Just a little update

The NGMC Christmas potluck will be held on our normal meeting day - third Monday of the month, normal meeting place at 5 PM AZ time.  Please bring a dish of your choice to compliment the main dish of ham!!!

Good Morning Everyone!

Barb and Corinne are going to the Desert on Wednesday the 2nd of November.  Call either of them for information!

Hello everyone!

Barb is going out to the desert Monday Oct 24...call her for information!

Tuesday Oct 4

Hope this finds everyone fantastic!!!!

Our first meeting of the 2011-2012 season is the normal third Monday of the month, October 17, 2011 at the First Baptist Church at 1421 E Commercial Street in Mohave Valley at 6 PM.  The church will have the doors open at 5:50 PM and they will return to lock the premises when we are done.  Hope to see everyone there!

Work day at the mine!

Pictures of mine trip on 23rd April 2011 when the 4 posts were set up to mark the limits of the claim.

There were 8 of us, no hounds but there was an encounter with two rattlesnakes which Tony had to deal with.

Thanks to Sue for sharing the above!!!!

Blue Agate Mine Work Day tomorrow

 April 23 will be the work day at the mine. Meet at the Mine at 8 AM or if you wish, Bob will be at Havasu Landing Road, off CA 95 South at about 7:30 AM. You can follow him into the mine.

Photos from Season End Pot Luck Dinner

Season End Pot Luck Tonight

Don’t forget the Season End Pot-Luck tonight, (combined with a short business meeting) at 5 PM (CA, AZ, NV time) at the usual meeting place. Hope to see everyone there for a fantastic time! And, of course, awesome food!!!

Kelbaker Field Trip Canceled

The field trip tomorrow (Saturday April 9) is canceled due to bad weather.

Corinne!

Update

There will not be a field trip on the 11th...the trip on the 9th is still a go, at this time.  See below for details!

Happy Rock Hounding.

Some updates!

Update from Bob about field trips! Our April 9 (and maybe 11th) trip will be to the Kelbaker area. Meet at 8:30 AM at the Kelbaker Road and I-40 West off ramp. April 23 will be the work day at the mine. Meet at the Mine at 8 AM or if you wish, Bob will be at Havasu Landing Road, off CA 95 South at about 7:30 AM. You can follow him into the mine.


April 18th will be our year end Pot Luck party in conjunction with the regular business meeting. Just verified that it is 5 PM, so we have extra time to eat all the great food!

Have a fun month!!!!!

March 11-13 Stoddard Wells Tail Gate

 March 11-13 Stoddard Wells Tail Gate. I-40 West to I-15 South. Exit Dale Evans Parkway, go south to Stoddard Wells. This is a "self-led" trip...so go, and have an incredible time!

The Victor Valley Gem & Mineral Club hosts its famous Tailgate event along Stoddard Wells Road, 12 miles east of I-15, of which the last 7 miles is graded dirt east of Dale Evans Pkwy. This is a free event for both vendors and the public. Diverse vendors in the art of lapidary. Dry camp at the foot of the famous Verde Antique Marble quarry. Attend the Sat. March 12th field trip from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm for various marble materials. Shop daily from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm for rough materials, gems and jewelry, findings, equipment and more. Silent auctions for vendors and the public. Club snack bar and porta potties are provided. This is the mini Quartzsite of the Mojave. A great family adventure!

Link to map http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&t=h&msa=0&msid=203383603444677111865.00047c0a82f514ad6d34b&source=embed&ll=34.759666,-117.086792&spn=0.599084,1.222229&z=10&iwloc=00047c0a8b3ffe49ee1a2

Field Trip Saturday March 5, led by Allan Reed

March 5 – Chambless/Chubbuck, led by Allan Reed.

Meet at 9 AM, CA time in Chambless. Take I-40 West to exit Mountain Spring Road. Go South through Essex, Danby and meet in Chambless at 9 AM CA time.  High clearance vehicle highly recommended.

Please RSVP, Allan Reed 928-763-3511

Have an incredible time!

"Brief" report on Saturday's rock sale

I understand the rock sale was a huge success!  Hope everyone got what they were after and had an incredible time!

Upcoming Events!

February 26 – Rock Sale at Corinne More’s,  8-Noon CA time. Bring your own container to take rocks home!

March 5 – Chambless/Chubbuck, led by Allan Reed. Meet at 9 AM CA time in Chambless. I-40 West to South on Mountain Spring Road. Go through Essex, Danby and meet in Chambless at 9 AM
March 13, Sunday, daylight saving time starts…AZ, CA, NV all on same time until Nov 6. Remember spring forward, fall back!

March 11-13 Stoddard Wells Tail Gate. I40 West to I15 South. Exit Dale Evans Parkway, go south to Stoddard Wells. Bob Needs a RSVP as soon as possible, and will give you details.

March 24-27 Hauser Geode Beds in conjunction with Silvery Colorado River Rock Club …see flyer (sent separately in an email)

April 9 and 11th…Turtle Mountains, led by Corinne More.

April 23rd – Work at Blue Danube Mine

10 vehicles, one dog and 18 rock hounds

Incredible day, with many thanks to Bob Ferguson for leading the trip...And a huge kudos to those seven rock hounds who trekked to the top of the mountain for gorgeous crystals! I will post more pictures later...And thanks to Lori for sending me her pictures!

Be sure to come to the meeting, next Monday, February 21 at 6 pm CA time. Usual place! Also, we have a new contest going...rock of the month contest. Bring your best find, from a field trip since the last meeting and the group will judge for "Rock of the Month."

Field Trip Monday February 14, 2011

Meet to depart at 9 AM (local Arizona time) Griffin Road and I-40 (Going toward Kingman.) Passenger vehicle okay (no low riders, use common sense!!!) Of course bring your lunch, fantastic attitude and plan to have an incredible time.  We are going into Walnut Creek Wash...where some very nice quartz crystals and black tourmaline have recently been found. For the energetic folks...there is quite a hike, rising elevation of about 1000 feet in a mile to find the best 'stuff'!

 Also there are some great Suararo Cactus out there...a bit of trivia for you:

The Saguaro often begins life in the shelter of a "nurse" tree or shrub which can provide a shaded, moister habitat for the germination of life. The Saguaro grows very slowly -- perhaps an inch a year -- but to a great height, 15 to 50 feet. The largest plants, with more than 5 arms, are estimated to be 200 years old. An average old Saguaro would have 5 arms and be about 30 feet tall.

Please RSVP Bob!

Stoddard Wells info

VICTORVILLE, CALIFORNIA: 35th Annual Tailgate:


March 11TH, 12TH, & 13TH 2011

The Victor Valley Gem & Mineral Club hosts its famous Tailgate event along Stoddard Wells Road, 12 miles east of I-15, of which the last 7 miles is graded dirt east of Dale Evans Pkwy. This is a free event for both vendors and the public. Diverse vendors in the art of lapidary. Dry camp at the foot of the famous Verde Antique Marble quarry. Attend the Sat. March 12th field trip from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm for various marble materials. Shop daily from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm for rough materials, gems and jewelry, findings, equipment and more. Silent auctions for vendors and the public. Club snack bar and porta potties are provided. This is the mini Quartzsite of the Mojave. A great family adventure! Call the club at (760) 243-2330; Brett Ward at (760) 954-4323 (no bars on AT&T cell when at Tailgate site).
 
Link to map http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&t=h&msa=0&msid=203383603444677111865.00047c0a82f514ad6d34b&source=embed&ll=34.759666,-117.086792&spn=0.599084,1.222229&z=10&iwloc=00047c0a8b3ffe49ee1a2

Some old hints...but worth repeating

Hints and Tips

Denim: Did you know that denim iron-on patches make excellent polishing disks? They will adhere to surfaces when ordinary glues will not. Obtain the largest ones you can fit to your wheel disks and cut to fit. Source: Rock Writing, 5/2006, via Blue Agate News, 2/08

Same Size Cabs: Need two cabs of exactly the same size? Glue two slabs together with paper between them. Cut to size. Separate by soaking in water. Source:  via Blue AgateNews, 2008

To polish silver: Its amazingly simple! I usually use a pyrex (glass) dish and line it with aluminum foil, because then I can either toss out or recycle the foil. An aluminum pan would work as well… or even better. I wouldn’t use it for cooking later, though. Fill the container with hot water and toss in about 1/4 cup of baking soda. Stir to dissolve and place your silver pieces in the bath, in contact with the aluminum. Leave it for awhile, then pull the pieces out and rinse. Ta-da! Seems overly simple, but it's reasonably effective and totally harmless to people and the environment. Source: The Rockorder, via Blue Agate News, 2/08

Working Turquoise: In shaping turquoise, it is advisable to use only the 220 wheel rather than the coarser ones. The 100 grit wheel will take desirable material from such a soft stone. Some of the more friable and chalky types of turquoise are difficult to polish with cerium or tin oxide; by a muslin buff with stick rouge. Since it is such a porous stone, oil may discolor it, so try sawing with a water coolant after soaking overnight in water. This helps prevent breaking.  Blue Agate News 03108

Cabochon Storage: Keep polished cabochons in photo-slide protector pages. The pages fit in a 3-ring binder and each page has 20 individual pockets. The cabs are easily visible, but are protected. Coin collector sheets also work well. From Rock Chips  via Strata Gems 02108

Fossil Preservation: After cleaning, paint the fossil with diluted Elmer’s glue (1/2 water). It dries fast and makes the fossil look sharp and clean. Because it is water soluble, it can also be washed off with water.  Del Air Bulletin 03108

Future Field Trips and events...NGMC calendar

January 22 - Mohave Jasper (see post below)
February 14 - TBA
February 21 - Business Meeting 6 PM CA time
February 26 - Chubbuck, lead by Allan Reed
March 11 - 13 Stoddard Wells Tail Gate
March  21 - Business Meeting 6 PM CA time
April 18 - Season End Pot Luck and Business Meeting, one hour early 5 PM CA time
May 16 - Business Meeting 6 PM CA time

Field Trip Saturday January 22 - Mohave Jasper

Meet at 8:45, Y corner of Old Route 66 and Boundry Cone (road to Oatman) or meet at 9 AM mile marker 17 on Old Route 66 (between Golden Shores and Oatman).  All times are local times.

4WD is required.

Uhm...wish I was going!

Post from a Club member

Natrona County Rockhounds Club's 64th annual show will be at 355 W. Yellowstone HWY (old downtown Casper, old Yellowstone Garage--newly renovated and remodeled) on June 11 and 12. Contact hmhoff@bresnan.net.  This is Casper Wyoming.

2011 Member dues

Just a reminder:  If you haven't paid your 2011 NGMC dues you will be removed from the Club Roster. FYI, $15.00 per year per person.  Please mail them to: NGMC Treasurer, PO Box 234, Needles, CA 92363-0234.

Quartzsite Show Schedule - 2011

The Main Event - January 8 - 23
Tyson Wells Rock/Gem/Mineral - January 7 - January 16
Tyson Wells Sell-a-Rama - January 21 - January 30
Tyson Wells Arts & Crafts Fair - February 4 - February 13
Quartzsite Sports, Vacation & RV Show - January 22 - January 30
Rock & Roll Classic Car Show - February 5 - February 6
Hobby, Craft & Gem Show - February 2 - February 6
45th Annual Qia Pow Wow - January 19 to 23
Prospectors Panorama - November 1, 2010 to February 28, 2011
Desert Gardens Rock, Gem & Mineral - January 1 - February 28
Rice Ranch Yawl Come Show - November 1, 2010 - February 28

Cloud's Jamboree January, 2011

I haven't been over to Avi, but according to the WWW, There should be quite a few vendors open!

CLOUD'S JAMBOREE 10th ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL ROCK, GEM, JEWELRY, ARTS-CRAFTS & MINERAL SHOW

Free! Open to the Public


Outdoor show 9am to dusk Jan. 1 -31

Indoor show 10am - 6pm Jan 7 - 16