Rockhounding Washington: Red Top Agates

We had a great time volunteering at the fire lookout and since it's only about a mile from the agate dig area, I had to get some digging in.
If you go up I would bring your GPS, Geo Pick, a screen, two gallon bucket, gloves, knee pads, head lamp, and a small shovel.
Location & GPS Information:
currentlyrockh...
Thanks for watching!
#Rockhounding #CurrentlyRockhounding #Thefinders

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

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[@alicefreist318]

"Sarah's got the bear spray, and I've got the bear spray made by Glock." You and Sarah are definitely my people. Thank you for your informative, intelligent, and humorous videos! I wish you both the very best. It's fun to watch you complement one another.

[@linniemcknight8122]

I go.rouck hounding all the time and I know an excellent place for jasper's agates quartz and some turquoise!! We've also found geodes!!

[@upperpeninsulabeautiful]

I'm so blown away with all the types of agates out in your stomping grounds. I've been hunting waterwashed lsa's for 40 years. I just recently learned of the vast array of agates waiting to be found. I'm wondering if you've ever dug for diamonds in Arkansas. I've found 57 diamonds down there. Proposed to my wife with a beautiful one!

[@robertgreetham8942]

Spent many rockhounding trips in the Teanaway area as a teen with my dad & brother. Too bad my collection was given away. I still inherited a few buckets of Naches thundereggs & our first camping rock trip to the Oregon coast; buckets of petwood, jasper & Agate. Best times of my life. I could still drive to the locations now, without a map.

[@minnowdeswayze374]

Thank you for showing us what they look like at the end

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Of course! Thanks for watching!

[@mattrichards1492]

From what I've learned, Eburg blues are in Rhyolite, not basalt. But I'm certainly not here to argue about cool looking rocks either way. Nice finds and fun times!

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Digging deep in the archives I see, videos are a snap shot in time you know.

[@mattrichards1492]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding Yes, it's great to go back and look at these snapshots in time and knowledge.

[@GeoRockNerd]

I thought Eburg blues were from the Teanaway Basalt Formation

[@mattrichards1492]

@@GeoRockNerd EBs are actually more than ca. 25 ma younger than teanaway basalt. Teanaway Rhyolites which is the host rock are dated at 25ma While the Teanaway basalt is dated at around 49 ma (Eddy, et al. 2015). Even though one can find "blueish" agates in basalt, Ellensburg blue are only found in Rhyolite hosts with quartz, and goethite,

[@GeoRockNerd]

@@mattrichards1492 Interesting. Thanks for that reference I’ll have to check it out.

[@patriciamckean4186]

Beautiful nodules, love those blues 💙

[@dayface14]

As far as I know people are very careful not to kill the trees there. Also when Tiffany was making the jewelry with the blue agate in this area is found by a geologist who guessed that the blue Agate moved there over a lot of time.

[@OldGuyAdventures]

I haven't been out there to the agate beds in about 30 years. Back then it looked like a war zone. The arguing about what is a Ellensburg Blue, isn't that a fun pastime. Great video!

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Thanks! You should go back. At some point from what I have read the USFS filled in 90% of the old holes in the visible non-wooded agate bed areas but now the woods just looks like a war zone.

[@OldGuyAdventures]

Maybe one day I will get back there, I just have so many places on my list now and our rockhounding season is so short

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

It sure is and winter rockhounding can be hard work or impossible.

[@genedavis7238]

My grand mothers brother used to collect Ellensburg blues near Naches,,had gallon cans lined up on shelves in his garage,he said thier blues has a different chemical make up from other blue stones,likethe your channel,thanks

[@kismetkatt3604]

We are heading that way tomorrow. We finally have a chance to hunt at RedTop, our first time! Your videos are very informative and helpful . Always enjoy your outings. Thank you!

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Good luck!

[@EDLaw-wo5it]

What great finds. You do a wonderful job of explaining/teaching. Good vid. Thanks. Havagudun

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Thanks! I try my best, I just want to get other people excited to get outside and do some rockhounding.

[@ZachStJohn-vi1kg]

Just went to your rough coordinates today and found a 15lb quartz slab! What a spot!

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

That's awesome!

[@steampower9990]

So when going to redtop just spend time checking holes good, ya just may find 30ish lbs of good material just the way I did on my last trip up . Dig hard and stay safe ! .

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

That's quite the haul!

[@steampower9990]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding Truly not bad! There are many places to dig on that mountain and the map you showed is just a scratch on the surface. 😎 Can't wait to see your next adventure to redtop, it's among my favorite places to go.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

@@steampower9990 Oh I know! This is a pretty old video and since this visit I have learned alot about the area.

[@DanielKoenig-uo6rs]

Has anyone used the map at the fire lookout? It looks like a way to get in from the opposite direction.

[@danielherman5267]

thanks for the GPS coordinates

[@nissmopwer]

Went up yesterday for the first time. We hiked in from the north side on "agate road" was definitely amazed by the amount of excavation. Figured I'd rewatch this old video for old time sake.... and the comment you make about 5 gallon buckets in your back yard.... I think Sarah is calling your bluff with that look at you at 8:33 lmao!!!!!

[@AgateDad]

Great video man!

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Thanks for check it out. I think it rocks! Get it? That's a rock joke!

[@AgateDad]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding hahaha it does rock, I appreciate the pun!

[@tarapaul8212]

Great video. Very informative.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Thank you!

[@yoopermann7942]

that was cool! i never been to a working fire look out, cool

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Fire lookouts are so amazing.

[@yoopermann7942]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding its the views that i fell for, well that and the adventure of it

[@rawdawgpendants5490]

For the record ive dug tree roots for crystals and gold, but i do fill my holes in and that tree is still alive 10 years later. Fill your holes in.

[@rachaelb9164]

Yeah that makes me so angry when people leave the roots exposed. It kills the trees that have probably been there longer than the digger has been alive.

[@scarekr0w1]

Love the "Glock" bear spray

[@stephenfowler4115]

I've been there and from my experience there's better results to be had below the crest of the hill.

[@nissmopwer]

We hit up a creek east of 97 south of there. Pulled a really nice one out of it a couple years ago

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Very cool! Lots of good stuff up in that area.

[@isabellavalencia8026]

Whats the difference between what you call a nodule and a geode?size?

[@mwilson14]

I was just there today!

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Awesome! How did you do?

[@mwilson14]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding I didn't get much as Sarah and I didn't prepare for it. I saw the forest access road and so we ventured as high up as we could drive in our Toyota Camry. We plan on renting a SUV for a planned trip in the future. There are piles of old tailings piles down the highway from there and we might go there again tomorrow, but we won't be going up the mountain since the potholes get to be too much on our car.

[@watsisname]

Thanks for putting this video out! I live over in western Washington and was curious about Red Top and whether it'd be worth the trip. Looks pretty heavily picked over but nice to know you can still get some pretty nodules. Funny commentary about the Ellensburg Blues btw. I always figured it was just a marketing gimmick . "If it's not from this specific area then it's not a true Ellensburg blue!" Yeah, okay. But are they really much different from other blue agates? They aren't even a specific shade of blue, but vary anywhere from deep lavender to grey. Just like blue agates that you can find from almost anywhere else! :P

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Red Top is worth it for sure still, you can still get some good stuff and enjoy an epic view. I get it, people want rocks to be special but for the most part there not really. Also I would add that a fair number of the photos I see online of Ellensburg Blues are light/color adjusted. I have a strong feeling that I could take some of the Blue Agates I have gotten and Red Top and could pass them off as an Ellensburg Blue if I cared to cause they really don't look that different at all.

[@isabellavalencia8026]

Thankyou for sharing although I appreciate what you are doing as a native American I could not allow myself to digup and take what mother nature did not give up freely so I do alot of surface hunting and beach combing.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

You know that you're on a electronic device right now that wouldn't exist without people digging stuff up.

[@isabellavalencia8026]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding as I stated I appreciate what you are doing I just could not allow myself to dig up what mother does not give up freely and it is killing the trees. I don't expect non natives to understand our ways or abide by them. I was simply sharing my point of view. I wish I could dig as it looks very fun but I can not. Check out skate creek at rainier sometime lots of jasper and agates and blues and common opal.no digging the creek gives them up freely Peace

[@heihat1224]

Thank you for this vid..I have always been passionately in love with rocks..crystals an gems an have waited my whole damn life to go rockhounding but have discovered no one will tell you anything and now you cant even get to most of it..cuz everything is frigging off limits unless you want to get shot at..I've been so frustrated and disappointed...so I'm really excited to go check your site out.. I'm like you..i have no desire to make money or go raping and pillaging the land..i just want to have some nice rocks to admire..they really increase the happiness in my home..i will definitely post anything i find. Oh i subbed your channel

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Books are a great start. What state do you live in? I'm sure I could recommend some places for you to go. Also you can drop me an email if you like.

[@ericshurtz4901]

What a great quote "I got the bear spray made by glock"👉💥🐻💨

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Pew pew.

[@CecilXzandu]

Does anyone know what app they were using in this video when he showed the coordinates?

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

That was just my Garmin but now I use the app Gaia GPS which I have some videos on if you goto my channel

[@KatyDidRocks]

Looks like a great hunt! It would drive me crazy not to be able to wash the stuff. Is the dig site on state land, or is it a private claim?

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Hahaha yeah that's a little hard to deal with. The dig site is on public land.

[@KatyDidRocks]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding, so do they have an area set up where people can dig, or do random folks just bring shovels and start digging? O.O

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

@@KatyDidRocks It's just an area out in the woods so you need to bring everything yourself.

[@KatyDidRocks]

Sounds fun! I'll have to put it on my list of places to visit on my way to Oregon.

[@kylenicolls1321]

"That all the dildos carved their names into..." That was fantastic. Bugs the hell outta me too. Good vids too, BTW.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Hahaha thank you!

[@UberAudi90]

My wife and I just went rock hounding for the first time up at red top! Ran into an older couple coming back with some red top agates. They referred us to your channel. We had a pretty decent haul.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

That's awesome! I'm glad y'all had a good time up there. I would love to see a photo of your haul. I like seeing peoples finds.

[@dayface14]

I would suggest that you look at the history of red top in the area

[@mosaicskulls8071]

My squirtgun lol 😂 true

[@lucasflanders8557]

Found a large pale amethyst geode there once. Took two days to chisel out of the bedrock.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Well worth it I'm sure!

[@ebybbob]

Nice video! When I've gone to red top the places I've dug and found agates at look very different than the spots in your vid (ie, way sketchier/steeper), great finds tho

[@charleskijek5438]

Red top can be a lot of fun. I am glad you got some blues

[@rawdawgpendants5490]

Fun videos.

[@val.OG1]

I really appreciate your outlook on several points! And love that you’re willing to share: locations and knowledge. I was wondering what to look for in the raw. Sometimes it’s hard to decipher what you’re even looking for lol. At the end of the video when you put that first agate on the light my heart skipped a beat!!! I’m still all twitterpated over it lol!! I’m going this weekend!!

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

I think part of the problem we face in the world of rockhounding is that so many people show finished or clean things only which really isn't that helpful, I think seeing them raw and dirty and then cleaned up is best for people new to a location. Also this video is an old one of mine! Thanks for watching!

[@val.OG1]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding ya I go out and never find any of the “pretty” things others find lol I think I’ve watched all of your videos at least twice!! 🤣🤣

[@gemcollector8508]

Whoa, its not everyday you see Jared digging in a hole! Sweet video!

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

This is an older one for sure.

[@amanfromthewest7326]

Man I just got a load best haul yet out of Ellensburg, I am trying to get it identified, over 60 lbs two pieces are over 20 lbs a piece

[@amanfromthewest7326]

The big part of it is saying thanks for getting me interested in my areas diverse geology, PNW rock hound

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Drop me an email with some photos and I can help you out I bet.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

You live in such an amazing part of the world for rocks and geology.

[@nassirbinattaf-dq9qr]

Kristal. Is diamonds

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

What?