Grand Canyon - March,2005 - photo by John Veevaert
John Veevaert    PO BOX 2182   Weaverville, California  96093  USA  (888) 689-8402



Return to the 2007 Tucson Show Homepage 

Show Reports
Report 1   Report 2   Report 3   Report 4  Report 5  Report 6

 

January 20-24


I left for Tucson on the 20th of January and had several stops planned before finally reaching mineral Mecca. My first stop was going to be in Reno, Nevada to see Scott Werschky.  The route over there from Weaverville takes me immediately past Mount Lassen National Park.  It is a fairly scenic drive as you take in the southern extent of the Cascade volcanic province.  It was also cold that day as the thermometer in my car registered all of 6 degrees F between Old Station and Susanville.


The inside of my Subaru Forester where it was 74 inside and 6 outside...

Once in Reno I raced to see Scott Werschky of Miner's Lunchbox.  Scott managed to pick up some of the incredible new gold production at the Round Mountain mine this year.  It is some of the best crystallized gold I have ever seen from anywhere. Scott showed me the specimens that had already been sold and I was left speechless. Razor sharp octahedrons with brilliant mirror-like luster, large sharp elongated spinel law twins, cubes, herring bone habit, arborescent habit, leaves, wires - you name the form and it was represented by this new production. Scott easily has the largest and finest quantity of this new material that anyone has as the sale format from the mine deviated this year from previous years. 


3.1 x 2.3 x 0.8 cm specimen with razor sharp and lustrous octahedral crystals.

I made a small selection of six high quality specimens from Scott's hoard and spent a little time visiting with Alan Day who was there cleaning up more gold for the show.  It is not widely recognized just how much work goes into prepping specimens prior to shows like Tucson. Alan showed me some specimens in various stages of completion from nothing more than gold in quartz to the finished product.  It involves a lot of chemical work and tedious mechanical removal of the tenacious bits that won't let go.  Below are a sequence of photos to help convey what it takes.


The specimen above has abundant gold in place in the quartz.
The specimen below is the result of sawing and multiple treatments with HF acid and waxing.


The quarter gives you an idea of the actual size of this specimen.




After bidding Scott and Alan adieu I headed south for Tehachapi and John Seibel.  John has been busy this year with collecting efforts at Majuba Hill in Nevada and the New Melones Dam in Calaveras County, California.  At Majuba he found some exceptional specimens of chalcophyllite with crystals that have the color of dioptase.  These are quite stable in room conditions.  At New Melones he worked the well known axinite locality and came up with some exceptional specimens of quartz included with crystals of axinite. I cannot recall ever seeing specimens of this sort from this locality - or anywhere else for that matter.


5 cm doubly terminated quartz crystal included with floater crystals of axinite.


John was particularly proud of this specimen he found with leaf gold - show me another!  ;^)
 


Here's a photo of John packing up my selections and the entire production of his efforts this past year at New Melones.


Here's John's home.  Those of us who know John know that this is the house that salt built...
John's has sold thousands of pink halite specimens over the years from Searles Lake. 
Enough to easily build a house like this one.

The following images were shot as I was traveling across the southern edge of California and Arizona en route to Tucson on Interstate 8.


I spent one night in Pine Valley, California.  It is located about 40 miles east of San Diego.


Not far from Pine Valley you near Jacumba which is a stone's throw from the 
border with Mexico which is not far behind the power line in this photo.


Shortly past Jacumba you enter this lifeless stretch of real estate near the Imperial County/San Diego County line.
Even I can see why no one lives in these parts.



East of El Centro you near the Glamis San Dunes. These sand dunes stretch 
for about 90 miles in all and are found east of the Salton Sea.
This place is dune buggy Disneyland.



Sign of the times. There were two Border Patrol stops on Interstate 8.
This one was about 25 miles east of Yuma, Arizona.


With a little extra time on my hands I decided on making the final 150 miles off the 
Interstate so I took Hwy 86 and went through Ajo, Arizona and about 60 
miles west of Tucson drove by the famous Kitt Peak Observatory.


 


I arrived in Tucson on the afternoon of the 23rd after 1467 miles.  I had a serious case of road ugly on and was ready for a restful first night in my Tucson rental after washing the road ugly off in a long shower... ahh....

Bring on the rocks!

More to come.

Past Shows & Reports
PLEASE NOTE: The minerals that were offered on these pages are all sold
1999
Munich Show
2000
Sainte Marie Show
Munich Show
2001
Sainte Marie Show
Munich Show
2002
Tucson Show
Sainte Marie Show
Denver Show
Munich Show
2003
Tucson Show
Sainte Marie Show
East Coast Show
Denver Show
Munich Show
2004
Tucson Show
West Coast Show
East Coast Show
Denver Show
Munich Show
2005
Tucson Show
West Coast Show
East Coast Show
Denver Show
Munich Show
2006
Tucson Show
Bologna Show
Sainte Marie Show
East Coast Show
Munich Show
2007
Tucson Show
Dallas Show
East Coast Show
Denver Show
Munich Show
2008
Tucson Show
West Coast Show
East Coast Show
Denver Show
Munich Show
2009
Tucson Show
West Coast Show
East Coast Show
Denver Show
Munich Show

2010
Tucson Show
San Francisco Show
East Coast Show
Denver Show

Munich Show

2011
Tucson Show
San Francisco Show
East Coast Show
Denver Show
Munich Show

2012
Tucson Show
West Coast Show
East Coast Show
Denver Show 
Munich Show

2013
Tucson Show
Sainte Marie Show
Crystal Days (Poland)
Munich Show  

 

 
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