Elko, Nevada Rockhounding | Find Geodes, Fossils & More

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Skip to content Rockhounding@noblestudios2024-02-12T10:55:14-08:00 Elko, Nevada Rockhounding

It was the gleam of gold and the sheen of silver that first drew settlers to Elko. In fact, the Ruby Mountains are named after the garnets found high up in craggy cliffs and bluffs of the mountains surrounding Elko. So, it’s little wonder that visitors from all over the world visit Nevada in search of rocks and minerals, which are found in abundance around here.

Rockhounding enthusiasts come to Elko to explore metamorphic veins and abandoned mines holding undiscovered treasures such as agate, jasper, copper, malachite, geodes, petrified wood and more. Find the best places to hunt for rocks, minerals and precious metals in Elko here.

Nevada Rockhounding Map

So, where are the best places for Elko, Nevada rockhounding? Look no further. Check out this detailed map or view the listings below to get started.

Hubbard Basin (Petrified Wood)

Travel 37 miles north of Wells, Nevada on Highway 93. Turn west; travel northwest on dirt roads, past Antelope Springs. Petrified wood site is about 13 miles from the pavement.

Texas Spring Canyon (Petrified Wood)

25 miles north of Wells, Nevada on Highway 93. Turn east at Wilkins. Petrified wood is found in multicolored hills north of Texas Springs Canyon. Private land at Texas Springs.

Goose Creek (Petrified Wood)

A remote site about 40 miles east of Jackpot in section 6, T.46E., R.69E. Multiple minerals and rocks are found here, but petrified wood is the real find.

Black Shale Pit

On the east side of the road, four miles north of Elko on Highway 225. Crinoids, brachiopods, corals, ammonites are found in brown limestone above shale.

Carlin Canyon (Angular Unconformity)

Not a collecting locality, but “famous” because of John McPhee’s book Basin & Range. Four miles east of Carlin and northwest of Carlin Tunnel.

Merrimac District

Known for copper, lead, zinc, magnetite, tungsten. 21 miles north of Elko on Highway 225. Old mines ring Lone Mtn; some private, some with active claims.

Ferdelford Canyon

Find crinoids, brachiopods, corals. 13 miles south of Carlin on Highway 278. Fossils are in round orange hills on the north side of the road.

South of Jarbidge

Agate, jasper, chalcedony in a broad area 32 miles north of Deeth.

Bullion Road

Discover gray to carnelian colored chalcedony and agate. Follow Bullion Rd west five miles then south two miles, look for junipers to the east.

J. Larrabee Mining District

Barite & calcite. 27 miles south of Carlin on Highway 278. The pit is seven miles off highway to the east, in section 5, T.28N., R. 53E.

Copper Mountain (Lucin District)

Malachite, azurite, chrysocolla, galena. 25 miles north of Oasis, in hills east of Montello.

L. Delcer Buttes (Delker Mining District)

Malachite, azurite, chrysocolla, galena. 45 miles south of Wells in hills to the west.

Geodes in Nevada

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One of the most sought-after prizes for rockhounding enthusiasts is the geode. With the appearance of an ordinary rock on the exterior, the geode often contains crystals once cracked open. See where you can find geodes around Nevada here.

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700 Moren Way Elko, NV 89801

(775) 738-4091 Email Us

Contact Us

700 Moren Way Elko, NV 89801

(775) 738-4091 Email Us

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