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Trip to Suffern Agate Deposit in New York

This past November, Minerals.net sponsored a field trip for the North Jersey club to an Agate deposit in Suffern, New York. Jeff Wilson and Dave Shapiro, the field trip coordinators of the North Jersey club, had been working with me to arrange a trip to the site, and, finally, we were able to coordinate a date and time. I had to secure trespassing access from the land owner and neighbors. This was not an easy task, but we did get everything coordinated successfully.Only at the end, after a very successful collecting adventure, did we run into trouble with one of the neighbors as we were walking back to the staging area.


The Agate deposit is located in about 20 miles north of New York City, in a light suburban region with many forested areas. This deposit is wooded, and the earth was never excavated or disturbed. The mineralized zone is mostly restricted to a small basalt hill, with the Agate and Quartz found at the foot of the hill, along the slope, and along the top of the hill. The bedrock is loose with many fragmented rocks, and slight digging or overturning rocks will often lead to a quartz or agate zone within the basalt host.


I first discovered this deposit in 2009 while exploring the woods in the basalt zone and noticed an Agate lying among basalt fragments surrounding a tree. The deposit is quite unique in that it doesn't lie in an excavated quarry or dug area. The minerals are found directly in native bedrock and broken stones, especially around large trees which popped through the bedrock. One can pick any area on the hill, clear the leaves, and be likely to find an Agate or Chalcedony zone.


The host bedrock is a formation known as the Ladentown basalt. It is a small and isolated outcropping of basalt located in the northern part of Suffern, Wesley Hills, and Pomona, in Rockland County, New York. The Ladentown Basalt is actually a continuation of the Watchung Mountains of New Jersey, well-known for the famous traprock deposits such as those in Paterson and Prospect Park that have produced world-class Prehnite and zeolites. 


The primary mineral of importance at the deposit is Agate. The Agates are mostly white and gray, with nice banding zones, with occasional light blue and reddish-brown colors. Some of the Agates have an outer layer of crystalline Quartz, usually white but often also yellow. An occasional light color tint of light blue, light green, light pink, and amethystine have also been found. Recently some nice sparkly drusy Quartz plates have been extracted, with a layer of brown Jasper underneath. Translucent gray Chalcedony is also fairly prevalent, as well as botryoidal white Chalcedony. White rhombohedral Calcite is also found at the deposit, with some of the crystals dissolved leaving over empty crystal casts. Possible empty Anhydrite casts have also been found. 


Our scheduled trip visit was November 22. The weather was very seasonal for November, and conditions were dry, making for good collecting. At first, finds were very sporadic, but as everyone grouped together in different areas, some excellent Quartz and Agate specimens were found. Below are pictures from the dig. I hope to post photos of actual Agates that we found once I finish cleaning and photographing them. Click the pictures to see an enlarged pop-up.



Suffern NY Agate Trip North Jersey Club


Suffern NY Agate Trip North Jersey Club


Suffern NY Agate Trip North Jersey Club


Suffern NY Agate Trip North Jersey Club


Suffern NY Agate Trip North Jersey Club


Suffern NY Agate Trip North Jersey Club


Suffern NY Agate Trip North Jersey Club


Suffern NY Agate Trip North Jersey Club


Suffern NY Agate Trip North Jersey Club


Suffern NY Agate Trip North Jersey Club


Suffern NY Agate Trip North Jersey Club

New Photos Added to Mineral Pages

After posting the pictures of all those minerals from the Smithsonian on our news blog, we decided to add some of those pictures (as well as some additional ones from the museum) to our mineral and gemstone detail pages. The new photos are of specimens on public exhibit in the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. All the new photos added an additional level of enhancement to the existing photos that were, whether by quality, habit, or a new locality. This list links to all the minerals that have the new photos:


Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History: Part 7 - Phosphates, Molybdates, & Silicates

This final posting of items the Smithsonian gem and mineral collection features phosphates, molybdates, and silicates in the collection.


Click the pictures below for a larger version pop-up.

Two Fluorapatite Crystals with Quartz from Panasqueira, Portugal Two Fluorapatite Crystals with Quartz from Panasqueira, Portugal


Wulfenite with Mimetite from Mapimi, Durango, Mexico Wulfenite with Mimetite from Mapimi, Durango, Mexico


Sparkling Wulfenite Crystal Cluster from Tsumeb, Namibia Sparkling Wulfenite Crystal Cluster from Tsumeb, Namibia


Giant Apatite Crystals with Calcite from Otter Lake, Quebec, Canada Giant Apatite Crystals with Calcite from Otter Lake, Quebec, Canada


Turquoise Vein from Los Cerillos, New Mexico Turquoise Vein from Los Cerillos, New Mexico


Crystallized Turquoise from Lynch Station, Virginia Crystallized Turquoise from Lynch Station, Virginia


Inesite with Apophyllite from Broken Hill, NSW, Australia Inesite with Apophyllite from Broken Hill, NSW, Australia


Pink Zoisite Spray from Spruce Pine, North Carolina Pink Zoisite Spray from Spruce Pine, North Carolina


Chondrodite with Chlorite from the Tilly Foster Mine, Brewster, New York Chondrodite with Chlorite from the Tilly Foster Mine, Brewster, New York


Meionite with Diopside from La Pachita Mine, Ayoquezezco, Oxaca, Mexico Meionite with Diopside from La Pachita Mine, Ayoquezezco, Oxaca, Mexico


Rhodonite with Calcite & Franklinite from Franklin, New Jersey Rhodonite with Calcite and Franklinite from Franklin, New Jersey


Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History: Part 6 - Carbonates

Continuing our picture gallery of minerals and gemstones in the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History collection, this post features some exceptional carbonate minerals on display in the museum.

Click the pictures below for a larger version pop-up.

Large Calcite Crystal on Calcite from Shullsberg, Wisconsin Large Calcite Crystal on Calcite from Shullsberg, Wisconsin


Calcite with Duftite Inclusions, Resulting in Green Color, From Tsumeb, Namibia Calcite with Duftite Inclusions, Resulting in Green Color, From Tsumeb, Namibia


Pink Manganoan Calcite from the Idarado Mine, Ouray, Colorado, Namibia Manganoan Calcite from the Idarado Mine, Ouray, Colorado, Namibia


Brown Calcite with Goethite Inclusions from Santa Eulalia, Chihuahhua, Mexico Brown Calcite with Goethite Inclusions from Santa Eulalia, Chihuahua, Mexico


Large Calcite Scalenohedron from Joplin, Missouri Large Calcite Scalenohedron from Joplin, Missouri


Deep Red Rhodochrosite from N'Chwaning Mine, Hotazel, South Africa Deep Red Rhodochrosite from N'Chwaning Mine, Hotazel, South Africa


Large Concentric Rhodochrosite Slab from Catamarca, Argentina Large Concentric Rhodochrosite Slab from Catamarca, Argentina


Huge botryoidal Malachite Blob from Shaba, D.R. Congo Huge botryoidal Malachite Blob from Shaba, D.R. Congo


Smithsonite Stalagmites from Tsumeb, Namibia Smithsonite Stalagmites from Tsumeb, Namibia


Nest-Shaped Malachite Formation from the Copper Queen Mine, Bisbee, Arizona Nest-Shaped Malachite Formation from the Copper Queen Mine, Bisbee, Arizona


Prismatic Azurite Crystal from the Copper Queen Mine, Bisbee, Arizona Prismatic Azurite Crystal from the Copper Queen Mine, Bisbee, Arizona


Giant Calcite Crystal Cluster from the Woodchuck Mine, Cardin, Oklahoma Giant Calcite Crystal Cluster from the Woodchuck Mine, Cardin, Oklahoma