North Grand Junction Barite
Colorado
Find: Calcite, barite
GPS:
Spot 1:
39.21043, -108.55827
Spot 2:
39.21121, -108.56092
Nearest city: Grand Junction, CO
Recommended Vehicle: High clearance will help, there are large washouts in the road but any car may make it.
Season: Accessible year round, mid-Summer may be too hot. No shade.
Summary:
The area surrounding Grand Junction, Colorado has multiple well-known areas to dig for calcite. This one is further off the beaten path to the North of the city. It’s more of an adventure to access than the other location I have listed near HWY 50. Initially, I came out here looking for barite crystals but ended up finding far better specimens of calcite with some pretty decent clarity and some rainbows within a few of the nicer pieces. That isn’t to say there isn’t some awesome barite out here.
It’s easy digging but there is absolutely zero shade. Be selective about when you choose to visit, as I would imagine it is difficult to dig out here in Summer.
I listed a couple different spots I tried digging in while I was out here. They’re right by each other. Bring plenty of water and a vehicle with decent clearance. 4x4 is a great advantage if it’s rained recently as well. There are some washouts along the road but it was decent when I visited in early 2025.
3 Helpful Tools
Gad Bar
A gad bar is my favorite all-around tool for both prying and breaking rock.
3lb Hammer
Pair the gad bar with a 3lb hammer for the perfect lightweight combo to walk around with and
Water Bladder
A water bladder is helpful in a place like this where you’ll be walking a lot to find a dig spot. There is no shade at all here.
The weathered rock here looks almost like gravel piles in a quarry from a distance as you drive in.
The locals you may meet in the area.
Here is an example of the holes you'll see dug all throughout this area. There are hundreds of them.
If you walk up to one, you'll see white or yellow calcite all over the place like this.
Another example of pieces found laying on the surface.
If you're curious if you've found barite or calcite, calcite has a perfect rhombohedral cleavage. So it'll break into clean, non-90 degree blocks like this. It also will be much less dense than barite.
Here's an example of one of the more drastic pieces I found out there.
An example of calcite with a nice rainbow inside. You'll want something soft and fluffy to wrap pieces like this if you want to get them home safely. Calcite doesn't tend to hold up well if it's jostled around.