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Show rea Offers Unlimited Rockhounding Activities (Editors note: This article was written by Ncdra Johnson, a lapidarist and avid rock collector living at Bear Valley Junction, 10 miles from Panguitch. nocKsoFcoLon COUNTRY Panguitch and the area around it abound with some of natures most wonderous treasures, the rock of this colorful country are found to contain a rainbow of hues and color. Ranging from the sandstones and country rock to the multi-colored agatized and opalized wood, nodules of agate, calcite, jaspers and jaspagate. They are widely dispersed throughout the area. While staying in Panguitch you may like to visit some of the more popular areas. Eight miles north of Panguitch on hwy 89 is Sanford Creek Road, follow the road in to just past the sand and gravel pits. There you will find beautiful red, yellow and green banded agate nodules in the creek bed. From Panguitch take the Panguitch Lake road to just past the South end of the lake, blue and red agate can be found West from the hwy, in the area called The Meadows. The city dump area offers blue and red plum agate. Four and a half miles South along 89 turn off at the Casto Canyon sign for about three miles. Along the road side and up on the hillsides one can find blue and the red plum agate. For petrified wood one can take hwy 12 south of Panguitch to Cannon ville. Turn at the road leading to Kodachrome Valley and follow the signs to Gosvenors Arch The wood Is found north of the arch. If you follow the road you come in on another one half mile you will find fossils on the hillsides. Still on U-12 a mile west of the Escalante Post Office Is a small parking area with trees right of the highway, park here and follow the trail to the point you pass under the power lines on top of the hill. Here can be found beautiful red, yellow, brown and black petrified wood. - East beyond Escalante on U-12 drive 10 miles to the sign directing you to Spencer lakes Follow this road for five miles and as you pass a big rock on your right you will see what appears to be a large paved parking lot, to the left. You will be in the middle of the Moqui Marble and ballfield. They are volcanic bombs from an extinct volcano. The spheres are filled with red iron sand and also imbedded in red sandstone. Approximately sixteen and a half miles north east from the Spencer Flat sign back on hwy 12 is a location where red and yellow jasper can be found on both sides of the road, turn off just before you reach Boulder. This is also an area that the Indians used for making points and the abundance of flakes will testify. Sepitarian nodules can be found about six and a half miles East of Alton on a forest service road. Fossil shells are also found in this area. The turn off to Alton is three miles south of Highway 14 on U.S. 89. Many other locations too numerous to list can be found in the area of Panguitch. |