Morrisonite Cabins Part 1

There are 3 mining cabins on the Morrisonite claims. Two are close together on the ridge (called Sheepshead Ridge) just after you drop off the east edge of the Owyhee River Canyon. The third cabin is 600 ft. below in the canyon on the south end of the Christine Marie claim. 

Having a place to get out of the weather is a necessity if you are going to spend any time in the Morrisonite area. First, the area is remote. It is 27 miles of dirt road just to get to the canyon rim. The last 4 miles of this road can be walked faster than it can driven. If you are mining and need a quart of oil for your machine it requires a full day to drive out and get back.

The weather can change rapidly and is influenced by the size of the canyon. There is nothing to stop the wind from the west. The canyon on the east side of the ridge contains considerable items that have mysteriously disappeared from the camp area due to the wind.

Both cabins on the ridge were built in 1976. I should say here that the word "cabin" may be a bit of an exaggeration. All three structures described in these posts are built against a natural rock wall or slope. The floors are not entirely flat and the insides are not as big as they appear from the front.

My friend Jake built the first structure. He was asked by Tom Caldwell to help him get started mining the Big Hole claim. Jake used discarded lumber and anything he could find to build the cabin. He told me he was sure he did not spend more than $50 on the project. He said he spent most of that money on used windows.

After Tom left, the cabins were not used until Jake and I started working in 1986. Jake moved into Tom's cabin and I moved into Jake's cabin. Both cabins needed to be fixed up a little. I lived in this cabin while building the road down to the Christine Marie claim and for several more years until I built the cabin down below.

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Laguna Agate

    Gene has recently returned from a short visit to Mexico and brought back some new Laguna Agate from the Alianza Claim.  The Laguna Agate from this claim often displays brilliant banding in red, lavender, pink, and yellow colors.  We have 5 pound lots of this material available.  The lots consist of small nodules, which range in size from 1 inch to 3 inches.  Get your lot today and discover the beauty inside!

Laguna Agate 5 lb. lot: 
thegemshop.com/collections/rough-rock-1/products/laguna-agate-alianza-5-lb-lot
  

Stalactite Slices

 

   

Stalactites can be found in caves all around the world, but Amethyst Stalactites are much more rare.  Stalactites are formed from mineral rich water dropping from cave ceilings.  The drops leave behind a small ring formation, and after millions of years these rings build up into stalactites.  Agate forms in the middle of the stalactite in various colors with the crystals developing around the agate.  When the stalactites are sliced open the cross section of the growth is revealed.  The Gem Shop has a new selection of Amethyst and Quartz Stalactite Slices.  These slices are great pieces for jewelry making or to show off million of years of geologic history!  Discover this unique mineral formation:

thegemshop.com/collections/fossils-minerals-1/stalactite-slice

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Cubic Pyrite

It may be hard to believe, but Pyrite can form naturally in nearly perfect cubic formations.  Pyrite is found in numerous places around the world, but the cubic Pyrite is from Spain.  The Gem Shop has a new selection of cubic Pyrite.  The Pyrite Cubes are in their original limestone matrix, just as they form in the wall of the mine.

    Pyrite is sometimes referred to as "Fools Gold", because of its' similar appearance to gold.  Pyrite Clusters especially give off that golden shine.  We have new Pyrite Clusters that are from Peru.  The clusters contain an array of small multi-sided pyrite.  See both of these fascinating crystal structures of pyrite on our site: 

thegemshop.com/collections/fossils-minerals-1/pyrite

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Deschutes Jasper

Deschutes Jasper is a picture jasper from an area in Oregon, near the Deschutes River.  The jasper can sometimes display a nighttime scenic vista in its pattern.  Deschutes Jasper has not been mined for over twenty years, and will not be mined again as the deposit area is now a state park.  The Gem Shop has a limited amount of new polished slabs of Deschutes Jasper.  The slabs display great color and stunning scenic visuals. This is a great opportunity to add Deschutes Jasper to your collection:

Deschutes Jasper:
thegemshop.com/collections/specimens-2/other-jaspers

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Tampa Bay Coral Specimens

We brought back many new products from the Denver Gem & Mineral Shows!  One of our new items are Tampa Bay Coral Agate Specimens.  The agate inside of the coral is formed when silica-rich ground water runs through the coral and forms over a great period of time.  The coral is approximately 38 - 35 million years old and is from the Oligocene - Miocene Era.  It is also the state rock of Florida.  A specimen of Tampa Bay Coral from the collection of Gary & Lory Maddox is featured in our 2016 Calendar of Fine Agates & Jaspers.  

Specimens:
thegemshop.com/collections/specimens-2/tampa-bay-coral

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Kid's Kits

Do you have a budding geologist in the family?  The Gem Shop has three great kits for kids.  The Fossil Excavation Kit includes nine real fossils to discover, including a Sand Tiger Shark Tooth, Sea Snail, and more!  Children will have a great time digging out the fossils from the plaster block and identifying each one.  An identification chart is included on the back of the box.  Each kit also comes with a wooden chisel and brush. 
     The Wack 'n Crack Geode Kit is filled with Sugar Geodes that can be cracked open to reveal crystals inside.  Kids will also learn how geodes are formed.  
     Children can make a fun, elastic putty with our Soapstone Putty Kits!  Using soapstone, water, and other ingredients the kids will be amazed, and have fun playing with the putty they just created.   The putty can also be dyed to create a colorful variety.  Any of the these kits are a wonderful activity that the whole family can get involved in.  See these products and other great kid's products in our Kid's Corner page on our site:
thegemshop.com/collections/tgs-kids-corner

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2 Agates

This is a story about 2 agates. The story illustrates some of the problems of identification, origin, misinformation, and dealing with Mexican agates.
This is the first agate. It is an Agua Nueva seam agate that Gene mined from the Mi Sueno claim in 2006. He was there when this agate came out of the ground. On this mining operation, Gene used an excavator owned by Marin Carrillo. He was also using two of his ranch workers as miners to help me. Because there is a lot of average agates produced here, Gene had the practice of selecting one rock per day and putting it in a separate pile. This agate went into that pile.

Below is agate #2. It was purchased one year later in 2007 as part of a "lot" or batch of Laguna Agate from the owner of the Diana Laguna Agate claim. He was a cattle man and had cowboys working for him all over the Laguna Agate deposits. According to Armondo all of his cowboys had instructions to bring any agates they "happen to find" to him. He paid them a small amount of money for the agate they brought him. From the cowboy's point of view this was just a small bonus for doing their regular work. No attention was given to quality and most of the agate delivered was of low quality. He would wait until he had a substantial amount of rock (1000 lbs or more) and then offer it for sale as a "lot". He would emphatically declare all the agate came from his Diana claim whether or not it did. Agate #2 was in a batch of agate Gene purchased from him in 2007. He told Gene there was some new vein agate in the batch and even offered to take him to the deposit!

Agates #1 and #2 fit together perfectly and are pieces of the same Àguà Nueva vein. If Gene had not purchased the lot, agate #2 would have been sold as a Laguna Vein Agate. Gene's workers took this agate (among others) while working for him at Agua Nueva, later sold them to the owner of the Diana claim who then sold them to him a year later.  Characteristics aside, it is difficult to know for certain where a Mexican agate comes from without first hand knowledge. 

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Conejeros

Agates labeled Conejeros come from a specific area on the La Puerto Laguna agate claim. The area is on the east side of the mountains and was dug extensively by hand until 1995 when Gabriel Olvera brought in a dozer to mine the area. The word Conejeros roughly means rabbit holes and referred to the many tunnels dug by hand in search of agates. The agate was so good here that the miners dug long tunnels in the side of the mountain. Two miners were killed here when their tunnels collapsed on them. It took days to dig them out and when their bodies were found their bodies were described as being like jello with most of their bones broken. The agate produced by Gabriel in 1995 and 1996 from the Conejeros area has been described as the best Laguna agate ever produced. 

 

Laguna Agate from the Conejeros area

 

They just can't stop digging tunnels.

Workers in 1996. As many as 20 people worked here each day when the agate was hot.

Part of one miners days work.

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Snowball Agate

The slabs and nodules pictured below were called snowball agate or snowballs. According to "The Agates of Northern Mexico" by Brad Cross they were found west of Hy. 45 and north of Villa Ahumada about 60 miles south of El Paso Tx. The nodules were small and round with a white to tan soft outside that had the appearance of a "ball of caliche" when freshly mined. The nodules were sold under a couple of other names as well (David Polson). The post by Trista Morton may be one of these nodules and if so, is one of the best I have seen.

Snowballs - largest about 2 1/2 ins      

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