On Memorial Day we joined with two rock clubs to hunt for amber in the coal fields near Wishbone Hill near Sutton. We have wanted to join a rock club hunting trip for a couple of years now, but our schedule never works with theirs or we don't have the proper equipment (ATVs).
All five of the children wanted to go amber hunting. (Full disclosure: Evan started to back out of the trip the night before, but I reminded him that he'd get iPad time on the ride up and the ride back and that the snacks were awesome, too.) Opa and I took the grandchildren because we like rock hunting with them.
The Wishbone Hill area is in a huge coal field (Matanuska Coal Field) and it was mined at some point in the past. I think the hill we hunted on must have been created during the mining process--it was a tall pile of black gravel-size pieces of coal. The key to finding amber was to get down really low. The kids crouched, but most of the adults just laid down on the hill and closely examined a small area looking for a glow, a glint of light hitting the clear amber.
Some areas were rich in amber and a hunter could quickly find ten, twenty, or more pieces of amber in a couple of square feet. Other areas the hunting was sparse and the finds were few and far between. The first hour I collected one piece, but later in the afternoon I found a good spot and collected twenty or more in a just ten minutes. The pieces of amber on the coal pile are small. Most of the pieces we collected were 3-6 ml in size (roughly in the shape of sphere or a slab or a drop). A pea size piece of amber was a great find (Jake found two) and the biggest piece of the day was two peas large (another family found that gem).
At the end of the afternoon (three to four hours) most of us had a small 1 dram (3/4 teaspoon) vial filled with amber. Bentley had two vials. Lincoln had a half vial and Evan had 14 small pieces. He spent most of the day picking up coal. I find it best to let the little rock hounds hunt for what they want. That makes them happy, which makes me happy.
In addition to collecting amber we chipped off a few fossils from some larger rocks (Viva damaged her finger because she wasn't wearing gloves) and we hacked away at a large petrified log sitting in the open. (Our rock club buddies told us there are lots of petrified logs that were dug up during the coal mining process, but many of them were later reburied to preserve them.)
We asked the kids how the rate the trip (1-10) and four of them instantly gave it a 10. Evan was not so generous. He said 0 because at the time we asked we were driving back and he was waiting his turn for the iPad. He seemed to enjoy most of the hunt, it was only in the last hour that he started to lag, and, quite frankly, at that point Opa was lagging, too. The rest of us wanted to stay and hunt some more because we were finding good patches, but we agreed to quit the field.
Some of Evan's good finds (large pieces of coal) ended up in this puddle.
There were ten to fifteen others on the hill with us, but this photo is of Opa, Bentley, Viva, Lincoln & Jake.
Evan is coal hunting at this point in the day--hunting for coal on a coal hill. He'd sometimes shout "I found a big piece!" and we'd all stop in envy until we realized he meant a big piece of coal.
Hunting, Hunting, Hunting
The quintet sitting on a petrified log.
Opa helping Evan hack off a piece of the log.
The hill wasn't this steep, but it felt like it at times!!
This is a dram bottle.
I think it's my bottle after I've washed the amber to help it shine better.
There are way too many photos of Evan in this mix, but as the youngest I was keeping the closest watch on him. Lincoln is a delightful but quiet kid and he slips under the radar. I regret that I didn't get a better shot of him.
