FB Group Posts: 15, 16 & 17 June 2021 – Fossicking At Riverton/Aparima and Gemstone Beach

This is the fourth Post on my June 2021 stone collecting trip to the South Island, and is also the 14th Post in the Series of my daily Posts in the Facebook Group “New Zealand Lapidary, Rocks, Minerals, Fossils”. The first Post on my June trip is the Sunday 6 June entry in this Post, and the first in the Facebook Group Series is here.

Tuesday 15 June 2021: Eight stones found during my fossicking at Riverton/Aparima today, at the Back Beach and Henderson’s Bay. It was a cloudy day – lack of wind meant a comfortable time on the beach despite the low temperature of 10 to 11 degrees.

Scenes from the Back Beach today:

The Back Beach, Riverton/Aparima, viewed from the east.

Stones on the Back Beach.

Back Beach, at the western end.

[Tuesday 15 June was also the day I made a Post in the Group’s Alphabetical Series – “G” is for “Green Hydrogrossular Garnet…”– see here.]

Wednesday 16 June 2021: Nine of the stones I found on Gemstone Beach today, to take home to tumble-polish.

Quartzite, with unusual white patches.

Unusual relatively-large inclusion in this small stone.

Too big to tumble, but will go in the “stone garden”.

The Taunoa Stream, near the carpark, was fordable today. But the Waimeamea River, 1500 metres west, was not – after being held back for a number of days by high banks of stones, it has broken through to the sea.

Gemstone Beach, looking towards the carpark, with the Taunoa Stream in-between.

Waimeamea River running diagonally across the beach to the sea.

Thursday 17 June 2021: One of the stones I came across today on Gemstone Beach is maybe Find-of-the-Trip, although the photos don’t do it justice:

Probably a jasper.

The massed piles of stones ran out at one point on the beach and I went over to walk through a few scattered stones near the edge of the waves… and there it was! Just in front of my left boot.

No missing this one! Very rare find.

Here are another seven stones selected for presentation today from a few hours spent on the beach looking for tumblestones.

Trace fossil stone – with quite small yet diverse traces.

Today’s segment of Gemstone Beach stones.

Looking towards the back of the beach, towards the cliff.

The next Post in this Series is here.

Author: tumblestoneblog

Retired Academic, male, living in the New Zealand countryside near Whanganui with his wife as well as Jasper the dog, Fluffy the cat, Dancer and Penny, the horses, and a shed half-full of stones. Email john.tumblestone@gmail.com. View all posts by tumblestoneblog