First Field Trip with Needles Gem & Mineral Club

Warm Springs Wash toward the bluffs.
Warm Springs Wash toward the Colorado River.

Had to leave Gaby at home. When I got there everyone had their dogs. Gaby was invited to come next time. We'll see how she does. I am a one-dog-woman now, and she is a one-woman-dog!



First stop: Looking for selenite crystals at some bluffs near Warm Springs Wash off the road from Topock to Golden Shores. My camera batteries (re-chargeable) went dead. So no nice pictures of the group. Gaby and I are going back today to take some pictures around the area.

Here are some veins of gypsum, I guess. This is what is crystallizing to make selenite. Too beautiful.

This one is pretty clear in real life. It is the biggest chunk I found. Small, but new to me, so I was jazzed.

The one on the bottom left looks like it is forming desert roses from what I am studying.

A couple had the shape of arrowheads.

Second stop: Bat Cave, which is a big sink hole about a mile down the wash. Had to hitch a ride with Barb Ballard and Don Hughes in their four-wheel drive.

Found some nice rocks around the bluffs near the bat cave. Corrine More was very nice to answer all my questions. She gave me a really great coral, so I would know what to look for.

I found this coral myself. (Syringopora Coral ?) or (Stromatolites ?) Hmmm?

Third stop: The Beehive, which is a beautiful sandstone formation that the wild bees are using for their hives. Along the way we passed the original Santa Fe railroad route, I guess. Need to get a picture of the old ties and a nice plaque. It has all the dates and names of the railroad. I'll review Bitterness Road to see what expedition was on those dates. Santa Fe has moved around a bit. It is so cool.

Found these conglomerates near the beehive. I love to collect these because they are a stony view of the processes going on at the time, whatever time that was.

Rock on! Here are some links about gypsum and selenite.

http://www.mindat.org/min-1784.html

http://www.mindat.org/min-5527.html

Here's some photos of selenite found in California.

I included a link to the main page of mindat.org in the Links section.
http://www.mindat.org/index.php

I included a link to The Paleontology Portal in the Links section. Incredible, though speculative, geological maps of the US. Take a look at California, Arizona PreCambrian. Can you find Needles?
http://www.paleoportal.org/time_space/time_space.php