SARM Articles
Below are some interesting articles courtesy of the SARM
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The Cinnamon Geode Beds
by Delmer G. Ross , Professor of History, La Sierra University
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Many of those who have dug for thundereggs at the Colorado Desert's famous Hauser Geode Beds or Potato Patch
are also aware of the existence of the nearby Cinnamon Beds. Perhaps someone mentioned the name, or they may
have seen it on a map. They may even have wished to dig there. Many, probably most, such rockhounds have
not attempted to do so because they have not known just where to look for the dig. One lady who had spent
an unproductive day searching for the various different area geode beds complained to me that she had not
been able to find any markers anywhere. Had someone stolen them? She had driven throughout the region
looking for road signs! With the advent of relatively inexpensive GPS readers, though, pinpointing a location
no longer poses much of a problem, Like geodes and nodules from other nearby sources, those from the Cinnamon
Beds sometimes are found in volcanic ash that underlies desert pavement. Many, though, must be carefully
and laboriously pried loose from their matrix of fractured rhyolite just like many others. Despite such
similarities, there are several differences, some of which are significant. Geodes from the Cinnamon Beds tend
to be larger, their interior cavities generally are more spacious, and the ratio of geodes to nodules
is much greater than at the Hauser Beds or the Potato Patch. Moreover, the interiors of the geodes often
contain anywhere from a few little specks to a full coating of rich, cinnamonbrown colored quartz druse,
making them distinctive and giving the site its name. They sometimes contain rather spectacular black
calcite crystals as well.
While such differences may sound good, there are drawbacks. Geodes from the Cinnamon Beds tend to be more
fragile than those available at nearby digs; larger ones often are so easily fractured that it almost seems
that they break open of their own weight. Moreover, their interiors tend to be rather plain looking compared
with those from other nearby sources. The crust of druse can be very thin. Although the cavities usually
offer more than enough room, do not anticipate finding large quartz crystals in them. Do not expect the
cavities to be surrounded by spectacular banded agate, either. A significant number of these geodes have
cavities that are only partially lined. A few contain nothing but air, and the surrounding rhyolite may
hardly be worth a second look. Although they can be quite beautiful, these geodes are sought mainly for
their uniqueness. They can be spectacular in their own way, though. Cinnamon Beds geodes range in size from
less than two to more than ten inches in diameter. I once saw one that must have measured sixteem inches
across outside, with a twelve inch cavity. Those geodes with a combination of a large cavity that is lined
with brown quartz druse and contains only one or two large, jet black calcite crystals can be striking and
well worth the time and effort required to locate and extract. While it is not known exactly when the
Cinnamon Beds were discovered or who should receive credit for the accomplishment, it doubtless ranks as
one of the many results of Joel Hauser's 1937 discovery of the nearby geode beds that bear his name today.
Prior to that event, rockhounds simply searched for geodes and nodules that were in plain sight on the surface
of the ground. The discovery of the Hauser Beds brought a change in methods because it showed that there
were far more thundereggs underground than there were on the surface. The surest way to obtain them appeared
to be to dig them out of beds of volcanic ash or rhyolite. It seems reasonable to assume that some enterprising
rockhound who had learned of the value of digging discovered the Cinnamon Beds in the years following
Hauser's breakthrough. In any event, by the 1950s rockhounds were digging geodes and nodules at the Cinnamon
Beds. The geodes are not especially difficult to find, but the digging can be fairly strenuous. Moreover, attempting
to secure the release of a larger one from its surrounding rhyolite or solidly packed ash can be tedious and very
time consuming. Look for places were other rockhounds have dug in the past. Some of the best digs are located on
the west side of the hills, so watch for trails that lead in that direction.
A vehicle with four wheel drive and high clearance can be helpful, but is not essential. As long as it has
reasonable ground clearance, a careful motorist can drive the family sedan to within one or two hundred yards
of what recently has been the most productive area. One nice feature about the Cinnamon Geode Beds is that they
are close to other collecting sites. The Potato Patch is only a third of a mile south, and the middle and northern
sections of the even better known Hauser Geode Beds are less than an air mile southwest.
How To Get There
To reach the Cinnamon Geode Beds, located approximately 16 miles west of Blythe, California, take the Wiley's
Well exit from Interstate Highway 10. Drive 2.9 miles to a stop sign. The paved road turns right toward two
state prisons, but you will need to drive southward another 10.4 miles to the Riverside Imperial county line
at 33025.800' N and 114054.180' W. Wiley's Well Road becomes Milpitas Wash Road in Imperial County,
though there may not be a sign to indicate the name change. On the other hand, you should see a sign indicating
that the Hauser Geode Beds are to the west. It was erected in early 2000 by the California Federation of Mineralogical Societies. Follow the directions on the sign and, immediately south of the county line, at 33025.794' N by
114054.182' W, turn right onto the track that angles southwest across the desert pavement. This will lead you
slightly more than a half mile to what is generally known as the Black Hills Road at 33025.429' N and
114054.620' W. Bear right, and continue on the most traveled road past a metal signpost marked "Ashley
Flats" straight ahead and "Gerdes Trail" to the north. Continue driving in a generally westerly
direction to a second metal signpost, this time marked only "Ashley Flats," at a fork in the road.
Your GPS coordinates should be close to 33024.825' N and 114058.145' W. Located about 4.5 miles from Milpitas
Wash Road (or Wiley's Well Road), this junction marks the approximate center of Middle Camp. To continue
toward the Cinnamon Geode Beds take the south fork and cross the gravel bed of the Black Hills Wash. In
one mile you will reach another junction, at 33024.121' N and 114058.679' W. This one, known as Potato
Patch Junction, is unmarked. One short stretch of road just before you reach the intersection is rough,
but if you pick your course carefully and take it slow and easy, you should have no trouble. At Potato
Patch Junction turn right and cross a little wash. In approximately three fourths of a mile, at
33023.713' N by 114059.262' W, the road dead ends at a point called Nodule Junction, where another road
crosses at right angles. Turn left and drive southward three tenths of a mile. There, at 33023.556' N
by 114159.039' W, you should be able to see tracks going off to the right. Follow those tracks. As you drive
past a low knoll on your right you should be able to see a very extensively dug area to the north. It marks
one of the more productive parts of the Cinnamon Beds. If you do not have four-wheel drive, park here, rather
than attempting to drive over the tilted bit of road ahead. Although it may appear firm enough, two-wheel
drive vehicles can easily lose traction and get stuck. The road ends at a drop off in less than one tenth
of a mile, with evidence of previous digging on both sides. If you did not park your vehicle just west of
the last junction, park at the end of the road, at 33023.477' N by 114059.061' W, and take the little foot
path that leads southward, then westward, around a knoll. Behind that knoll, at 33023.460' N by 1141159,044'
W, is the spot where the largest and best of the Cinnamon Beds geodes were dug out from about 1996 to
early 2003.
In fact, the digging was so productive that during the winter of 1999/2000 a small group of men drove a
two ton truck in and, with a show of firearms, for several days tried to dissuade any interlopers until
they had it loaded and left. The unfriendly diggers appear to have accomplished their goal whatever it
may have been. Dig there, or find a different spot previously dug or not anywhere from approximately
two tenths of a mile north to an equal distance south. The southern edge of the Cinnamon Beds offers
some particularly nice white jasper. A small percentage is fine-grained enough to be classed as
pastelite, of interest to flint knappers. Some is almost snow white, some has greenish inclusions,
and some has small black inclusions. It makes nice cabs. Because summertime temperatures often reach
115 degrees Fahrenheit in the shade, and there is precious little shade available, the best time to
visit the Cinnamon Beds is from late October to late March. Be sure to take plenty of water and
whatever else you may need. Accommodations, services and supplies are available in Blythe, 30
miles northeast.
Desert USA, Via 'Rock Talk' from The Bulletin 12/2005
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Famous Petrified Forests |
Our Petrified forests are generally of three types. The first type has been showered and completely
covered with volcanic ash leaving the trees standing in an upright position. The Petrified Forest of
Yellowstone National Park Is an example of this type. The trees are standing in their original state
where they grew years ago. The forest of Yellowstone covers more than 40 square miles which is the
largest area known. Another unusual feature of the Yellowstone Petrified Forest is that many
thousands of fossilized leaves, needles, cones, and seeds of over one hundred different kinds of trees
and shrubs have been found there. It is the only place in the world where 27 successive layers of Petrified
forms can been seen.
The story behind the Yellowstone Petrified Forest, is that an old volcano began to erupt and continued for
some twenty years. Mineral bearing waters had begun to petrify the once living forest. In the span of a
couple of hundred years, a new forest began to appear and grew for the next several years. Then the
old volcano erupted again. This process reoccurred twenty seven times as twenty seven distinct layers of
buried forest have been exposed In the Fossil Forest on the south side of Lamnar River Valley. An example
of a well preserved stump can be seen a few feet from the highway along The Petrified Road. Along the
northern slopes of specimen Ridge, there are many layers of petrified tree trunks. About two thirds of the
way up on the eastern edge is a group of upright standing trunks of unusual beauty and size just as they
grew in the past. The largest of these petrified stumps Is a redwood over five feet in diameter and believed
to be approximately one thousand years old when burned by volcanic debris.
A second type of petrified forest Is believed to be the result of logs jamming at the mouth of a river, sinking
Into the mud, and becoming petrified. The Petrified Forest of Arizona is an example of this type. Driftwood
may be deposited on the shore by the winds. Generally fossil wood, which at one time was driftwood, does
not have bark This fact may account for the lack of bark on the wood In Arizona.
One stone log, twenty feet wide and forty feet thick, flung across a ravine forms a natural bridge - the
famed Agate Bridge. The Arizona Petrified Forests are composed of different forests varying in coloring.
The Rainbow Forest is a multiplicity of colors, the Blue Forest is mostly carbonized sections; and the Black
Forest is brilliantly black. Many logs of white, some almost transparent, make up the Second Forest,
while the Third Forest displays large specimens -as long as one hundred sixty feet.
The fossilized Wood is of three general types.
- Jasperized wood, Predominately bright red, some translucent and variegated with a riot of color.
- Small amounts of bright red wood are found often with areas of nearly colorless quartz.
- Sections of dark or nearly black wood.
The opalized wood forests of central Washington run a close second to the famed forests of Arizona. An
outstanding feature In Washington is the only fossilized ginkgo trees known in the world. The well known
Ginko Petrified Forest Is of the driftwood type. Of the ten thousand fossilized trees in this forest,
only six have been Identified as Ginkgo trees. The Ginkgo is one of our most unique types of trees, nearly
indistiguishable from those living today.
Nevada boasts of the largest Petrified tree known In the world. It Is fourteen feet in diameter, and nearly
three hundred feet long. Another distinction In Nevada is the woods of Virgin Valley are fully opalized
with the "fire" of the opal fire.
A third type of petrified forest is that of scattered woods that may have become covered in some manner,
to become solidified later. For Instance, rising waters in a flood may completely cover a forest and
protect it from decay. Later on, petrification may preserve the trees permanently. Some of the woods
in California, Nevada, Oregon, and Central Washington have this origin.
From Skagit Gems, via Del Air Bulletin 2/2005
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