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Red Top Mountain, July 20, 2008
Red Top Report Jeff and I did a last minute outing with our local Rock Club to Red Top on Sunday July 20, 2008. Fortunately we went to the club monthly meeting on Saturday and found out that there was an outing the next day. There is a bit of a delay getting the information to the webmaster so it could be put on the website. Jeff had never been there and really wanted to go. Long story short we did make it to the mtn to do some digging.
Jeff and I along with 10 other folks left at the meeting place around 8:30 a.m. After about an hour and 20-minute drive we arrived to the dig site. We didn’t go to the very top of the mtn, instead we stopped below the top. He dig site is only a couple of 100 yards so I could even get in there. There were many digs around the area. So Jeff and I just found one and started digging. We did start finding bits and pieces of agate and jasper of different colors.
We could only dig down about 18”s until we hit a hard clay/pea gravel/hardpan layer. There doesn’t seem to be anything in or below the hard layer. We worked an area under some trees roots until we couldn’t reach anymore material. Not wanting to damage the roots of the tree, we backfilled the hole and moved onto another.
The recommendation we had was to find an old stump and dig around it. When we moved we did find a large rotten stump and right on the bat Jeff finds a nice small piece of geode crystals. The scraping the duff off the ground, he found some nice pieces of agate and a little Jasper. We thought this could be really good! Anyway we dug a hole about 2’ X 3’ X 20”’s until we hit the hardpan. The digging was just like home, not a rock and the nicest looking dirt one could ever wish for. Most everywhere else you had to contend with rocks in you dig. But that is where you fond the good stuff. Anyway back at our dig, we found very few pieces but moved a lot of dirt. It was 4:00 p.m. or so and decided to call it a day. However we were not in any hurry and the folks that carpooled with us were still digging. That was Bob and Cheri (twincrystals) and Cheri’s son Casey.
We started walking out and came across several small basalt outcroppings. You could see holes the size of softballs that where worked and the nodule removed. There were some big ones. One outcrop had a fairly large section of rock had fractured away from the larger rock. It sort of looked like a butt but with a filler piece where the crack would be. We had all of out chisels and rock breaking stuff with us. After sometime we eventually got that bugger out. Low and behold on one side there was a nice blue nodule waiting the size of an egg but flatter waiting to be freed.. With a little careful chiseling, we got it free. Well worth the time and effort. Continuing to work out our way out to the truck, we found some additional outcrops that were worked. Jeff did find some smaller nodules and half geodes and chipped them out. Some of these rock outcrops have been reduced to small boulders and gravel. Pretty amazing.
Anyway, after a little prodding from Bob, Casey and Jeff, Cheri who is one of the most die hard diggers I have ever seen finally got out of her dig and they headed back to the truck. I think it was about 6:00 p.m. or so when we left the dig site. Everyone was happy with his or her finds, dirty and tried.
I have posted several pics of the dig and our finds. Our finds are still dirty except for a good washing with water just before the pictures. The agates went into some bar keepers friend and hot water and I would imagine a week from now the clean pictures could be taken that is if everything cleans up good. That is about it for the Red Top trip.
One thing about Red Top there are many places to dig. Once you get up high enough on the mountain, I think one could just about go anywhere off the road and find something to dig. Just as long as there are rock outcrops above you dig area. One of the group that went with us did go to the top and hiked into a dig site. He did very well from what he said. He largest piece was about 10 pounds. We didn’t really get anything larger than a few ounces except for a couple of fractured Jasper pieces. .
Jeff and I along with 10 other folks left at the meeting place around 8:30 a.m. After about an hour and 20-minute drive we arrived to the dig site. We didn’t go to the very top of the mtn, instead we stopped below the top. He dig site is only a couple of 100 yards so I could even get in there. There were many digs around the area. So Jeff and I just found one and started digging. We did start finding bits and pieces of agate and jasper of different colors.
We could only dig down about 18”s until we hit a hard clay/pea gravel/hardpan layer. There doesn’t seem to be anything in or below the hard layer. We worked an area under some trees roots until we couldn’t reach anymore material. Not wanting to damage the roots of the tree, we backfilled the hole and moved onto another.
The recommendation we had was to find an old stump and dig around it. When we moved we did find a large rotten stump and right on the bat Jeff finds a nice small piece of geode crystals. The scraping the duff off the ground, he found some nice pieces of agate and a little Jasper. We thought this could be really good! Anyway we dug a hole about 2’ X 3’ X 20”’s until we hit the hardpan. The digging was just like home, not a rock and the nicest looking dirt one could ever wish for. Most everywhere else you had to contend with rocks in you dig. But that is where you fond the good stuff. Anyway back at our dig, we found very few pieces but moved a lot of dirt. It was 4:00 p.m. or so and decided to call it a day. However we were not in any hurry and the folks that carpooled with us were still digging. That was Bob and Cheri (twincrystals) and Cheri’s son Casey.
We started walking out and came across several small basalt outcroppings. You could see holes the size of softballs that where worked and the nodule removed. There were some big ones. One outcrop had a fairly large section of rock had fractured away from the larger rock. It sort of looked like a butt but with a filler piece where the crack would be. We had all of out chisels and rock breaking stuff with us. After sometime we eventually got that bugger out. Low and behold on one side there was a nice blue nodule waiting the size of an egg but flatter waiting to be freed.. With a little careful chiseling, we got it free. Well worth the time and effort. Continuing to work out our way out to the truck, we found some additional outcrops that were worked. Jeff did find some smaller nodules and half geodes and chipped them out. Some of these rock outcrops have been reduced to small boulders and gravel. Pretty amazing.
Anyway, after a little prodding from Bob, Casey and Jeff, Cheri who is one of the most die hard diggers I have ever seen finally got out of her dig and they headed back to the truck. I think it was about 6:00 p.m. or so when we left the dig site. Everyone was happy with his or her finds, dirty and tried.
I have posted several pics of the dig and our finds. Our finds are still dirty except for a good washing with water just before the pictures. The agates went into some bar keepers friend and hot water and I would imagine a week from now the clean pictures could be taken that is if everything cleans up good. That is about it for the Red Top trip.
One thing about Red Top there are many places to dig. Once you get up high enough on the mountain, I think one could just about go anywhere off the road and find something to dig. Just as long as there are rock outcrops above you dig area. One of the group that went with us did go to the top and hiked into a dig site. He did very well from what he said. He largest piece was about 10 pounds. We didn’t really get anything larger than a few ounces except for a couple of fractured Jasper pieces. .
 The Ol' Man in the dig. |  Bob and Sheri, twincrystals, digging around their stump. |
 Club members digging and finding |  More club members diggin away |
 Our finds for the day. Pile of Jasper and junk rock on the left and geodes and agate on the right. |  The Red Top Agates we found. |
 Jasper and junk rock. |  Just another picture of the blue agates |
pvjjh |
Latest page update: made by pvjjh
, Jul 21 2008, 11:27 PM EDT
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