Rockhounding is difficult due to legal and landowner issues. See this link for information on collecting ammonite shell, fossils and petrified wood in Alberta.
2023 Trips
May 28,
Sunday: day trip to Drumheller lead by Jeff W for club members. To register email Dave G through
Contact Us (Field Trips) before the 26 May, and he will provide you with the necessary details. Also email him if you can provide a ride to 1-3 members who would like to ‘ride share’.
June 18, Sunday: day trip to the Lethbridge area looking for ammonite lead by Mark Turner from Lethbridge. (this trip and the details not yet confirmed …more info later)
August 4-7, August long weekend: to Cranbrook lead by Guy Santucci for club members. This is a ‘family friendly’ camping weekend. To register email Dave G: through
Contact Us (Field Trips) before 3 August and he will provide the details.
September 16-17 or 23-24 overnight wilderness camping trip to the Ice River area (past Field B.C. looking for sodalight). (details not confirmed, more to follow closer to the date)
2022 Trips
We held a successful field trip to Drumheller on 12 June lead by our new member Jeff W, attended by 17 adult and 8 junior members and found specimens of dinosaur bones, petrified wood, casts of branches and clams or mussel shells, and good examples of granite. A special visit to private land was arranged.
This nice piece of petrified wood was found:
The next trip to the Drumheller area, again to be lead by Jeff, will be on Sunday, 26 June ( for details please visit the Club Facebook page postings ).
Further trips coordinated by the Club this year are proposed to these areas: Canal Flat in B C; Crowsnest Southern Alberta; Ice River in B C; and the Ice Caves, Bragg Creek. Details will be posted on the Club
2021 Trips:
The next field trip will be in the spring 2021…fieldstone finds east and northeast of Calgary , then possible trips to the crows nest area, and back to the ice river [sept long wknd]
Where we went in 2020:
Glenbow museum mineral collection …Thursday, 6 February, 6:30
meet on mineral collection floor at the museum
wagon master/coordinator … Dave Gill. See photos from this trip here.
Sodalite … west of Field, B.C. …. Aug. 1 to 3, 2020
The August long weekend field trip to the Ice River area west of Field B C was attended by 19 club members. About 7 came for just the day, 12 stayed for 2-3 overnights. Sodalite was found around the camping area, on the gravel bars of the Ice River and in Moose creek nearby. Stories were told around the campfire 🔥. The area is famous in geological circles for it’s ” intrusive ” minerals, including some ‘rare earth elements ‘, and sodalite, not to mention gold, etc.. this area might be worth another trip !
See photos from this trip here
Ice Caves area, limestone fossils, bring your camera … the October 11, 2020 field trip to the Bragg creek ice cave area was a success. The weather was fine, 6 members took part, the fossils were great…see pictures …and the ice caves interesting, as usual. See photos from this trip here
Other ideas:
Other options for field trips include the Alberta Federation of Rock Clubs (AFRC)’s annual May Daze held at a different Alberta location every May long weekend. The Silver Cove rocks shops typically organize field trips too.
You can also check out CRLC’s Rockhounding North America guide and our Rockhounding Montana guide. The Traveller’s Guide to Geological Wonders of Alberta is also a good resource and can be found in the CRLC library. In 2017 we organized a trip to Quartzsite, Arizona for their annual show.
These are some of our favourite locations you might want to try on your own.
|
| Location |
Materials |
Willow Creek, Alberta
S of Chain Lakes |
Selenite (gypsum) Crystals |
Red Deer River, Alberta
Near Joffre Bridge |
Gold Panning & Sluicing |
Canyon Creek, Alberta
West of Calgary |
Invertebrate Fossils |
Buse Lake, B.C.
Near Monte Creek |
Agate, Chalcedony |
North Saskatchewan River
Edmonton, Alberta |
Gold Panning & Sluicing |
| Canmore Mines, Alberta |
Plant Fossils |
| Kamloops – Clearwater, B.C. |
Lapidary, Minerals, Fossils |
Campbell Ranch, Medicine River, AB
West of Rimby |
Artifacts, Calcite |
SW Volcanics, Alberta
N & S of Crowsnest Pass |
Garnet, Feldspar, Pyrite, Magnetite |
Rock Candy Mine
Grand Forks, B.C. |
Fluorite, Barite, Dolomite |
| Rimby Tufa Beds, Alberta |
Modern Fossils |
Hand Hills, Alberta
NE of Drumheller near Delia |
Agate, Petrified Wood, Jasper,
Quartz, Calcite, Fossils, Artifacts |
Columbia Valley, B.C.
Fort Steele to Spillimacheen |
Minerals, Fossils |
| Jubilee Mine, B.C. |
Barite, Gold, Lead, Zinc |
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