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Old 08-11-2014, 04:56 PM   #1
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Tourmaline gem hunt

My 8 year old son and I had a great time finding sunstones this Summer, so I thought we'd hit a SoCal mine location and look for tourmaline.

If anyone is interested in joining us, the plan is to hit Himalaya Mine near Palomar Mountain for two days in late October. I've already made reservations at Palomar Mountain State Park.

Himalaya Mine
http://www.highdesertgemsandminerals.co ... e_dig.html

Palomar Mountain State Park
http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=637

I'd prefer not to post the exact dates here in a public forum, but if interested, I can PM you the dates my son and I will be there. We will be at the mine late October, for two weekdays, during my son's school Fall break. We will be camping at the State Park for three nights.


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Old 08-11-2014, 06:52 PM   #2
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Re: Tourmaline gem hunt

Did it at Ocean view mine, was the fastest four hours digging in the dirt. So much fun.
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Old 08-11-2014, 08:12 PM   #3
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Re: Tourmaline gem hunt

Quote:
Originally Posted by pinz712
Did it at Ocean view mine, was the fastest four hours digging in the dirt. So much fun.
Did you come away with some nice material?


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Old 08-12-2014, 06:49 PM   #4
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Re: Tourmaline gem hunt

Sent a a few to be cut, set them in a pendent and a ring. Really good if you wire wrap. you can get lucky, last time a kid found a piece of pariba tourmaline and the boss guy offered 5,000 for it. You never know.
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Old 08-12-2014, 07:14 PM   #5
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Re: Tourmaline gem hunt

Pariba tourmaline. Is that the Windex colored tourmaline?

A $5000 offer? Makes me wonder if that was a fair wholesale offer or not.


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Old 09-02-2014, 01:27 PM   #6
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Re: Tourmaline gem hunt - Palomar Mt area

If hitting the Palomar Mountain State Park from Temecula, is it better to take the northernly route around the Palomar Mountain range and double-back (Highway 79 past Henshaw Lake, then northwest on Highway 76 to the Palomar Mount road), or better to take the slightly more direct Highway 76 (maybe more curvy?) to the southeast, and then onto the Palomar Mountain road?


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Old 09-11-2014, 09:50 AM   #7
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Re: Tourmaline gem hunt

Do you have someone with you who hurls easy? The road from the south is not horrid. My wife is prone to puking and it got her feeling queezy but no launch. I do recommend leaving by the Eastern route simply for the views. My daughter and I watched a trail drive from the valley overlook. Beautiful views of the lake and beyond. We stayed at the obervatory campground where it's lit for star gazing. Even the restrooms have red lights.
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Old 09-11-2014, 10:01 AM   #8
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Re: Tourmaline gem hunt

Thanks Stan. Thankfully, no one who easily gets motion sick. I'm not sure I want to press my luck though, not to mention I'll be towing, so extra twisty curves can make for a long haul up the hill.


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Old 09-11-2014, 03:36 PM   #9
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Re: Tourmaline gem hunt

Towing. I think the route from the north and Eastern ascent is best.
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Old 10-28-2014, 07:50 PM   #10
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Re: Tourmaline gem hunt

Had a great time, though maybe not as productive as we would have liked, so we only "dug" the one day. Here is the best of the pink tourmaline that we found, and the colors pop even more than is shown in the picture. We found a fair amount of smaller pieces, a fairly nice green piece with a black core, some lithium-based gemstone that I can't remember the name of, and plenty of quartz.




Had a really nice shady spot at Palomar Mountain State Park, but maybe too shady. The only way I was getting any solar power on my panel was to move it every 20 minutes or so. I should have brought some gasoline to run my generator.


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