Dolomite Products Quarry
Penfield, New York
May 14, 2005
By Jay Loch
jay6380@yahoo.com

This was my first time going to a Dolomite Products Quarry in Penfield N.Y. Di and I loaded the van up Friday before the kids got out of school, then headed up with Chris and Kathryn. We arrived in Penfield around 10 pm and was asleep by 11 pm. And as will happen, our neighbors started making load noises and woke Di and I up around 12. Why, I don't know, but I just couldn't go back to sleep! Finally, at 5:30 am I managed to get to sleep, only to awaken at 6 to start the day.

We arrived at the Quarry around 6:30 am to see Dale and Barb Walker unloading the truck. I had previously been talking and emailing Dale about this trip, as he was the one who posted it here at McRocks. Al O was going to drive up with me but he had to cancel at the last minute.

The weather was great, overcast and mid 60's perfect weather for breaking rock! There was probably around 30 rockhounds that made this outing. We had a brief overview of safety with management and off we went!

We were restricted to the top level, but there was plenty of rock to go around. The main pile was on the right as we parked and that's were everybody collected for most of the day. I started off there also and found crystallized Dolomite pockets everywhere, but no Fluorite.

This Quarry is noted for its Fluorite, and most people search only for that mineral. Myself, being the first time there, was actually happy to find Dolomite! I stayed on the main pile, happily cracking dolomite out of the limestone when Di came over and wanted me to crack something out of a boulder. She said she found some Smoky Quartz! She had wondered over to the other side of the rubble pile were nobody was collecting, as it was not the Fluorite zone material. So I stopped and went to investigate. What she really found was some very nice crystallized brown Calcite!

Then she found a large pocket of Dolomite and Calcite for me to stay busy on!

There even ended up being some clear Fluorite on the right side, I didn't even notice that till I got it home!

While I was working on the above piece she came over and showed me some really great pieces of Selenite that she had just pulled out of a pocket. Below is a great matrix Selenite.

Below is a great Selenite piece that is 1.5 inches thick and " window pane " clear.

There is also some very nice Calcite and Dolomite crystal inclusions in it!

Here is another nice piece of Selenite that Di also brought over. It is a whole piece that is not cracked that had been lying on the ground that had just " popped out " ! It has a crystal covered matrix on the back side, but they cant be seen clearly because the surface is etched.

And heresy another whole Selenite.

While I was busy cracking rock, Dale and Barb drove over and started collecting there also.


Report continued . . . . . . .

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