A free rockhounding map, made by someone who actually digs.
Over 400 locations, manually researched and checked against a land map, with nearly 80,000 miles driven to explore them so far.
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Recent Trips
Sheffield Mine
North Carolina
Tucked away in Western North Carolina, the Sheffield Mine produces large ruby and sapphires that are routinely found by visitors. They have a nice cabin and even treehouses on the site.
Cherokee Ruby Mine
North Carolina
If you want an authentic North Carolina gemstone digging experience with no sugar-coating, the Cherokee Mine is your stop. The more dirt you dig, the higher your chances of finding ruby.
Round Mountain
Arizona
This is a site I’ve visited 3 times. Round Mountain rewards those that hike long distances and get down close to the ground to look for incredible chalcedony and fire agates.
How is this different than other maps or blogs?
It really sucks to drive out to the middle of nowhere in the desert to find that private property sign. Or to find out that it absolutely dumps snow in Oregon when you planned a stop to hunt for obsidian.
This map is built from over 80,000 miles of experiences, frustrations, and unforgettable solo adventures.
This is a list of locations I put together to plan my own digging trips, starting around 2021. Most of these are well known across the internet and old books. I built this map to put them all in one place that’s simple to use on any device. As I visit them, locations get a summary page with a photo album.
Thanks for checking out the project. I hope it helps make planning your next trip a little easier!
-Griffin
(some evidence of my early trip planning skills…)
Griffin Cole - Author