Rockhounding in the Royal Gorge Region
With its diverse landscapes and varied geologic history, Colorado is an incredible place for amateur and professional rockhounding.
Whether or not you come away with a good find, hunting for geological treasures is a great way to get outside and take in some beautiful scenery.
The Royal Gorge Region is famous for its geological wonders and a fantastic place to start—or continue—your rockhounding journey.
Please note, the collection of any naturally occurring resource is illegal on State Trust Land.
The following are some of the region’s best places to find your next treasure.
Border Feldspar Mine
This is a commercial feldspar quarry near the Royal Gorge.
Minerals: orange and pink feldspar and muscovite in clean mica books in association with feldspar black tourmaline
Please Note: This location’s collecting and accessibility status is currently unknown, so please as permission before digging or collecting.
Coaldale Area
Minerals: Amethyst
Please Note: This location’s collecting and accessibility status is currently unknown, so please as permission before digging or collecting.
Curio Hill
Curio Hill, south of Cañon City on CR 143, has been heavily collected for its beautiful agate and is open to collecting.
Minerals: Banded blue or multicolored agate occurring in veins within limestone quartz in clear crystals an inch or so long
Felch Creek area
Felch Creek area is made of bluffs and gullies east of Fourmile Creek and CT 9. It contains agate, geodes, and jasper.
Minerals: Geodes usually containing small crystals of clear quartz or whole calcite and agate
Please Note: Private property must be crossed to get to BLM land
Fourmile Creek area
This area is one of the few localities known with true botryoidal fluorite specimens.
Minerals: Fluorite with purplish botryoidal crystals.
Please Note: This location’s collecting and accessibility status is currently unknown, so please as permission before digging or collecting
Penrose area
Two miles south of Penrose, you will find several gullies that contain seams of calcite in limestone. The limestone falls apart easily, so it is easy to dig in. Watch out for snakes. This area is open to collecting.
Minerals: White, clear, yellow or orange calcite crystals occurring within calcite veins in weathered limestone, and goethite after pyrite.
Royal Gorge area
Many pegmatites, most of them commercially quarried, occur 8 miles west of Cañon City near the Royal Gorge.
Minerals: Very large greenish beryl crystals were mined from two quarries in this area. Pink, lilac and green elbaite tourmaline crystals were found in this area by early miners. There is possibly some orange and pink feldspar, and muscovite. In fact, huge books of mica were found by early miners. Some of them were as large as eight feet. Other notable minerals include columbite-tantalite and quartz.
Please Note: Most pegmatites are privately owned
Texas Creek area
In the rugged hills north of Texas Creek are some pegmatites that contain good rose quartz. Texas Creek is on US highway 50 between Salida and the Royal Gorge
Minerals: Orange and pink feldspar, rose and clear quartz, biotite, and tourmaline
Please Note: This location’s collecting and accessibility status is currently unknown, so please as permission before digging or collecting
Garden Park area
Garden Park area, approximately nine miles north of Cañon City is famous for its paleontological discoveries. That being said, while you hunt for rocks, dinosaur bones are not to be collected.
Minerals: Pink or orange marble and agate, jasper, and selenite.
Have more questions about the geology of the Royal Gorge Region? Visit the Cañon City Geology Club’s website or the Gold Mine Rock Shop.
Know before you go. Pack it in AND pack it out. Care for Colorado and Leave No Trace!