Rockhounding Wyoming (A Falcon Guide) [Paperback]

Kenneth Lee Graham (Author), W.R.C. Shedenhelm (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1996

Rockhounding Wyoming is an introduction to a fascinating treasure hunt for those seeking jade, agate, bloodstone, fossils, petrified wood, fluorite, or other precious stones. Although the rockhounding treasures are many in this vast and sparsely populated state, author Kenneth Graham points out that "sometimes the joy is in the search itself." The 75 sites described in this guide will take you across the red desert to the high mountain majesty of the Big Horns and Wind Rivers as well as the geologic wonders of Yellowstone National Park. Graham, a former hardrock miner, developed an interest in rocks at an early age. In Rockhounding Wyoming, Graham shares his enthusiasm for rockhounding and his appreciation for the diverse Wyoming landscape that holds the treasure. Each description provides detailed information complete with maps on how to find the remote as well as popular digs, what will likely be found there, the tools to bring, the best season to visit, the appropriate vehicle to drive, or when to lace up your hiking boots to get to those out-of-the-way places. Be sure to take along Rockhounding Wyoming to plan your next rockhounding adventure.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Although the rockhounding treasures are many in this vast and sparsely populated state, author Kenneth Graham points out that 'sometimes the joy is in the search itself.' The 75 sites described in this guide will take you across the red desert to the high mountain majesty of the Big Horns and Wind Rivers as well as the geologic wonders of Yellowstone National Park. Graham, a former hardrock miner, developed an interest in rocks at an early age, and he shares his enthusiasm for rockhounding and his appreciation for the diverse Wyoming landscape that holds the treasure. Each description provides detailed information complete with maps on how to find the remote as well as popular digs, what will likely be found there, the tools to bring, the best season to visit, the appropriate vehicle to drive, or when to lace up your hiking boots to get to those out-of-the-way places. Be sure to take along Rockhounding Wyoming to plan your next rockhounding adventure.

Product Details

• Paperback: 960701 pages
• Publisher: Falcon Books; 1st edition (1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1560444452
• ISBN-13: 978-1560444459
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #356,331 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars An Overall Outdated Disappointment, October 31, 2006

By 

Garnet Carbonatite "got rocks?" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rockhounding Wyoming (A Falcon Guide) (Paperback)

I worked in Wyoming for several months in 2004 and bought this book for my "weekend adventures in rock hounding". I was and still am grossly disappointed with the book. Many of the sites that this book stated where on BLM or Forest Service land were indeed on private property. I thought that a more fruitful use of my time would be to visit the rock shops listed in the back of the book. Again, I was grossly disappointed. Many of the shops closed down, changed hands, or moved. Although this book was published in 1996, Appendix B was already outdated per some of the Rock Shop owners I did find. My recommendation is to find a phone book when you pull into a town, look under "rock shops", and call to see if they are open (or will open for you).

Lessons Learned: If the black and white photos in the book use wheatback pennys for scale, the information included in the book may be as dated.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 2003 summer review, July 9, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Rockhounding Wyoming (A Falcon Guide) (Paperback)

I have found this book to be a useful tool in exploring sites in Wyoming. I would suggest anyone traveling out to Wyoming read the introduction fully. You do need to prepare for the wide open spaces. The book is copyrighted in 1996 so it's 7 years old at this writing. Many things have changed in the past seven years. Roads have been closed by both BLM and the forest service. Trail signs have been changed or vandalized. If I was traveling a long distance to collect I would check with local rock shops to see if the desired sites were still open. If I could change anything it would be to include GPS coordinates in the driving directions. At least for the main turn-offs and the main site starting point.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A little dated, but........, September 25, 2010

By 

James Sirls (Denver, CO, US) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Rockhounding Wyoming (A Falcon Guide) (Paperback)

The info in this book is a bit out of date--many of the sites have been very well picked over. I also find the directions to some of the sites to be quite vague, enough that, if it weren't for the evidence of high traffic and digging at the sites, one might not even be sure of being on the correct site (as I was not sure at some).

All that being said, this is a useful guide for finding places to begin looking for specimens that may be unavailable to the casual collector. It gives a good jumping-off point from which a bit of exploration and careful examination might provide a less visited spot at which truly impressive specimens may lie undisturbed to be found.