I first got into treasure hunting only 6 years ago after taking a class in soap stone carving taught by a Chumash Indian. Seeing the colors and patterns that appeared in the stone as I polished it made me want to learn more about the stone so I joined a local rock club and started going on field trips everywhere in southern California whenever I could. I now lead the field trips for my home club, the Culver City Rock and Mineral Club. I have great friends in other rock clubs from Santa Clara on down to San Diego and meet new people on every field trip .
What is especially great is that my 12-year-old daughter has been rocking with me since I started 6 years ago, so she has grown up around rocks. She is comfortable out in the field and proud of all the minerals and rocks she can identify by sight. Now, she wants to start learning to work our treasures into jewerly.
My treasure hunting obsession quickly became tourmaline after meeting several good rock hounding pals at the Oceanview Mine in Pala, CA. One was a part owner of the Thursday Mine, a tourmaline mine near Banner, CA, where I have gone over 20 times and spent weekends digging all night long.
My favorite places to look for treasure are currently the Himalaya Mine in Mesa Grande and the Thursday Mine in Banner.
