87 degrees, gas $3.05 Life is Good
As I write this series of our adventures in the West, I first have to tell you that we will be on the alert to tell you about things that we don’t see in Northern Michigan on a regular basis. The temperatures and the gas prices are the first things!
Leaving Phoenix today, Bonnie noticed the sticker on the car ahead of us that said: “Save Tibet”. This is rather uncommon back home. Don’t get me wrong, I am not opposed to saving Tibet, but I am saying that it is not a hot topic back home.
We spent the night in Phoenix and discovered Sam’s Café in the Arizona Center that served a most delicious meal, what I described as crab cake tacos (although they had an appropriate Mexican name—this is just my translation). Bonnie enjoyed a Rico Rita, a Marguerita with coconut rum, spiced rum, Tuaca, and pineapple juice. Bonnie’s drink was sweeter than the one I had, and she was in a state of bliss. The chips were a mix of several types and were delicious, in case you wanted to know!
There was little competition for rocks in the morning at the Desert Gardens Show
We thought this was a fitting sign we saw in Parker.
Now about the rock shopping! We headed to Quartzite Arizona, (aka the biggest RV campground in the USA). In the winter months Quartzite swells with rockhounds, RV enthusiasts and flea market fanatics. The three main events for rockhounds are the PowWow, put on by the local rock club, a large show in an area called Desert Gardens, and the Tyson Wells Show. Here are some secrets: There are no gardens at the Desert Gardens Show, there is no real PowWow at the Powwow, and I’ve not seen any wells at the Tyson Wells. Oh yeah, there’s also no Quartzite at Quartzite! Several other small shows offer vendors selling their wares–flags, knives, whatever. Our favorite full time rock place is T-Rock, friends from Calumet, Mike and Theresa. Their location on the west end of town is loaded with tons of rough lapidary rock of consistent high quality.
The Pow Wow and the Desert Gardens shows could be described as flea markets for rock hounds. Vendors come from all around the world to sell their stone, slabs, jewelry, carvings, and much more.. You can never tell what you might find, that’s the fun of it. Quartzite is the common man’s rock show—more quirky. Many of the Tucson shows are more upscale, with fancier displays, more sedate. Each show has it’s own character.
Our Quartzite Adventure started at the Desert Gardens show. This is a tailgate type of show where people set up their RV with their wares outside their doors. They put out their excess and we come along and buy it! This has always been a fun and friendly show. Vendors generally have time to talk to customers about their local rocks and jewelry. Many of the dealers collected the rocks they sell, and I love to hear their trivia about rocks and minerals, as you all know!
If you had the cash a vertebrate section could be had.
Outstanding color in these. the one in the middle was $1200.
My first purchase was at the first booth we came to. Wade’s Woods and Rocks from Utah specializes in dinosaur bone and has an assortment of petrified wood. I immediately spotted some bright red polished pieces in a small tray with what appeared to be the very rare Yellow Cat petrified wood. My suspicions were confirmed on this and I was told I was the only person who recognized it and knew what it was. Tiffany used this material in days of yore to make great jewelry because of the brilliant red coloration. There is not much of it around any more, so, it is not often seen or known. The specimen I have at home is a remarkable piece I considered making jewelry from, but it is such a nice specimen I hesitated to cut it up. I feel better to have bought these smaller pieces that will be perfect for jewelry.
Remarkable Bumblebee's from Java.
I found some very nice Bumble Bee Jasper from Java (Indonesia) at J2B2 Rock & Equipment. (This is really a Travertine not a Jasper, but we’ll get into that some other time!) The gentleman that cuts this material, David Dickinson, was also in the booth, and pulled out some remarkable pieces that he had cut and polished. Bumble Bee Jasper is sometimes pitted and hard to work with, but the piece I purchased seems to have enough silica in it to be solid enough for great jewelry.
I found a NEW (to me) jasper—Hog Creek Jasper from southern Idaho. The reds and yellows form a mossy pattern with a clear bluish agate background reminding me of Wingate Agate.
Hog Creek Jasper.
We had to wear sunscreen and return often to the car for our water stash. Ah, Arizona in the winter! Tomorrow the PowWow opens. We will be there with bells on!