Do you have or are you yourself a budding geologist, a rock-hound, or a collector of pet rocks? Then the following post is definitely for you.
The main focus of this post is the hunting of rocks, minerals, and fossils in or along roadways. It however also has general Rock-hounding information and tips and tricks.
Stay Safe Out There
- First rule to stopping on the side of the road (for any reason): Only stop where you don’t obstruct traffic or you may cause an accident. Pull off the road as far as possible.
- Second rule; stopping is at your own risk, be responsible, those risks extend beyond traffic. In Texas where I live cactus is common and if you don’t know why a cactus might be dangerous it is plant that wants to stab you. There’s also possibly broken glass, stitches aren’t fun, you don’t want them. Rarely, you may encounter snakes. Most snakes won’t live along roads because of the noise of traffic. They are in fact fact fairly shy creatures. Most snakes in the US aren’t poisonous. Of the over 150 species of snakes in the US only Rattlesnakes, copperheads, cottonmouths, and coral snakes are venomous enough to be a threat to people.
- Third rule; Try not to do illegal stuff. There are laws that cover what you can collect, how you collect what you can, and how much you can collect. I’ll go over laws in more detail in the next segment but basically you can collect any rocks, minerals, or fossils that aren’t part of the road itself inside of the public right of way, which is generally indicated by fences. This affects your safety and others safety as some people may become hostile to trespassers and poor collection habits could affect road safety.
I am Legally Obligated to Make a Joke Here.
Law is boring for most people, myself included, so I’ll try to keep it short and easy to understand. It does vary from state to state but this is as close to all inclusive to US law as I can get. Laws concerning rock hunting can be broken up into 3 basic groups. So I will do it that way.
- Where you can collect: In Texas it is almost any public land that isn’t designated as a state or national park. This means you can collect in national forest land that is used as wildlife management areas, most roadways, some county lands, fossil parks, etc. It is actually easier to name where you can’t collect… Private land is a no go without the owner of the mineral rights approval (which through some crooked act of Texas law isn’t necessarily the owner of the property). Meaning you might need the permission of 2 people too collect on private land. You can’t collect along interstates or any roadway with official signs stating “no stopping here any time”.
- How much you can collect: In regards to public lands, as much as you can cary, but only for personal use. Meaning no excavation as that leads to erosion, and no collecting to resell. The fossil parks (of which there are 3 in Texas I know of) may have other quantity rules.
- What you can collect: On public lands it is any rock or mineral. Fossils have some extra rules. With the exception of Landonia Fossil park you can collect any non-vertabrate fossils. Meaning the state wants their dino bones. At Landonia fossil park this is kinda waived. You can keep anything you find. Most wont be in situ (where it was in the ground) it will be ‘transport’, a object moved, in this case, along the river bed. This limits the scientific data that can be learned from the fossil severely.
Don’t be a Fool, Keep Ahold of Your Tool
There are many tools serious collectors (crazy rock people) use. But if you’re not crazy yet, a simple hammer and a cheap chisel can do the job . A five gallon bucket is a good container for large rocks. For medium sized specimens use any plastic food container and pill bottles are good for really small ones. There are identification (field) guides you can buy… or websites and social media groups for free that can help identify things. There’s also some apps but in my experience they’re very inaccurate.
Final Tips
- In the state of Texas picking wildflowers and plants from roadsides is illegal.
- Most of what you find in Texas will be limestone and it’s varieties. Or fossils there-in. However in several areas there are notable exceptions. To get an idea of what is found in your area do a google search for “rocks and minerals found in %county, %state” where you put in your county and state in place of %county and %state.
- Bring water. It has many uses beyond just drinking.
- If some crazy bumpkin tells you you’re on his land when you’re in the road right of way just back off. No rock is worth a confrontation. Never had this happen in 40 years of collecting but I have heard it happens. If it is a really big deal return with the sheriff.
