Rockhounding West Texas for Amazing Agates and More!

I went rockhounding in West Texas and found some amazing rocks! Some of them were breathtaking and left me speechless……..

[@maisiefreeman8597]

Hey Scott - that red bug you saw was the Giant Velvet Mite - the largest mite in the world. Don't worry, they're not the kind that sucks blood - you usually only see them after rainstorms. I love all those moss agates you found, and that agate nodule is exciting - can't wait to see you cut it. Glad to see you didn't meet any rattlesnakes out there in the desert.

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks so much for the info, I appreciate it! I was wearing my snake boots the whole time so I wasn’t too worried…..😉 Thanks for watching!

[@jeanniehoffman2769]

Gorgeous finds! Looking forward to the follow up videos.

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks Jeannie! I’ve got the agates cleaned and I’ll be making the video soon so stay tuned…..

[@kennethbynum7839]

Amazing finds. Can't wait for the cutting. Thanks so much

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks you for watching! It was an amazing hunt, that’s for sure!

[@jkoons]

Amazing finds! I can't wait to see how some of these turn out. Thank you for putting in the work to make these videos - they are awesome! I know it is a lot of work to film and edit on top of the actual work. We really appreciate it!

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks! But honestly it’s pretty easy using my iPhone and the built in iMovie app 😉.

[@zefwoodelf]

Omg Scott ! I honestly can't remember the last time I've been soooo jealous watching a rockhounding video! Amazing finds....and...I'm very jealous. Thanks for sharing this video, you found some absolute beauties

[@spwinaustin]

Thank you so much for watching! I can hardly wait to start cutting and polishing….

[@zefwoodelf]

@@spwinaustin the funny thing is that I could hardly contain myself when I was watching it and stopped to comment. Then later in the video you talked about being jealous of other rockhound videos lol that made me giggle a bit cuz I was experiencing that heavily ! 😅

[@arongstone]

I really love all the video hounding of rocks and mineral..I can see a lot of beautiful natural texture .. and your work is very beautiful and nice to see.. an incredible this gemstone. Enjoying it!

[@spwinaustin]

Thank you so much for watching!

[@stephaniephelps3539]

What an amazing trip - SO many great finds!!

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks for watching Stephanie! I was very happy with the trip.

[@virginiahudson3827]

Wow, there are some cool interesting finds. Did your truck point upwards heading home? LOL. Can't wait to see you cut and tumble those.

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks Virginia! There was definitely no other way to go than up 😆.

[@notinmanitou]

Our vote is to leave the green and white rock at 10:26 as is. What a great trip to do in the winter. Glad you make back okay.

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks! I definitely will keep it as-is for now since it is such an unusual rock.

[@SRLGemstone]

Wow! You found a very nice place. I also think the big pink one at 7:31 is a jasper. Each one is beautiful. I'm a little jealous. It's been a great day.

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks so much for watching! I start cutting them this weekend and hopefully I’ll have some good ones to show so stay tuned…

[@mrimc]

Great Video! Im hooked and cant wait to see how they all shape out.

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks for watching, I appreciate it! I’ll start cutting soon and also show the nicer ones up close and cleaned up even soon so stay tuned…..

[@zettjedi]

You killed it. Awesome finds

[@spwinaustin]

Thank you, and thanks for watching!

[@Charl-Viljoen]

Awesome rocks mate - its WOW! 🤗

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks Charl! I’ll show them up close and cleaned up very soon so stay tuned…….

[@spetkovsek57]

I think you did much better on this trip than your previous to Rockhound State Park. I look forward to seeing what you do with a lot of those. Well done.

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks Stephen! It was definitely a more fruitful hunt, that’s for sure 😆. I ended up with 4 buckets full so you’ll be seeing those rocks in my videos for quite a while 😁.

[@thesockcrusader3779]

All those pieces are beautiful! I'm so jealous. The red spier looking thing is actually a red velvet mite. So you were right on the dot for what it looks like! This really helps a lot. Thanks so much!

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks for watching, I’m so glad I could help!

[@dustinfindsrocks]

I think 5:50 is dogtooth calcite not quartz. I’ve been finding a lot of dogtooth calcite lately. Some cool agates down there in Texas! 🤔 they don’t look bigger than Missouri rocks… I thought everything was bigger in Texas 😂 rock on! Stay cool and stay safe out there

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks for the feedback Dustin, I appreciate it, and thanks for watching!

[@michaeltrimble7680]

Cool spot! I got rock fever bad so I’ll probably be scouting this weekend!

[@spwinaustin]

We will be going back in November if all goes according to plan. It’s an awesome spot to find agates.

[@michaeltrimble7680]

Best of luck to you! I and a local rock club will be playing up in Mason county in a couple weeks and I’m hoping to find some color!

[@roman11469]

Great finds! I have never been to that part of Texas but want to go now! Furthest west on the Rio Grande is Del Rio for me but I spend a lot of time in the Rio Grande City area where you can find some good stuff but nothing like that! 7 hour trip from Austin? Can’t wait to see them all cleaned up!

[@spwinaustin]

I’ll definitely need to explore other areas of the Rio Grande, that’s for sure. It’s definitely worth the drive but finding spots to legally hunt can be challenging. And don’t get me started on the heat!😡

[@roman11469]

@@spwinaustin About the heat…Pack some pedialyte powder next time you are in the heat like that to mix in with your water. I have the same problem finding non private places to hunt down there. For the most part I stick to gravel roads by the river.

[@jamesferry6717]

I hope to go out that way in late October to November whenever it cools off. I did a similar scouting trip about 2 years ago looking for some spots to rockhound. I'm pretty sure that I've been to exactly that spot on the Rio Grande!

[@jamesferry6717]

Oh and those are some fantastic finds!

[@spwinaustin]

That would definitely be a cooler time to go, that’s for sure!😁 There are a few spots along the river that can be legally and safely accessed but you never know if the good rocks will be found. I just got super lucky.

[@jamesferry6717]

I can't wait to see what you do to process them!

[@jimellis936]

Great finds Scott. I'm excited to see them cleaned up and cut. I was out at Alpine this spring and hope to get back out again when things are cooler. Can you suggest any places to stay in the area?

[@spwinaustin]

Hey Jim, thanks for watching! There are lots of choices out there and I would suggest one of the many Air B&B’s in the Terlingua area. I actually stayed pretty far away and had limited services which was a bit of a drag so make sure wherever you stay has the options you need.

[@katrinakilburn3316]

I’m wondering how you know where you can legally rock hunt. Do you have an app? We are going down to Terlingua in October and I’d like to find some spots.

[@spwinaustin]

Hi Katrina, thanks for watching! I got advice from the old timers in my local rock club who told me that it’s ok to hunt along county roads as long as you stay off of private property. They also said rivers are ok as long as you can get access. With that in mind I just drove around the county roads in Terlingua and looked for spots along the Rio Grande where I could safely get down to the river. Good luck, I hope you find some great rocks!

[@larryrickmann3326]

Dang dude, found you a sweet honey hole!

[@spwinaustin]

Thanks for watching Larry! I cannot wait to go back, hopefully when it’s a little cooler 😉.

[@Bigfoot903Outdoors]

That was dog tooth calcite

[@spwinaustin]

Cool, thanks for the feedback, and thank you for watching!

[@Bigfoot903Outdoors]

I hope ya kept it. It's a nice one. Lol