Hauser Geode Beds

 

 

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Hauser Beds geodes are most often found by digging down beneath the dark colored, desert varnished surface into the volcanic ash that generally covers them. The ash varies in color from cream, through light gray, to pale green. Much of it is relatively soft, but in some areas it has so compacted that it has become semi-vitreous and quite hard.
     Those who travel to the Hauser Beds today are often told to dig where they see that others before them have been digging. It is not bad advice, but it often means that about all that will be dug up will be someone else’s leavings, often small nodules an inch or so in diameter that settled to the bottom of a pile. It frequently is best to begin digging at an undisturbed surface near a hole that has been dug by another rockhound. Then, if lucky, one can sometimes unearth layer after layer, starting with large geodes and continuing with progressively smaller ones as one digs deeper.
     The area around the Hauser Geode Beds is rich in other desirable stones including jasper, pastelite, rhyolite, and various types of agate. Some of it is found as float on nearby stretches of desert pavement; some requires a small amount of digging. I found a four-pound chunk of really fine carnelian right in plain sight on the surface late in 1999. Some of the rhyolite at the southern end of the geode beds is full of small, crystal-lined cavities. It is colorful and slabs and polishes beautifully.

The best time to go digging for geodes is from late October to early April. High temperatures during the summer commonly reach 115 to120 degrees, and there is almost no available shade.

Many of those who visit the area find so much to interest them that they stay several days. Should you decide to do that, you might consider camping at the Coon Hollow or Wiley's Well campgrounds in the Mule Mountains Long Term Visitor Area (LTVA). Both campgrounds offer pit toilets, picnic tables, water for uses other than drinking, and perhaps best of all, some shade. The fee for short-term camping during the regular LTVA camping season, from September 15 to April 15, is $20.00 for a week or any portion thereof. Moreover, the camp hosts often can tell you where the best stones are currently being found. You may also camp in the rockhound area near the geode beds. Just stay on public land within 300 feet of an existing road. There are a number of very nice, level, shaded campsites available on the banks of different washes on the way to the Hauser Beds. The last several are at Middle Camp, 4.5 miles west of Milpitas Wash Road. From Middle Camp onward, while reasonably level possible camp sites abound, finding one with any significant amount of shade can be difficult. Those who prefer more comfort will find motels available in Blythe, approximately 40 miles northeast.
     To reach the Hauser Geode Beds from Interstate Highway 10, turn south onto Wiley’s Well Road, the exit for which is approximately fifteen miles west of Blythe, California. About three miles south of the divided highway, the paved road turns sharply right toward two state prisons, but you will want to continue southward on the graded dirt road. Some 13.5 miles south of the freeway you will reach the Riverside-Imperial County line. Your GPS coordinates should read N 33°25'48" by W 114°54'11".
     Wiley’s Well Road becomes Milpitas Wash Road in Imperial County, though there may not be a sign to indicate the name change. On the other hand, you should see a sign indicating that the Hauser Beds are to the west. It was erected in early 2000 by the California Federation of Mineralogical Societies.
     Follow the directions offered by the sign and, immediately south of the county line, turn right onto the track that angles southwest across the desert pavement. This will lead you slightly more than a half mile to what is generally known as the Black Hills Road at N 33°25'26" by W 14°54'37". Bear right, and continue on the most traveled road past a metal sign post marked “Ashley Flats.” From this sign post, until you reach the road to the Potato Patch about 2.5 miles ahead, you will be traveling over the old, alternate Palo Verde-Glamis wagon road used by George Hauser when the regular road had washed out.
     Continue driving in a generally westerly direction to a second metal sign post at a wye in the road. Your GPS coordinates should be close to N 33°24'49" by W 114°58'09". Located about 4.5 miles from Milpitas Wash Road (or Wiley’s Well Road), this is Middle Camp. Take the left fork of the wye and cross the gravel bed of the Black Hills Wash. In one mile you will reach another junction at N 33°24'07" by W 114°58'41". This one is unmarked. The road straight ahead goes to the geode and nodule beds known as The Potato Patch. Black agate and geodes containing black calcite crystals may also be found along branches of this road.

To continue toward the Hauser Geode Beds, though, turn right and cross a little wash. In approximately three-fourths of a mile, at N 33°23'43" by W 114°59'16", the road ends at another that crosses at right angles at a point called Nodule Junction. Turn right. From this point onward, for the next 2.5 miles, several roads will lead off to the right of the most traveled road. They all go toward different areas of the geode beds.
     Disregard the first one, though. It will be only two-tenths of a mile ahead, at N 33°23'42" by W 114°59'25". While it used to be the main road leading to the north end of the Hauser Geode Beds, it goes through private property, the owner of which closed it to public access late last year (2000). Maybe he got tired of the dust raised by passing vehicles, or, in this day of lawsuit-prone individuals, he may be concerned about possible liability should something go awry, or he may simply prefer total privacy. Some rockhounds who have passed through the entrance to his property have been escorted off with a stern lecture about property rights. The Bureau of Land Management is aware of the situation and expects to act should the property owner do anything illegal. Thus far, though, he has only exercised his own rights. We should respect them.
     Those who wish to do so may still visit the northern part of the Hauser Beds by turning west onto the next road, at N 33°23'24" by W 114°59'24", about seven-tenths of a mile ahead. While it goes to the central part of the geode beds, a foot trail leads northward from a small parking area at the edge of a steep-sided wash. Moreover, about halfway between the junction and the parking area, a small cairn marks the beginning of a rough, jeep road to the north end. Just respect private property rights by staying south of any fence lines or survey stakes that you may come across in the region.
     From Nodule Junction, the most traveled road continues some 2.5 miles to the south end of the Hauser Beds, at N 33°22'34" by W 114°59'23". This is where, while he and his two friends set up camp, Joel Hauser noticed thundereggs galore in the volcanic ash lining a wash. Unless you have a high-clearance, four-wheel-drive vehicle, you probably should park on the desert pavement on the east side of that wash.
     Once you have started digging for geodes, you likely will want to be careful not to break any. Most Hauser Beds thundereggs are extremely hard and can be handled quite roughly without causing them any harm. A very small percentage, though, contain large hollows, often enclosed within thin, brittle shells that are fairly easily damaged. Until you are certain of what you have found, it is best to play it safe. On the other hand, if you happen to break one just as you are pulling it free, do not despair. Keep on digging. You probably will unearth more shortly. You may even find one of the rare variety that is filled with amethyst crystals.