Month: July 2022

A view from the Gemstone Beach carpark.

The beach today in front of the carpark. House on the skyline is new.

Looking down on the Taunoa Stream and the house tucked in among the trees. Campervan in carpark at back.

Gemstone Beach stones today.

I made another visit to Gemstone Beach, Orepuki, today, this time managing to spend three hours there. I arrived at the carpark at 10.30 a.m. with the temperature at five degrees but with bright sun and no wind. The tide was low and I walked more quickly than usual down to the Waimeamea River, hoping to be able to cross as the channel usually gets wider and shallower when the tide is lower. I managed to ford the river, just, and move on to fossick for maybe 300 metres to the west. All in all, I managed to get just over one kilometre from the carpark. However, I did get a little water in the gumboots on the return crossing.

The Waimeamea River, having just been forded.

The banks of stones holding back the Waimeamea River lagoon, looking east. The river currently flows across the beach about 300 metres that away.

Looking west.

Gemstone Beach stones.

It was not the most productive fossick but the diversity of stones here is amazing. I found only a handful of small hydrogrossular garnets, and trace fossil stones were relatively scarce today. However, some of the other stones I picked up show amazing complexity upon close scrutiny.

The stone of the day, a small brecciated jasper.

Perhaps a type of quartz?

Volcanic porphyry.

I ran into Aaron again – he was using a chainsaw on some driftwood near the carpark as he has an interest in natural sculpture. He showed me some stones he had collected and gave me a couple, including a trace fossil stone.

The trace fossil stone given to me by Aaron.

A larger trace fossil stone.

A brown trace in this stone.

The best of the few hydrogrossular garnets I found today. This one is quite thin.

Another small hydrogrossular garnet.

Stone with a stress fracture (“earthquake stone”).

On the way home, I had a nice chat with a Dunedin couple just before they drove out of the carpark in their campervan. They were gracious enough to want to see some of the stones I had found.

A shorter version of this Post first appeared in the Facebook Group “New Zealand Lapidary, Rocks, Minerals, Fossils”. The next Post in this Series describes another visit to Gemstone Beach, what started out as a hydrogrossular day then turned into something more. The first Post in this Series is here.

The view from the carpark when I arrived.

The Taunoa Stream today.

Looking back towards the carpark from near the Waimeamea River mouth.

Gemstone Beach stones today.

I arrived at Gemstone Beach for my fifth visit here this trip (Sunday 3 July) just after 10am, an hour after low tide. The day was sunny and without wind, the temperature being nine degrees when I hit the beach. A handful of people were there when I arrived, with maybe 15 to 20 in front of the carpark at one point later on. I fossicked for just under three hours.

Small brecciated jasper.

Porphyry.

Orbicular stone.

Trace fossil in argillite.

I met a few fellow fossickers along the way and had some interesting chats. Shae gave me a nice stone, and Aaron talked tumble polishing with me. As usual, I found some intriguing stones, a productive day.

Stone with brecciated section at lower right.

Small orbicular jasper.

Small hydrogrossular garnet.

The stone that Shae gave me, probably a chromite quartz.

A shorter version of this Post first appeared in the Facebook Group “New Zealand Lapidary, Rocks, Minerals, Fossils”. The next Post in this Series describes another visit to Gemstone Beach. The first Post in this Series is here.

The view in front of the Gemstone Beach carpark today.

The Taunoa Stream, just to the west of the carpark, was wide enough to be shallow enough to ford.

Gemstone Beach stones.

Gemstone Beach stones.

Yesterday (Friday 1 July) was too cold and wet to visit a beach. Today was much better. After dropping off my wife at the Invercargill airport, I drove back to Riverton Aparima and then out to Gemstone Beach, arriving at 10.50am (about three and a half hours before high tide). Although the temperature was only nine degrees, it was sunny and there was no wind, so I needed only a light coat, scarf and cap. I walked down to the Waimeamea River mouth, the first half of the walk being in the shadow of the higher cliffs, the second being in sunlight as the cliffs lowered and sometimes faded out. Yesterday’s rain had swollen the river and it was far too swift and deep to ford. I ended up spending two hours fossicking and the temperature had risen to 12 degrees by the time I left.

The sea was less unsettled today though the waves are always strong at Gemstone Beach.

The Waimeamea River crossing the beach – too deep and swift to cross.

Wave sweeping up the river.

The unsettled sea at the river mouth.

Two of today’s stones are stunners, found about two-thirds of the way back to the carpark. The first is probably an orbicular jasper. I have previously found small orbicular jaspers at Gemstone Beach, though they have tended to be slightly redder, not so “rusty” in colour (see this Post). The second is an amygdaloidal stone, a volcanic stones whose vesicles (small holes left by gas) have been infilled by a mineral – it too is bigger than others I have previously found here, and the amygdales are less regular in shape (see this Post):

Probably an orbicular jasper.

Amygdaloidal stone.

Eight other stones I found today:

Trace fossil in argillite.

Could be argillite.

Likely to be rhyolite.

A shorter version of this Post first appeared in the Facebook Group “New Zealand Lapidary, Rocks, Minerals, Fossils”. My fifth day to visit Gemstone Beach is featured in the next Post. The first Post in this Series is here.

Gemstone Beach in front of the carpark, sea foam being blown around by the wind.

The Waimeamea River flowing across the beach. Photo taken after I had crossed it, looking south east.

A photo taken in the gloom near the end of my fossick.

Rain passing in the distance to the west.

The second beach visit I made today (Thursday 30 June) was to Gemstone Beach. I very nearly didn’t go as it was a cold, wet and blustery afternoon. However, I drove out the 30 kilometres from my accommodation base in Riverton Aparima and arrived at Gemstone Beach about 3.15 pm, a couple of hours after high tide. It was 7 degrees with showers of rain and hail but I have a great waterproof coat and warm woolen hat and scarf. It was gloomy, not good photo conditions. At times it was also difficult to see stones clearly (I wear glasses which needed wiping every now and again). I ended up spending two hours on the beach – the Waimeamea River was fordable so I pushed on westwards for a way beyond it. By the time I got back to the carpark, it was very gloomy and hail showers were becoming more frequent. Seven of the stones I collected today:

I find black and white stones very attractive – they also show up well on a beach in gloomy conditions!

The shapes of trace fossil stones also catch the eye in the gloom.

A trace fossil stone found late in the fossick.

The light and pastel colours of this stone caught my eye.

A hydrogrossular garnet found just after I had turned around to walk back to the carpark.

Small but striking.

The first stone I picked up, just in front of the carpark.

This Post first appeared in the Facebook Group “New Zealand Lapidary, Rocks, Minerals, Fossils”. The next Post in this Series features another visit to Gemstone Beach, but in better weather. The first Post in this Series is here.