Field Trip 2015: Omya Mine Tour

Omya Mine. Photo: dzrtgrls.com.

 

Omya is a leading global producer of calcium carbonate and a worldwide distributor of specialty chemicals.  The limestone quarries at Omya are located south of Lucerne Valley in the foothills of the San Bernardino Mountains.  Associated minerals include chrysocolla, malachite, azurite, rhodochrosite, garnet, pyrite, sphalerite, galena, magnetite and epidote.  Fluorescent minerals are also found here.  Geologist Howard Brown will give a tour of the mine at 4:30pm.  After our tour we will go and get some dinner and go back to the mine in the evening to take as much fluorescent rock home as we can carry.  This probably will be the last opportunity to tour this mine.  This field trip is not sponsored by SDMG.

Date:  April 25, 2015.

Destination:  Omya Mine, 7299 Crystal Creek Road, Lucerne Valley, CA 92356.

Meeting Place:  Park and Ride off 15 FWY-North off HWY 76 behind the Mobil gas station

Meeting Time:  2:00pm.  Carpool or caravan (driving time to the mine approximately 2.5 hrs.)

Organized by:  Angela Hicks, FGMS/VGMC Field Trip Chairperson and Yucaipa Valley Gem & Mineral Society (YVGMS).

Contact/RSVP:  Angela Hicks at 760-468-4900 or vistadelsol@aol.com

Reservations:  Limited to 25 people.  Angela needs to know who is coming, and she needs to be able to contact you about last-minute changes of plan.  Contact her if you want to go. 

Bring:  Comfortable clothes-pants preferred and sturdy walking shoes with a tread bottom, hat, sunscreen, money for dinner and your black lights/black flashlights to view the fluorescent rocks.

Website:  www.omya-na.com and see also: http://dzrtgrls.com/omya_mine/omya_mine.htm