gypsy souls: places we've been.....

Day 3
Terrace Bay-Dryden, still in Ontario.........

We pulled out of Terrace Bay in record time in the morning, ready for the open road, hot java and my morning fling with CBC radio 1. Driving along side Superior wondering why I haven't taken this drive sooner. In turn this leads me and my psyche to check in with my conscious and make the realization that this is a one way destination. There is no returning to, returning from, just a one way passage.......

Enjoying the vast array of landscape of my Native Land we have decided to take it easy today, enjoy what we see, take a little time to stop and explore. Our main event for today is Panorama Amethyst Quarry just east of t-bay. Caleb being stoked to "get diggin" and spend sometime out of doors. We made the turn off Trans-Canada 1. The beaten path was beaten for sure......It could be considered the LONG beaten path up a couple very steep hills that was not only travelled by the Van but the Uhaul as well. The road signs, homemade by I assume the company owner directing our way right to them, left me with the feeling of Burt Reynolds in Deliverance and that at any point someone would jump out with a banjo demanding I squeal like a pig. But to my delight when we arrived there was people to be seen and RVs parked......phew

For 6 bucks to enter you get a 5 min guided tour of the Quarry, buckets and diggers. What ever you find you can keep at the cost of 3$ per pound, which is a good handful of gems.

There is different types of Amethyst all hosted by Granite Stone. It starts off a quartz in the cracks of the Granite....as time goes by and different minerals change the quartz into amethyst....mostly by the addition of Iron in different amounts. The most rare is actually black in color. Enjoy the pictures!

The Quarry

You start digging with the Iron rod they provide and then spray water on the dig spot to wash away the mud and dirt and peel up rocks. Some are granite and some are quartz and some are amethyst.

Yes! True this piece is being sold for $600. Customers will come to pick stone for mantels, yard deco they have such an array of stone for sale. All owned and operated by one family.

Once you have picked your pieces, you get to wash and weigh your gems and purchase if you so wish. Caleb, Jeff and Sephora, picked a piece each for themselves. Me...well mine came polishes and set in silver and ready to wear around my wrist.....lol

A fantastic time, well worth the drive ONTO the beaten path! And the bright side is that I get to practise gearing down for when we get into the mountains :)