Digging for Opals in Nevada

My daughter came to spend a few days.  She has been asking for some time for information on Opal mines in Nevada.  I looked it up and we discussed possibilities, but while she was here, the subject came up again.

Weather was a consideration for us and for the mines as well because their sites noted that mining was open weather permitting.  For two days we checked predicted weather forecasts.  I was up at 4 yesterday to check the weather - possibility of scattered thundershowers, but here dawn revealed the strong possibility of a clear hot day.

My son opted out of our adventure, but he did get up to fix us breakfast - hotcakes and eggs - before we left.  We packed a cooler with water, soda and cold sandwich; packed sun lotion, cameras and a few other items in a bag and took off for our day of adventure - opal mining.

A stop for gas and ice and the road lay before us.  Northern Nevada highways are lonely stretches of pavement that fade to the horizon with little to break the view.  A few scattered homes, ranches and farms.  Miles and miles of open land without tree or shrub taller than sagebrush - all framed in by rolling hills and mountains with traces of snow at the peaks. 

As we drove, I thought about the formation of this land.  Flat topped mesas, rocky buttes, endless stretches of sand.  Lake Lahonton had created most of the land topographical formations and it was easy, knowing that, to see the action of water, waves and weather that went into that process. 

Time drags when the scenery is boring and unchanging - one of the reasons I like to learn about the land I am visiting or going through.  So despite the hours it took to reach our destination, I was not bored by the endless treeless land surrounding us.  From one highway to the next and finally to a dirt road that wound its way into the folding rolling foothills that looked as if they were carved out of clay and sand.  The end of the road looks almost impassable becoming more and more a narrow trail at the foot of the hills with sagebrush encroaching on either side.  Several opal mines flourish out here - open only during the summer months.

At our destination, we paid the daily rate for a day of mining, gathered the tools we needed and followed directions to the mining area.  Another narrow trail between close hills, winding up hill at last the parking area overlooking the valley.  We backed into a parking spot and faced the cliff that was our mine.  The sky above was overcast with spaces of blue that promised some sun.  We unpacked rake, shovel, picks and bucket and chose our spot.  A half dozen other vehicles were parked closer to the parking area entrance and people were already at work digging and poking at the cliff face. 

The first thing we found as we started was that this was not going to be an easy task.  We soon discovered that the better chances were to be had by attacking the solid packed clay wall which resounded to the blows we levered at it.  Chunks of hard clay broke loose like rotten shale after several well placed blows.  We then examined the face for signs of opals.  We had no idea at all what we were looking for.  A guide showed us a few thin needle like pieces of opal and we started again.

My daughter attacked the cliff face with the long handled pick and I settled on the ground to break up the slabs she pushed back at me.  From one slab I picked up a small dark object to discover that I was holding a small pine cone.  I took it to show the guide - "A rare find."  He assured me.  "I have only found four in the ten years I have been working this.  That pine cone is about 16 million years old and would be worth more if it was encrusted with opal deposit.  Check out the one in the gift shop that is."  I tucked my ancient pine cone in a safe spot and continued to beat apart slabs of clay. 

The sun broke out of the clouds and we were aware that we had already begun to  absorb the rays during the cloudy time.  At  lunch time we split the sandwich and downed sodas before betting back to the task.  By the end of the day we had a good number of pieces, but had no idea if any were actually opals.  We had also acquired a mild sunburn.  We packed up our tools and headed back to the office where another guide sorted through our collection.  Although we had picked up a good number of small pieces of old darkened wood and odd rocks, we had also collected a good number of small chunks of opal.

We drove home. tired, weary and worn and covered in fine sand and dirt from head to foot.  A day of playing in the dirt had yielded us a few opal, a bit of sun burn and a day of memories for mother and daughter.