rockhounding
Amateur geology hobby
Rockhounding is the hobby of searching for and collecting rocks, minerals, fossils, and gemstones in their natural settings.
Enthusiasts hunt in fields, streambeds, mines, and designated collecting sites: We spent the weekend rockhounding in the desert.
The activity combines outdoor recreation with amateur geology, and serious rockhounds often cut and polish their finds.
Crystalline silicon dioxide
- feldsparSilicate mineral group
- micaLayered silicate mineral
- calciteCrystalline calcium carbonate
- fluoriteCalcium-based cubic mineral
geodes · crystals · strata · sedimentary · igneous · metamorphic · outcrop · erosion
Gathering items over time
- lapidaryWorker of precious stones
- prospectingSearching for mineral wealth
- specimensRepresentative items for examination
- excavationAct of unearthing
digging · rock hammer · chisel · loupe · guidebook · classification · trading · displays
Purple semiprecious quartz
- citrineYellow-orange quartz gem
- garnetRed semiprecious stone
- tourmalineBoron silicate gemstone family
- malachiteGreen copper carbonate stone
peridot · topaz · zircon · agate · jasper · obsidian · opal · turquoise
Extraction sites or prey
- minesOre extraction sites
- tailingsPost-extraction mineral waste
- claimsStatements of truth
- outcropsProtruding rock formations
roadcuts · streambeds · washes · desert · mountains · beaches · public lands · gravel bars
quartz
Crystalline silicon dioxide
fluorite · geodes · crystals · strata · sedimentary · igneous · metamorphic · outcrop · erosion · fossils
collecting
Gathering items over time
- lapidaryWorker of precious stones
- prospectingSearching for mineral wealth
- specimensRepresentative items for examination
excavation · digging · rock hammer · chisel · loupe · guidebook · classification · trading · displays · tumbling
amethyst
Purple semiprecious quartz
- citrineYellow-orange quartz gem
- garnetRed semiprecious stone
- tourmalineBoron silicate gemstone family
malachite · peridot · topaz · zircon · agate · jasper · obsidian · opal · turquoise · kyanite
quarries
Extraction sites or prey
outcrops · roadcuts · streambeds · washes · desert · mountains · beaches · public lands · gravel bars
- science hobbiesastronomy, stargazing, microscopy, chemistry sets, robotics
- Western ArizonaKingman, Parker, Yuma, Colorado River, Salome
hunting, rocks, hounds, hounded, hounding, rockhound, rockhounds