Rockhounds return
The annual River Valley Rockhounds Gem, Mineral, Jewelry and Fossil Show is just around the bend at the next fossil bed
For fans of fun with fossils, glee with gems, madness about minerals, and joy about jewelry, the annual River Valley Rockhounds Gem, Mineral, Jewelry and Fossil Show is just around the bend at the next fossil bed.
The show is scheduled for March 30 and 31 at the Webster County Fairgrounds.
Hours are Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Robert Wolf, president of the River Valley Rockhounds, said that one of the highlights of this year’s show is a display by club member Steve Mayberry.
“Mayberry will be displaying four poster boards with detailed explanations of four types of rocks and agates with actual samples of each,” Wolf said.
Those include Turritella agate, Dugway geodes, Blue Forest petrified wood and Australian Tiger Iron.
“It should display well and be a nice feature of the show,” Wolf said.
Mayberry has a long-time interest in rocks, fossils and minerals.
“Growing up in fossil-rich eastern Iowa only a few miles from the Maquoketa Caves,” Mayberry said, “I would go on hiking adventures with no rock unturned.”
He’s happy to be sharing his specimens and knowledge with the club members and the public.
“The club rock show is an ideal venue to share my treasures and pass on materials to other rockhounds,” Mayberry said.
Club member Gavin Simmons is preparing a display for the show too; his will feature minerals and rocks that glow when exposed to ultraviolet light.
Wolf will also have a display at the show.
“I will have a display of Las Vegas fossils, which I found several years ago but have never displayed,” Wolf said. “They were Trilobites and were some of the most advanced animals of their day. These specimens are 520 million years old and lived at the end of the Cambrian Explosion, a period when many of the life forms we are familiar with today appeared for the first time.”
The ancient creatures are no longer with us.
“Trilobites became extinct about 230 million years ago,” he said.
Wolf found them at a site called Frenchman Mountain outside of Las Vegas. He said the mountain exposes the same layer of rock that is seen at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.
Admission to the show is $1 for adults, free for children under 12.
In addition to the displays, there will also be multiple vendors, door prizes and a few surprise attractions. The traditional free rock specimens for children is also back this year.
The River Valley Rockhounds was formed in 1962.
The Webster County Fairgrounds is located at 22770 Old U.S. Highway 169.
For more information call 570-5183