Rockhounding Oregon - Pyrite Crystals

#pyrite #lapidary #crystals
Today we are going on an adventure to one of the easiest rockhounding spots for Pyrite Crystals up in the mountains just East of Sweet Home, Oregon.
This location is in the Oregon Gem Trails book but the gate is not always open. It took me 3 times in a year to finally make it out there.
If you go out there, make sure to pick up after yourself!
Here is the link to Google Maps:
44°34'10.3"N 122°23'05.4"W
goo.gl/maps/hR...
If you have any comments, be sure to leave one in the comment section and don't forget to Subscribe if you enjoy this channel content!
Thank you for watching!
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[@amypage1877]

Thank you for picking up the trash... Nature appreciates it.

[@WorldofRockhounds]

I'll always go out of my way to do it. 👍

[@RobertMcVay-r6h]

I went here a couple weeks ago and got a few nice ones, I was in a hurry so I scooped up a 5 gal bucket of material to go through later. Gave some to my boss and her and her kids had a blast sifting through and finding them! There are millions of them.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

That's a great location. If it was dry and you went there with a screen you could find a few bigger ones in no time. I think the specimens in the host area great.

[@WorldofRockhounds]

I almost did bring a screen and a bucket of water but I wanted to travel light this time :)

[@JwaaT5oh3]

Where is this? I wanna find some!

[@michaelvandyke6715]

Beautiful area to hound and fun ....👌 I usually fill a five gallon pail of material, so I have something to do in the winter months and give a bag or two away to kids...

[@WorldofRockhounds]

My thing is not wanting to find somewhere to be rid of the host material haha I collected sand from another area to run at home to check for gold...and I still have 5 gallon bucket of sand after many years :)

[@sandmaker]

What a quick fun pick. I give them away to kids and adults while traveling. Heep having fun! Be happy, safe and stay healthy 😷⚒

[@WorldofRockhounds]

That's nice of you!

[@largent45]

Wow! Now thats my idea of rock hounding. Thank you for the fascinating video! It is an easy, fun and handicap accessible! And its right here in oregon and with gas prices these days, if it aint close, we aint going! Thank you for sharing! Ive got my gem trails of oregon book, and my tupperware!

[@WorldofRockhounds]

It's nice to be able to point out the easy to access areas because there are many people out there that physically can't get to the hard to get areas. This is why I like this spot. Super easy :)

[@ProdLego]

I'm pretty sure my family and I have rockhounded that exact spot as well and it's just amazing. The prices you find are exactly in the video and always tons of fun. There's never a shortage either as it constantly churning up more material.

[@WorldofRockhounds]

It's a great spot!

[@406findings]

Oh a piece of candy, oh a piece of candy 😂 those are really cool little crystals though 👍

[@WorldofRockhounds]

They really are! :)

[@RufotrisRootedRockhound]

Dude 3:32 was such a great piece!! Love that shape. Here they are all very cubic. I also like the slab you used to show them off. Flexing 💪 much?! 😜🤣

[@WorldofRockhounds]

haha that was one of the slabs that didn't get made into a KZbin Playbutton :)

[@Ontario_Rockhound]

Awesome video, and awesome finds, pyrite is such a fun mineral!

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Thank you! :)

[@kotabear0172]

My aunt took me gold prospecting up there! And on the way back we drove past this cliff. Me and my uncle spent 10 minutes sitting in clay up that cliff digging in a small puddle of water looking for fools gold! It was soo fun and one of the best memories i have with my unlce. And i have a container of little chucks of fools gold to remember it

[@WorldofRockhounds]

That is awesome!

[@denisthemineralist4033]

Wow, that brings back some great memories. I haven't hunted that spot since around 1992. Glad to know it's still going strong! I need to swing by there next time I'm in Oregon to get more. The kids love 'em!

[@WorldofRockhounds]

I'm glad it's still a spot too!

[@TheAdventureCloset]

Fun stuff! Love the specimens still in the host rock. Great hunting spot.

[@WorldofRockhounds]

:)

[@RufotrisRootedRockhound]

Hey I have been up at a pyrite mine a lot this last week myself 😅 I’ll have a couple videos out soon with lots of galena and quartz and pyrite!!! Looks nice there

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Sweet! :D Looking forward to seeing what the pyrite out near you looks like!

[@pacificnorthwestnative5050]

I think it might be Galena but here's a picture

[@hockeyrace]

Great spot! I love pyrite crystals. They are so pretty. A good use for them is to crush them up and use the dust as a filler, for jewelry pieces, made with other small stone chips and epoxy. Pyrite is my go to dust. Sparkly and beautiful 🤩. Thanks for sharing! Little jelly you have access to such great pyrite. Lol. Stay Crystal 💫 Mari

[@WorldofRockhounds]

I never would have thought to crush up pyrite to use a filler dust. Not a bad idea....hmmmm :)

[@pumpkinhold]

Funny, when I hear "Sweet Home", my brain always goes to the Colorado Rhodochrosite mine. I had not heard of it, but that is because we have spent very little time on the part of 20 between Highway 5 & Hoodoo. The town itself looks pretty nice, and it's not tiny either. Over 10K residents. Thanks for all your videos. They are very helpful. We're going to try for a quickie Oregon rockhounding trip next month. Hopefully it won't get too hot.

[@Fugitive24]

Nice finds for sure!!!!! Thx for sharing

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Thank you and Thanks for watching!

[@wojciechtreffler2204]

Hi. Great area to collect and beautiful crystals...😍.... Congratulations and warm regards from PL 👋

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Thank you!

[@BackcountrywithShaughn]

This is a great spot, thanks for sharing sir. IF you decide to check this spot out please keep in mind that in organic chemistry, Iron pyrites dissolve into iron oxides and sulfuric acid. The result being that on a wet day, the muddy hillside will stain shoes and clothes so prepare. With care one can get specimen still in the matrix and expose single or multiple pyrite crystals with a Dremel that look very cool IMO. Thanks again for the post, hope you have a nice rest of your week!

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Whenever I go rockhounding, I typically where a dedicated set of clothes and shoes just for that very reason :) It is nice to have a couple crystals still in the host material. There was a spot down next to the main road would you could get lower grade pyrite but it was smaller cube form and not as nice.

[@775Rockhounding]

I love it! I need a flat rate box full of that float material to do an at home pyrite dig! 😆

[@theruggedrockhound]

Just found your channel and subscribed! Those are quite small, but they sure are nice! I like how you cleaned up the trash, I need to do more of that myself.

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Welcome to the channel! I try and do what I can while I'm out collecting. But yeah, they are small but collectively in a glass jar, they look nice :)

[@theruggedrockhound]

@@WorldofRockhounds Especially if it is an old blue glass jar!

[@kennethwallace34]

This was very nice to see this information and I really like that you put the map coordinates so my grandkids and my be able to go there.

[@Bponyi]

Awesome. I will try to check it out this weekend

[@dorenabellepetty2177]

We will be coming through Oregon next month, cant wait to stop and find this spot!!!

[@oldgamerchick]

Beautiful green cool. I miss the Pacific Northwest. Been living in Texas and its 🔥🔥🔥 and dry. Great adventure thank you. 🙃☕❤❤

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Yikes! Hopefully you are able to stay cool!

[@oldgamerchick]

@@WorldofRockhounds we finally got a little rain. It's cooled off 🤗

[@LivingMyBestLifeOn1500]

Great video! I am planning a roundtrip day trip from Florence. TY!

[@kylaabegglen1275]

They are all very cool and pretty. My favorites were the ones that are dodecahedron shaped. Really awesome and fairly easy spot. Thank you for sharing Kyle!✌️🤠

[@ProdLego]

My family and I have rockhounded there as well and they all look like this it's incredible as we rockhounded pyrite in Utah and the pyrite was cube shaped. Unique wherever you go!!!!!

[@WorldofRockhounds]

You're welcome and thank you for watching!

[@scottlambright9315]

I had no idea a spot like this was in Oregon way cool!!

[@WorldofRockhounds]

I'm glad I could shed some light :)

[@craigmiller4199]

Thats just like collecting black augite up by Jewell, another spot from the Gem Trails book. I even used the same container when I went. Super fun collecting with my little rockhounding monsters too, since they could find and grab on their own. Sweet Home is a bit of a drive, but looks well worth it next time I’m down that way :)

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Augite was my next big trip after this video :) Also easy pickins!

[@charlottedenton4048]

Looks like fun!! 👍

[@WorldofRockhounds]

It was!

[@JwaaT5oh3]

Man it’s so cool how that piece formed at 3:30-35. I wanna find some

[@scottlambright9315]

Thanks for sharing!!!

[@WorldofRockhounds]

My pleasure!!

[@johnsaucerhunter]

Looks lie a great spot for beginners and families to investigate.

[@WorldofRockhounds]

It is :) Just assuming if the gate is unlocked and open!

[@rachaelb9164]

Thanks for being a good example and picking up the trash. If we want to continue to hunt rocks we need to keep the area clean and backfill holes. What road were you on? I have a vague idea of where sweet home is. I have a friend down there. I live more north.

[@WorldofRockhounds]

I always do what I can to help and you are 100% correct! It's on Quartzville Dr going up toward yellow bottom

[@donnalantz7981]

Is there a way to keep the oxidation ? That was so cool. I wish I could find stuff like that. And that easy to get to. I think we have places here in Michigan you can find it. Just not positive. I will have to look into it more. Really cool video.

[@WorldofRockhounds]

That's a very good question that I'm not sure how to answer! I know there are spots all over the U.S. where you can find pyrite. There are different forms just in this area I was in.

[@raygay3375]

Are the crystals in the wall typically bigger than those that have already washed down.

[@TruFrag]

I may have to see if I cant find this place and pan out a few buckets of rock see if Iant fill a Peanut Butter Jar. Thank you!

[@atomfallen2409]

I really want to get some pyrite but kind of nervous now knowing it has arsenic,sulphuric acid within it.

[@WorldofRockhounds]

You can always store it in a sealed container!

[@masonmaloney1972]

Is the Dino bone your using as back splash to sho off the pyrite? I found what I thought was crazy grey pyrite recently found till it hit me watching some ghost town video I had galena 😅😅😅

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Good eye and yes! I thought it would have a nice contrast to the pyrite :) and galena is still a cool rock to find!

[@masonmaloney1972]

@@WorldofRockhounds sweet action and they do go nicely together

[@pacificnorthwestnative5050]

I keep finding and I know where there is a horde of it's got to have pyrite in it but there's other precious metals I believe that there is in these huge pieces of metal Northern point of Oregon coast it has to be a minus tide to get out there I'd like to show you maybe you can identify them

[@garethtooly6843]

In my book smithsonian handbooks rocks and minerals platinum has is cube cristles the metal does not tarnish if expose to air- that is how I found it in the adirondacks MT going through a rock cut on a dirt road reading Crist Ralph Fist Full of gold

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Nice!

[@krackenagatenonbreh3456]

I go to yellowbottom all the time and my wife and I can't find this spot :*(

[@WorldofRockhounds]

I put the GPS in the description :) That's also assuming the gate is open too!

[@astrumdeus7098]

What road is that? I'm in McMinnville

[@christopherwallace826]

Do you ever find any big ones?

[@WorldofRockhounds]

They weren't SUPER big but what I showed is what I was able to get this time around. :)

[@garethtooly6843]

here in new york state pyrite is known as fools gold same color- in oregon must be known as fools platinum I would get it checked out. I would get a Falcon metal detector- it will not sound off on pyritem-on blacksand sound off going away gold and metal this size (.) souns off going toward it.it is $300.00. Note I only been into gold metal detecting 2 year But to me it is platinum group metals pgm as they donot tarnish when it is in the air like our fool gold pyrite. But the bad part is it is only $900.00 a troy oz.and up. good luck Gareth

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Good to know! The area I was in is known for gold but there are claims all over the mountain and around the rivers. There is only a small section of river where panning is allowed to the public.

[@flowerbug55]

Anyone know how far up Quartzville Dr. before you turn on tn Boulder Crk Rd.?

[@Vosia71]

Not sure where my gem trails book is atm. Whats the reason for the gate not always being open and its closed are you allowed to hike by foot up to it or is it even a reasonable distance to try?

[@WorldofRockhounds]

I haven't tried to hike it up. I'm a big boi...I'd rather not hike it haha But I'm sure they probably close it during fire season or if something is otherwise unsafe. I recently got OnX and I plan on testing it if it shows the gate open or closed the next time I go up there.

[@Vosia71]

@@WorldofRockhounds yeah that's fair I have mild exercise induced asthma so if it's enough of an incline I have to take it really slow myself. I tried ONx but accidentally downloaded the hunting version of it. I only gave it a test run for the trial because I wanted to see how accurate their maps were for BLM. Sadly couldn't justify spending $15 a month. I did download the two other versions they had so maybe I'll see if they let me do a free trial for those.

[@sarah-dc3ok]

Where is this spot?

[@taylorjohansen4955]

Is there a contact or agency to call that could tell people when the gate would be open?

[@WorldofRockhounds]

@@taylorjohansen4955 not that I'm aware of

[@breapost3909]

is there a way to find out when the gates are open?

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Sadly, no. I've been up there a couple times and had to turn around due to gates being closed.

[@nawazmansuri1580]

How much?

[@dustinfindsrocks]

There’s some similar road cuts in southwest Missouri with good pyrite but I haven’t been there to check it out yet. Pyrite will not take a polish… or will it 🤣

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Some can...they just require a different step towards the end :) (also depending on the quality of the pyrite)

[@mrfxm55]

Mow just find where the pyrite fell apart with some quartz and clay and you have gold.

[@WorldofRockhounds]

That entire mountain area is known for gold!

[@ArmChair_Operator]

I NEED to know where this is so i can take my son!

[@jeredhuntington1196]

It’s always nice to see people actually picking up lazy peoples trash.

[@samstrzempka5353]

GPS?

[@WorldofRockhounds]

Added to the description!

[@robgepford1547]

Can you share the location with me.

[@2HighNoon]

That’s a sulfide vein they are shedding out of. Notice that blueish white, that’s a sulfide vein. We look for that when prospecting gold.

[@WorldofRockhounds]

There's a lot of gold claims in that area. There's only a small stretch of area north of this spot where it's open to the public for gold panning but most of the other areas are claimed. It's rumored they never found the mother lode.

[@2HighNoon]

@@WorldofRockhounds boom called it! Nice 🏆🙂👍

[@glennhales7302]

Scrub them with a stiff toothbrush and " Bar keepers friend" cleanser.

[@2HighNoon]

Was that a dog poop bag just sitting there?? Ohy! People…

[@WorldofRockhounds]

I must've not noticed it but it doesn't surprise me. Some people ruin it for the rest of us by not packing that stuff out.

[@2HighNoon]

@@WorldofRockhounds I was talking the purple bag you picked up.

[@WorldofRockhounds]

@@2HighNoon Oh haha that was some kind of broom head :)

[@bretnielsen5502]

>>>>> Take a TEASPOON with you

[@Outsidegems]

Where exactly is that?