Geode Beds, revisited

Last Fall we visited the Dugway Geode Beds. And it was AMAZING. We loved it so much! So at the end of April when we started feeling like we needed to get out and do something during quarantine, we immediately thought of going back. In spite of almost everything being cancelled, it was surprisingly hard to find to find a free day, because of Sam and Abe's work and online classes. And it looked like the only day that would work was going to be rainy! When we set off under drizzly skies I was feeling okay about it, but as we drove and the rain started coming down harder and harder, I started to really question if this day would be any fun at all! Digging in mud and clay in a downpour did NOT sound enjoyable.

After we passed the campground at Simpson Springs, though, the horizon-to-horizon clouds miraculously began to break up, leaving patches of clear sky, and soon they had disappeared altogether! We went through a gap in the hills and then drove past a wide hillside covered in greyish stones…

which turned out to be SHEEP! So many of them! They moved all together, almost like a slow-moving river, and blended in almost perfectly with the pale grasses they were grazing on. There were a few black ones just for variety.

By the time we drove into the geode beds the sky was blue and the air felt perfectly warm!

We had such great luck last time we hunted for geodes, it felt like almost too much to expect to find anything as good again, and we tried not to get our hopes up too high. It did take us some time to get into the swing of things. We dug for quite awhile in the spot that we liked last time, without finding much of anything. We had determined not to take home many of the smaller geodes, since we'd found plenty of those last time. This time we were on the hunt for only the best specimens!

Soon we started finding good geodes, and it was just as exciting as before! We cracked some open and left some whole to get cut open later. All the different types are so beautiful! I love the variety in the crystal sizes, colors, and shapes. There are tiny pink sugary crystals, and large angled white crystals, and black bubbly crystals, and purple leathery crystals. We felt so proud of every kind we found!

(When I say "we," I of course mean "everyone else," as I mostly sat in my chair and fed baby Gussie. I did also keep Ziggy from falling into any puddles, which I thought was quite a worthwhile accomplishment.)

After a couple hours we went to the car and had our picnic lunch ("Don't mind if I do," says Baby Gus) and tried a new digging spot. 

It was a glorious day. We were all tired and dusty by the end of it, and we had a bucket full of geodes to take home!

I love these crystals—they look like a starry night sky.

This one is so cave-like. It makes me want to see deeper and deeper inside!

I love the iridescent stripes on this one.

This huge one just hints at what you might find underneath!

We still have a bunch that haven't been cut open, so I will have to update this post when they are! Such beautiful treasures, these geodes. I am constantly amazed at the beauty and wonder of this world Heavenly Father made for us!