A benefit of membership with the Nassau Mineral Club is that you have access to the Herkimer Diamonds claim in Fonda, NY. This means that you can go to a private plot and dig for the rare, and remarkable Herkimer diamonds. Continue reading “Herkimer Diamonds in Fonda, New York”
Now this rockhounding excursion is actually the site of the Southwest Chester and Brookdale mines, but sometime in the 20th century they were occupied by the present day golf course. We had read that if you bring an offering, some unique mineral or gem to the owners, you are granted access to rockhound the remains of the mines. Joe and I spent two weeks emailing back and forth about what gem would best represent @AmericanGeode, and what would impress the owners. We chose a very large rough garnet from rockhounding excursion in Roxbury and a kyanite specimen that Joe had recovered from another PA site. We went on a weekday, and also during the late winter/early spring as we expected fewer golfers would mean few inconvenience, and more access. Continue reading “Rockhounding an abandoned mine on a golf course”