote the education of mineralogy and geology; to encourage the collecting of rocks and minerals; to provide field excursions to mineral collecting areas; and to promote interest in lapidary work.
DUES: Individual - $20.00 Senior - $15.00 Family - $30.00 Lifetime (20+ yrs) - Free
Exchange bulletins are welcome and appreciated.Club Calendar
May June July
15Friday
Regular Meeting7 pm - Fire Station
19Friday
Regular Meeting7 pm - Fire Station
17Friday
Regular Meeting7 pm - Fire Station
Please call Bob Spurrier 881-8096 if you are planning to visit the rock shop to make sure someone will be there to open it. The shop is located at Christy Price's home: 4325 Squilchuck Rd, Wenatchee and is usually open on Saturdays.
Directions: from the intersection of Mission & Crawford Streets at Lincoln Park in Wenatchee, it is 4 miles up Squilchuck Road. Turn left on Cranmer Road and take an immediate left onto Christy's long driveway.
ROGER, THE ROCKHOUND SEZ:
Grant me a sense of humor, Lord,The saving grace to see a joke,To win some happiness from life,And pass it on to other folk.
-Irish blessing-
Help needed!
Please consider being a coordinator, or sharing the position with another member. Your officers can't do it all! This is a club – to be run by and for the members. Thank you for your efforts! -Editor-
VOL 37, ISSUE 4-5 THE PETRIFIED DIGEST April-May 2015
PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE
Not much has been happening as far as I know. I hear Red Top & Crystal Mountain are clear of snow and rock hounds have been going up there.
We still need a Supervisor for the Chelan County Fair (it would be nice if someone would volunteer for this) and a place to do the yard sale. We also need donation items for the yard sale. Remember the Fred Meyer community rewards through your Fred Meyer card for the our rock club. I'm not sure what the program for this meeting will be. It would also be nice for someone in the club to step up and take control and be the program director.
Bob Spurrier, President
Treasurer’s Report May 2015
Club finances are holding their own. Thanks to you members for paying your 2015 membership dues. Many of us are using the shop to work on stones & polishing, etc. Remember there is a $2.00 fee for using the shop equipment. This money goes toward paying the rental & electricbill that is incurred at the property. Eight of us went to Saddle Mountain last month to dig for petrified wood and limb casts. The weather was great, everyone found too much stuff and our youngest member, Gunnar was excited seeing rocks and petrified wood just laying all over! Don’t forget the next meeting is this Friday, May 15 at the Douglas Co. Fire Station. Bring something for show & tell. Remember to pay your dues at the meeting or mail to: Ginkgo, PO Box 303, Wenatchee, WA 98807.
David Earhart, Treasurer
Editor's note: Thank to member Marcia Summers for submitting the poem on this page for the members' enjoyment. Two recent articles in The Council Reporter newsletter seemed to be just the thing (see their web site at https://mineralcouncil.wordpress.com ). Read on:
COLLECTING AGATES AT RED TOP MOUNTAINby DICK RANTZ Some of the nicest agates found in Washington over theyears have been found at Red Top Mountain, in theTeanaway Ridge area of Kittitas County. The mountain iscomposed of vesicular basalt that hosts a great number ofagates, mostly blue and often fortified in structure, rangingfrom quite small to football size nodules. There are also some large crystal filled geodes. Some arefound by digging and screening the soil and others arelocated on the basalt outcrops and cliff faces. Red Top was a popular destination for Washington rockclubs in the ‘60s to the ‘80s. “Gem Trails of Washington”has a page description for Red Top. Also, The All Rockhound's Pow Wow Club has had a field trip to Red Top eachSeptember for many years. Going with the Pow Wow Clubor an experienced collector is a very good way to learn howand where to collect. If you go on your own, here are somesuggestions: (continued next page)
VISIT TO RED TOPBy Marcia Summers
We drove to the mountain to dig for rocksso glad I had on my heavy socks.Picks & shovels, bags & lunchwe’re quite a few in this rock club bunch.
We hugged & puffed to reach the heightswild flowers & mountains were in our sights.Each found a hole or dug a new one.Worked several hours ‘till we were done.
Geodes were found & some Ellensburg blue,other finds were collected, too.Dug most of the day, took specimens backmaybe next time I’ll bring a backpack!
April - May 2015 The Petrified Digest Page 2
(Red Top - Continued from previous page) Take US Highway 2 across the Cascades to theintersection with US 97 just beyond Leavenworth.Follow US 97 South across Blewett Pass for about20 miles until you see Mineral Resort Cafe andcamp grounds on your left. Have a cup of coffeethere and ask questions of the operators about theroad to Red Top. It is in fact about 100 yards or soback towards the North on your left, with a sign forthe Blue Creek Road, (N.F. 9738) heading West.Follow it about 2.7 miles to a Y junction. The rightfork heads west and down to the Teanaway Riverarea. The left fork heading S.W. leads to the RedTop Lookout parking area and to the trails alongthe ridge for some distance where most diggingcollecting has been done over the years and manyagates have been found. Look for and work the old holes, the more thebetter. Another good area is found from the Y roadjunction. There you will see a small “Jeep Road” heading West between the two main roads. It is very roughand goes in about a mile and a half and ends at excellent collecting areas, both off to the right just below a cliff, and on the steep hillside to the left and South. However, I found my 15 pound agate by following a trail found maybe about 50 yards in from the Y on the jeep road. That trail goes off to the North about a hundred yards to a cliff face with a narrow path along the face. There, you look for signs of geodes or nodules in the basalt. It takes lots of hammering and chisel work to get them out and it’s a rather dangerous place, not for kids or the faint of heart. Also, we found a number of agates at the bottom of the cliff in the rock fall debris. One more suggestion; look carefully as you drive along past all road cuts in the Red Top area. After the spring thaw and after heavy rains, agates and geodes are sometimes exposed and washed out. Some of the most spectacular finds have been collectedwith minimum effort that way! Camping is available at the Mineral Resort. Take plenty of water and the usual rockhound tools to the diggings. In May and early June, plenty of mosquitoes; so, you’ll need lots of bug spray; later, not so much. (My information is 10 or more years old. You may want to do some research before setting out.) So, go and dig, and good luck! from Rockhound Special 02/15 Editor's note: On my lasttrip over Blewett Pass, Mineral Springs cafe appeared to be closed and up for sale. Rockhound business venture, anyone?
MINERAL MYTHS AND MEANINGSby Dave Wester Throughout the ages, man has held a deeper belief of gems and minerals, considering them to bring luck or associating them with health or life facts. When you think about it, there’s probably a grain of truth to some of these myths because minerals, gems, and rocks are made up of the same compositions as the human body. If you’ve taken a chemistry class you’ll know this to be true. This column presents a gem ormineral myth (or meaning) each month so that you can become better acquainted with some of the more diverse properties of those rocks we love to collect.This month we talk about Agate. This is such a broad mineral
that I thought a little more background on this treasured rock would be interesting. (continued on next page)
April – May 2015 THE PETRIFIED DIGEST Page 3
AGATEAgate is a microcrystalline variety of quartz (silica), chiefly chalcedony, characterized by its fineness of grain and brightness of color. Although agates may be found in various kinds of rock, they are classically associated with volcanic rocks but can be common in certain metamorphic rocks. Colorful agates and other chalcedonies were obtained over 3,000 years ago from the Achates River,now called Dirillo, in Sicily. The stone was given its name byTheophrastus, a Greek philosopher and naturalist, who discovered thestone along the shore line of the river Achates sometime between the 4thand 3rd centuries BC. Agate is one of the most common materials used inthe art of hardstone carving, and has been recovered at a number of ancientsites, indicating its widespread use in the ancient world. Most agates occuras nodules in volcanic rocks or ancient lavas where they represent cavitiesoriginally produced by the disengagement of volatiles in the molten masswhich were then filled by siliceous matter deposited in regular layers uponthe walls. Such agates, when cut transversely, exhibit a succession of parallel lines giving a banded appearance to the section. Such stones are known as banded agate, ribbon agate and striped agate.
In the formation of an ordinary agate, it is probable that waters containing silica in solution— derived, perhaps, from the decomposition of some of the silicates inthe lava itself— percolated through the rock and deposited a siliceous coating on the interior of the vapor vesicles. Variations in the character of the solution or in the conditions of deposition may cause acorresponding variation in the successive layers, sothat bands of chalcedony often alternate with layers
of crystalline quartz.Agates are thought to guard against the biting of scorpions or serpents(remember that next time you’re in the Oregon desert). Additionally they’rebelieved to soothe the mind, drive away contagion and promote eloquence. Inolden times, they were thought to secure the favor of princes (remember thatladies).
Agate is also believed to prevent insomnia and ensure pleasant dreams and to enhance personal courage. This mineral is believed to provide a calming influence, improves perception and concentration, and helps to develop and increase one’s analytical talents. (via West Seattle Petroglyphs, 01/15, via Rocky Trails, 1/10)
Member Photos: More fine examples of fun with rocks, submitted by Mark Dirk.
April - May 2015 The Petrified Digest Page 4Local Area Shows for 2015May 2015 16th 10am - 6pm 17th 10am - 5pm
9th Annual Mineral Mart
Lake City Community Center 12531 28th Ave NE Seattle, WA
June 2015 5th, 6th , 7th 10pm—5pm
Puyallup Valley Gem & Mineral Club
Annual show Swiss Park 9205 198th Ave. E. Puyallup, WA
June 2015 6th 9am—5pm 7th 10am—4pm
North Idaho Mineral Club
Annual Show $3 adults, 12 & under free w/Adult 1 block off Highway 95
Kootenai County Expo and Event Center Kathleen and Gov’t Way, Coeur d’Alene ID
June 2015 6th 10am—6pm 7th 10am—4:30pm
Oregon Coast Agate Club Service personnel in uniform free
52nd Annual Gem & Mineral Show, $2 adults, 12 & under free w/Adult
Yaquina View Elem. School Multipurpose Room 351 SE Harney Street Newport OR 97365
July/August 2015 31st 10pm—5pm 1st 10am—5pm 2nd 10am—4pm
Far West Lapidary & Gem Society
53rd Annual Gem and Mineral Show $1 adults, 12 & under free w/Adult
North Bend Community Center 2222 N. Broadway North Bend, OR
July 2015 17th 10am—5pm 18th 10am—5pm 19th 10am—4pm
Lower Umpqua Gem & Lapidary Society
Treasures from the Earth Rockand Gem Show
Reedsport Community Building 415 Winchester Avenue Reedsport OR
July 2015 18th 10am—5pm 19th 10am—5pm
Darrington Rock & Gem Club
Rock and Gem Show and Sale Manford Grange 1265 Railroad Avenue Darrington, WA (behind IGA)
July 2015 24th 9am—6pm 25th 9am—6pm 26th 9am—5pm
Washington Agate and Mineral Society
Rock and Gem show during Oregon Trail Days
Parkside Elementary School 301 Central Avenue E (corner of Central Avenue and Stage St. S)
Tenino WA 98589
Bench Tips by Brad Smith
DIVIDERSA set of dividers is a tool I find veryuseful in laying out the geometry of apiece I'm making. It has two needle-like tips with an adjustment to set thespacing between them. They can be used to transfer a measurement. Let's say you need a 7mm wide strip of sheet metal. Set the spacing between the divider tips to 7 mm on the ruler. Then lay the sheet on the bench, put one tip against the edge, and run the dividers down the edge scribing a line parallel to the edge.Dividers can be used to mark equal segments of a line or arc. For instance assume a line between A and B that might be straight or curved, and you want to divide it into 5 equal lengths. Set the dividers to an estimate of the distance. Starting at Point A, use the dividers to mark off five lengths along the line. If you end up short of Point B,lengthen the distance on the dividers. If you end up overshooting Point B, shorten the length of your dividers. After a few tries, the length on the dividers will be the exact distance you need to mark the 5 segments.
Dividers can let you quickly find the center of a circular disk. With one tip of the dividers at the edge of the disk, set the other tip to an estimate of where the center might be. Fix one tip of the dividers at the 3 o'clock position and scribe an arc with the other tip near the center. Do this again from the 6 o'clock, 9 o'clock, and 12 o'clock positions. The arcs at the center will form a small four-sided box. The center of the box is at the center of the disk.PIECE OF LEATHERLeather has a multitude of uses in the shop. I often use a scrap of it to avoid scratching the back of a piece of jewelry while setting stones. It's also great for times when you need to clamp one of your tools in a vise, for instance a drawplate.
Photo courtesy tandyleather.com
Get all 101 of Brad's bench tips in "Bench Tips for Jewelry Making" on Amazon, http://amazon.com/dp/0988285800/
