Rockhounding, a great excuse to get out into nature. After all you just may stumble across Zeolite!!

The other day I set out on a wonderful hike with a dear friend. It was such a magnificent day and we were both elated to be out in nature in the unusually warm winter weather.

I was so happy to share one of my favorite trails with her. It's one of those places that is so close to town but few people know about it. I was also really eager to share with her one of the treasures this trail holds.

We meandered through the oak savanna marveling at how lovely the mighty lichen strewn oaks looked against the backdrop of the brilliant blue sky.

I had hinted to her that we may come across one of the geological treasures this side of the mountain had to offer. She and I share a love for rocks and minerals but she hasn't had much experience out and about rockhounding. She was pretty excited to actually hunt some specimens out in the wilds of nature.

About half way in to our hike I told her we should be coming to the area where I had found treasures in the past. I think I may have been just as excited to share this experience with her as she was to be having it.

While rockhounding isn't for everyone, the hunting of treasures definitely carries a certain level of excitement for most people I know. It's a great way to spark that natural hunter gatherer instinct and seek out some really intriguing finds. Not to mention the fact that you get to experience nature in all of her glory.

We took a short offshoot from the trail we were on and quickly discovered what we were looking for....Zeolite.

I won't get into a lot of the geologic details of the treasures we found. While there is so much to learn about all that you stumble across when rockhounding, I'm one of those that is initially just happy to find unique pretty treasures. I do love learning about the scientific aspects of rocks and minerals, but I am by no means an expert. There really is a lot to it and part of the excitement is definitely exploring more about my finds.

The area we were at was littered with unique zeolite crystals.

It was a great place to bring a novice rockhound because while you had to poke around a bit, there were many many cool discoveries easily found.

We enjoyed a short time marveling at all that we were seeing. As is my norm, I was so taken with scouring that I neglected to take field pics.

I even found a makeshift planter that a lovely little moss had chosen to make home, a burly bolt from one of the power lines that traversed the area.

We picked up a few pretty pieces and headed out on the rest of our hike.

~Thankfully there were signs to guide us back to the trailhead ;)

Nature never ceases to amaze me. On the way back to the car we crossed one of the many meandering streams that crisscross the oak savanna. I happened to look down, and thanks to the sun noticed a familiar glimmer. I had heard that there was quartz in this area but had never seen more than a chip here and there. As I looked up the muddy stream bottom I noticed all sorts of chunks sticking up. We poked around a bit but decided to save this area for future exploration.

Here is a sampling of the treasures I brought home.

I have learned from past expeditions that the joy is really in what you take in and not what you take home. These tiny specimens will be a nice reminder of the day and the special time shared with my friend.

Treasures come in all forms. While the handful of material things I took away were beautiful, I was more treasured by the day spent with my friend and the opportunity to share a hobby that I love.

I hope that all of you reading have layers of excitement that you find in the world and that you have a good friend to share them with.