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Non-silicate geode
A favorite spot that is both beautiful and productive in terms of rocks is Succor Creek, Oregon. It is between Adrian and Jordan Valley and on a pretty decent dirt road between these two areas. The actual creek runs through state park campground that has a vault toilet and multiple campsites. It is a lovely setting at the base of rhyolite floes above that have eroded into spikes and sharp escarpments. There are lots of raptors that make their nests in the vugs of these rocks and snakes, bunnies, lizards, and rodents that abound down below in the rock talus slopes. There are many sources to find directions to sites within this area.
This area consists of a number of different layers of rhyolite and basalt that, when it was liquid, developed gas pockets in the rock. The gas pockets gelled and vugs and cavities formed. These filled with different sorts of silicas and some calcites to form thunder eggs and some geodes. The area has been really explored and the surface finds are almost all gone. Some suggest searching the creek beds, but I never had any success finding "float" there or much anywhere else. My friend, Bob, found a very large egg while cruising the slopes and thought he had a find. I cut it for him and it was a dud. So, for the most part, Succor Creek is an area where you bring a shovel and pick.
The best way to look for eggs in the area is to check areas under the sharp walls of the canyon. If the canyon wall has lots of pock marks from vugs (holes or gaps in the rock) and the talus (the layer of rocks that fall on a sloping path from the rocky ledge) has signs of pieces of thunder eggs, you can start digging test holes in the rock slides or at the base of the wall. In one area we found a slot that was rich with eggs that were covered by a layer of dirt that was easy to dig. The eggs were greenish silicates, some had calcite, some mud, and others were crystalline geodes.
Green Agate
Egg within an egg
Some are gigantic!
Here is the approximate spot of the green eggs. Park on the road and trek up to the base of the rock walls. Look for fragments of eggs and where other may have been digging. You will likely find lots of mud-filled eggs so be sure to crack a few before hauling them home!
The thunder egg zones can be incredibly productive. This one spot yielded dozens of buckets of blue eggs,
If you trek out of the Succor Creek Valley and travel the roads west that trace the rim of the mountains, you will find other areas that are rich in thunder eggs. There's one area that has the amazing blue opal eggs that are really quite spectacular. Some spots are under claim, so be sure to watch out for white markers and posted claim information.
Blue Opal fades if left in the sun.
The variety of eggs in the entire area can vary from blue, white, brown, or clear.
Layering of the silicate sediments show progressive filling of the vug.
Once you leave the campground and find the road to the right that leads to the ridge there are beautiful valleys and vistas that can serve as a campground for your adventure.
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