Crater of Diamonds State Park Info?

[bigscoop]

Thinking of making Crater of Diamonds State Park one of my destinations for next year's adventure so I'm trying to gather all the info I can on the place and the equipment and the process ahead of time. All experience and advice greatly appreciated. Thanks!

PS: Will probably schedule this trip sometime in April of May?

 

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[Jublain]

From what I understand, you show up, pay the money, and go dig. I believe they have tools there, but most people take their own stuff. My sister went earlier this year and actually brought back several buckets of dirt to search at a later time.

 

[PennyG]

I have taken my kids a few times. I recommend bringing your own tools however you can rent them there. They do have a washing station but I always brought in several spray water bottles to wash away the dirt from the dirt. You are pretty much on your own on a large piece of land. I brought a pop up canopy , several chairs, lunch, and all the stuff I needed for the dig.
If you think you find a diamond, you take the stone to the park ranger up the hill and he will let you know if you found a diamond. If you did then a siren will sound and he will box the diamond up for you.
The travel channel had an episode about Crater of Diamonds that was very informative or perhaps YouTube .

 

[HenryWaltonJonesJr]

I saw it advertised on u-haul and have always wanted to go! Any chance the earth spewed out gold too? Do you know if you can detect there?

 

[Ronson]

I have taken my kids a few times. I recommend bringing your own tools however you can rent them there. They do have a washing station but I always brought in several spray water bottles to wash away the dirt from the dirt. You are pretty much on your own on a large piece of land. I brought a pop up canopy , several chairs, lunch, and all the stuff I needed for the dig.
If you think you find a diamond, you take the stone to the park ranger up the hill and he will let you know if you found a diamond. If you did then a siren will sound and he will box the diamond up for you.

Everything that Penny said, plus I'll add some of my own experiences from this past March.

First thing: do not go in March. It's colder than kraut. Maybe some Canadians or Maine folks could handle dunking their hands in 40-something degree water, but I was ready to pack it in, after about an hour of that. Luckily, that was the last morning, so pack it up, I did.

I took my fam over Spring Break, which for Texas schools is the middle of March. Did I mention don't go in March? Okay, I'll stop with the March.

The "diamond mine" is indeed a giant dirt field, full of plowed rows. At first glance, it's a bit disappointing. I had envisioned... I dunno. Something that did not look like tromped down cow pasture.

But heck, who cares what it looks like, yeah? This is where the biggest diamond ever found in the United States was dug up. This is where the only perfectly flawless diamond in the WORLD was dug up. This is where the diamonds are, to paraphrase Spinal Tap, turned up to eleven. Serio... the diamonds here are harder than any other Mohs scale-rated diamonds... these diamonds are 11.

Yeah, you can either bring your own gear or rent gear. The advantage to renting sifting screens, I discovered, is that if you make your own awesome sifting screens (as I did), you might discover you left out one level of awesomeness, which is to allow the screens to fit together, nice and tight. So, next trip, I'll bring my own digging gear, but prolly rent screens from the park. It's only a few bucks, not bad, at all.

I also brought little plastic pill bottles with those screw-on lids, into which a fella might drop potential stones. Also bring a good magnifying glass, because most of the stones found are very very small. As in, measured in points, not carats. The first morning we were there, around 10 am, the loudspeaker came on and announced a fella had found the first THREE diamonds of the day... but these were little-bitty... I think it was 7 pt, 8 pt and 10 pt. Mind you, I'd love to have found even one little-bitty diamond... I didn't find squat, but it was my first trip, so I chalked it up to learning and thinking in terms of, "Okay, NEXT time, this is what I can do better..."

What you can't do better is luck, tho'. There are just as many stories of people literally kicking over the right dirt clod, on their way out of the park, and picking up a 3 carat yellow diamond, as there are stories of folks like the aforementioned little-bitty diamond hunter. One fella stopped off into the park, because his wife wanted to hunt around... he really didn't, so he just sorta aimlessly kicked dirt around and boom, picked up a giant yellow diamond. Same thing, but with a pre-teen girl... on her way out of the park, with her family, looks down, boom, picks up a giant yellow diamond.

So you just never know.

Here's a couple of other things to keep in mind... if you can get out there, right after a rain, especially in the early morning, rain tends to reveal diamonds and the sunlight will light em up from many feet away. I know a woman who has found two 1+ carat diamonds that way.

Also, if you can get a straight answer from a park official, call ahead and ask when the fields were plowed or will next be plowed. It's not very often, maybe once a season, from what I was able to gather. When we went, the rows were hard as concrete... dunno when they'd last been plowed, but since then, many thousands of feet had tromped the dirt down, hard-pack.

In an ideal situation, I think you'd want to have a recent rain on a recently plowed field. That'll help your luck something fierce, I think. It's what I'm aiming for, next time I drive over.

Oh, and as to the gold and detecting... I did not see anyone detecting, nor did I see/hear anything about detecting. Same with gold. But there are other great rocks to be found, besides diamonds... semi-precious stones like topaz and amethyst, if I recall correct. Even some plant fossils. Anything you find, you can march up the hill to the ranger station/rental station, and a park rep will tell you exactly what each doodad is, one by one. Which is pretty cool.

You can camp in the park and wander over to dig or you can stay in one of three motels, in town. There are lots of places with examples of diamonds found at the crater, in town... you can drool over glass cases, almost everywhere but the local Sonic Drive-In.

That's off the top of my head... if I think of anything else, I'll add it, later.

Did I mention don't go in March?

 

[Ronson]

From what I understand, you show up, pay the money, and go dig. I believe they have tools there, but most people take their own stuff. My sister went earlier this year and actually brought back several buckets of dirt to search at a later time.

We were told something different, back in March. You can take out one 5-gallon bucket of PROCESSED dirt... not just dirt you dig and toss in the bucket. Which really means sifting the dirt out at the processing station, in the water, and tossing all pebbles and gravel and anything that doesn't go through your screen into the bucket... which is a waaaaaay different deal. I think I filled a Mason jar about halfway with processed dirt/gravel, before my hands went numb. Lotta work to fill a 5-gallon bucket with processed dirt.

Now, having said that, I sure thought I saw a lot of folks walking out with buckets full of what looked like unprocessed dirt, in wagons, under their gear and whatnot. Pretty sure that's what was happening, but as it was my first time, I didn't wanna press my luck.

State park people get weird when you break the rules at a state park.

Also, a 5-gallon bucket full of wet dirt? Pretty dang heavy to haul across that field and back up to the exit... that turns into a long walk, in a hurry.

Next time, I'm bringing a wagon.

 

[bigscoop]

Thanks folks!

I don't know why digging in the dirt is so appealing to me? Just seems a good way to spend a few days, playing in the dirt like a little kid, I suppose. Jumped on youtube and checked some videos out. It's just something I always wanted to experience so going to give it a shot.

 

[Darrow]

I am making my third trip to the crater next month. I am hoping to register my avatar picture as a diamond. I found it last winter sorting through the wash I brought home. I also have amethyst, barite, ash balls, kimberlite, jasper, spinel and possibly a brown diamond...will soon find out.

Every paying person can take a 5 gallon bucket of washed gravel with them each day they visit. We will bring home 4 of them and I will enjoy sorting this winter. Every one has given you good advice. This trip I am bringing a wagon to haul out filled buckets, along with: classifying screens, loupe, digging tools. I rent their sifting screens for washing - bring $$, but you get deposit back on return. Bring shoes that you won't mind throwing away. Washing gravel can be hard on hands, some where rubber gloves. It gets pretty messy at the wash station too.

It is hard work and very exciting when you find gems. I have not seen a metal detector in the park...it is a state park, so I doubt it.

There are a lot of youtube videos out there to get you prepped up for your hunt. Also, google rough diamonds and click on images, get familiar with how they look. Good luck!

 

[Ronson]

I am making my third trip to the crater next month. I am hoping to register my avatar picture as a diamond. I found it last winter sorting through the wash I brought home. I also have amethyst, barite, ash balls, kimberlite, jasper, spinel and possibly a brown diamond...will soon find out. Every paying person can take a 5 gallon bucket of washed gravel with them each day they visit. We will bring home 4 of them and I will enjoy sorting this winter...

Good for you, Darrow!

Question: how many hours did it take you to fill just one 5-gal bucket with processed gravel?

That mud did not dissolve quickly, for me... seemed to take forever, just to get the meager half-Mason jar of gravel that I did.

 

[jamey]

been before and liked it,bout now is a good time to go or maybe when it cools down alittle more.the website tells ya when it has bean plowed but id go off to the side anyways

 

[huntsman53]

I have been twice! No metal Detectors allowed or any motorized or electrical type equipment allowed except your cell phone, camera and/or video camera. If I ever get back there, I plan to take my' Gold Classifiers and Gold Pans. These will work much better than the equipment they rent for processing the dirt, rocks, gems and kimberlite. When I was there in 1995 and 1997, there was no real limit on the material that you could take out of the Park, at least that I knew of. In 1995, I took home close to 350 pounds of mostly Jasper rocks but now, I wished that I had taken home processed material. I would advise to purchase a Magnifying Visor like the one's that Gemologists or Coin Researchers use to examine Gems and Coins. As has been stated, many of the Diamonds are small and without the Visor, you are going to possibly miss finding one in your material and end up tossing it out. Also be advised that there are a lot of Rattlesnakes in this area of Arkansas and especailly areas outside the Park and also around it's perimeter, so be careful if camping closeby or if you venture into the brushy, weedy areas outside of the plowed sections in the Park. The Northern third of the Park was dug up 1997 in a test dig to see if the Park was worth a Commercial Diamond Mining venture, so there is no use in going up on that end. Although they filled it back in, probably with the processed dirt and rocks that they removed during the test dig and they also plow it, it is doubtful that anything will be found in this area. I know, as I stood close to the edge of the test dig and it was about a 150 foot deep hole and trench. When you walk down the concrete sidewalk, 20 to 30 feet in front of you, was at one time a mainly wet weather spring draining from your right to your left in front of you. Most of the big Diamonds were found in and along where that wet weather spring was. Several were found to the right which is closer to the actual vent hole of the Volcanic Pipe and 1 or 2 were found to the left. If a person could break down and process the Kimberlite where it flowed downhill from the vent, I believe that this is where some big Diamonds could be found. However, the material is harder to bust than most concrete and it really takes Mother Nature a lot of time to erode it to where it is workable.

Good luck!


Frank

 

[Darrow]

Ronson, that clay is tuff to process and I avoid it. I scraped off the top gravels and mainly washed that, filled the bucket throughout the day last year. The other bucket had larger rocks I wanted along with washed gravel. We filled 2 buckets and worked the field a full day...from opening until "oh my geezers, am I dead yet?"

 

[bigscoop]

As it sits right now I plan to be there in the spring, probably mid-May, maybe as early as April but I doubt it. Likely to stay a week, 4/5 days, something like that. Is this place so busy that it requires reservations? Would rather keep things shooting from the hip when I can. Great info guys. Thanks!

 

[huntsman53]

As it sits right now I plan to be there in the spring, probably mid-May, maybe as early as April but I doubt it. Likely to stay a week, 4/5 days, something like that. Is this place so busy that it requires reservations? Would rather keep things shooting from the hip when I can. Great info guys. Thanks!

If you plan on staying in a motel or campground, you might need to make reservations! I am pretty sure that they don't do reservations for the Park, nor would you ever need them. Most of the time, there are 30 patrons or less but even if there were a hundred or more, there is plenty of room for everyone. Oh and I also forgot, you can take mechanized equipment into the Park for processing material. However, it all has to be run manually by hand or foot.


Frank

 

[#48Fan]

Hey bigscoop, are you still planning a trip to Murfreesboro this sping?

 

[huntsman53]

I wanted to recommend a few things before you go! Instead of building your' own or renting Sifters/Classifiers from the Park Office, I would recommend purchasing a Gold Classifer with the smallest wire mesh, then the next size up, then the next size up and then the next size up such as the ones at this link 9pc Classifier Sifting Pan Set Screen Pan Gold Gem Panning Mining Prospecting | eBay but have at least 4 sizes. Next, they may have changed the rules but double check on how much material you can take out of the Park with you each day. When I went the first time in 1995, they said that I could take all that I could carry out. Little did they know and probably did not care that I carried out 4 backpacking duffle bags full of rocks and still have around 350 pounds of rocks from there still in the basement of my' home. Next, when you walk from the Park Office down the sidewalk to the Mine or Fields and while standing at the end of the sidewalk facing the field, the Diamond/Kimberlite Pipe is about three-quarters of the way up the rise at 1:30 to 2:00 (as in Clock hand readings) from you. The gully just in front of you is where most of the larger Diamonds were found. I would recommend stepping off the sidewalk, turn towards the Diamond/Kimberlite Pipe, walk 20 years or so and start in this area. If you dig down and find the layer of solid Kimberlite, then you may have to backup some and try again or move further to the left as the solid Kimberlite it is almost impossible to dig into and remove in hopes that it has Diamonds in it. In the 18 years since I was last there, hopefully more of the Kimberlite has decomposed and released more Diamonds. From the Google satelitte image of the Park, it appears that since I was last there, they opened up a new area past the washing station which is at your 12:00 O'Clock when standing at the end of the sidewalk before entering the field. If so and you don't have any luck at location I recommended, then I would suggest trying that area as well, Just walk past the washing station to within 10 to 20 yards of the main wood line and work from ther to your right. This is on the other downhill side of the Diamond/Kimberlite Pipe and I doubt that this location has been worked as heavily as any of the other areas inside the Park. Another thing to keep in mind is, if they have recently turned the soil in the Park and you come in right after it has rained, then some Diamonds may have washed out and are visible to the eye. This is a good time to slowly walk the plowed rows, looking in the furrows and ridges (high spots where they piled the soil up while plowing) looking for Diamonds that glint in the sunlight.

Good luck and I hope you post a report of the trip as well as stories and pics of any finds!


Frank

 

[huntsman53]

I wanted to recommend a few things before you go! Instead of building your' own or renting Sifters/Classifiers from the Park Office, I would recommend purchasing the a Gold Classifer with the smallest wire mesh, then the next size up, then the next size up and then the next size up such as the ones at this link 9pc Classifier Sifting Pan Set Screen Pan Gold Gem Panning Mining Prospecting | eBay but have at least 4 sizes. Next, they may have changed the rules but double check on how much material you can take out of the Park with you each day. When I went the first time in 1995, they said that I could take all that I could carry out. Little did they know and probably did not care that I carried out 4 backpacking duffle bags full of rocks and still have around 350 pounds of rocks from there still in the basement of my' home. Next, when you walk from the Park Office down the sidewalk to the Mine or Fields and while standing at the end of the sidewalk facing the field, the Diamond/Kimberlite Pipe is about three-quarters of the way up the rise at 1:30 to 2:00 (as in Clock hand readings) from you. The gully just in front of you is where most of the larger Diamonds were found. I would recommend stepping off the sidewalk, turn towards the Diamond/Kimberlite Pipe, walk 20 years or so and start in this area. If you dig down and find the layer of solid Kimberlite, then you may have to backup some and try again or move further to the left as the solid Kimberlite it is almost impossible to dig into and remove in hopes that it has Diamonds in it. In the 18 years since I was last there, hopefully more of the Kimberlite has decomposed and released more Diamonds. From the Google satelitte image of the Park, it appears that since I was last there, they opened up a new area past the washing station which is at your 12:00 O'Clock when standing at the end of the sidewalk before entering the field. If so and you don't have any luck at location I recommended, then I would suggest trying that area as well, Just walk past the washing station to within 10 to 20 yards of the main wood line and work from ther to your right. This is on the other downhill side of the Diamond/Kimberlite Pipe and I doubt that this location has been worked as heavily as any of the other areas inside the Park. Another thing to keep in mind is, if they have recently turned the soil in the Park and you come in right after it has rained, then some Diamonds may have washed out and are visible to the eye. This is a good time to slowly walk the plowed rows, looking in the furrows and ridges (high spots where they piled the soil up while plowing) looking for Diamonds that glint in the sunlight.

Good luck and I hope you post a report of the trip as well as stories and pics of any finds!


Frank

Sorry, the wording in Bold Black should read "walk 20 yards or so and start in this area."! LOL!! That is what I get for staying up so danged late.


Frank

 

[OldSowBreath]

Thanks for all this great info, especially to Huntsman! A trip to the mine has always been high on my bucket list (inadvertent pun). Question: If there on a cloudy day, do you think a very powerful hand held LED flashlight could highlight any ground hugging diamonds?

 

[IAMZIM]

Did I mention don't go in March?

Actually, that sounds like perfect temperatures to dig for me, I HATE being hot! I really wanna go some day!

Just a question, if anyone of experience might answer.... Does anyone try "panning" the diamonds there? That is one of the main ways I find my sapphires, because they are heavy like gold and are easily panned. I have never found a diamond, just LOTS of sapphires and I seem to remember that diamonds are heavy like sapphires..... If that is true, then if I ever get to go, that will be the main way I will try out, because I am an experienced "panner".

 

[rrhobdy]

INSIDE SCOOP!!!!!!! Bring a garden wagon which has big fat tires, it will make things much easier to haul. Also bring about 4 buckets (thats all the wagon holds) and a shovel. Get hold of a "saruca" if you can find one, but dont worry, you can buy one at the hardware store in town about 2 miles away. Also get some classifier screens that will fit the buckets. I use a 1/4 inch mesh and a 1 inch mesh round classifiers. Now fill the buckets and haul them to the water troughs. Start working by placing the saruca at the bottom of the trough. Put the smaller classifier on top of the saruca, and then the biggest classifier on top of that. Empty several shovel fulls of dirt onto the top of the classifiers. Once all the dirt is wet, mash it down through the classifier, removing all rocks as you go. Once that is done, throw the waste rock that is in the larger classifier away, but be sure to check it, so you won't throw away something you want to keep. Then do the same to the next classifier. Once that is done, you are ready to start panning with the saruca. Slosh it up and down while rotating it a couple of inches at a time. The lighter material will exit over the sides. After you get down to the just a little bit left in the saruca, pick it up out of the water and let the water drain out. Carefully flip it upside down onto the table surface to empty it. If you are doing everything right, you should see a small white circle of fine sand/gravel in the dead center. This is your heavies. I have a 18 inch saruca, and the heavies will only be in the center 6 inches. That is where you will find your diamonds. The outer edges you can scrape away and throw out. Now I use a 3.0 reading glasses (less strain on the eyes) and carefully scan through the material to find the diamonds. Repeat the process... If I want to work a lot of material and spend time at the campsite, then I flip the saruca over an empty bucket. About half of the material in the saruca will go into the bucket (the heavies), and the lighter material (the waste) will end up on the ground. The math says...buckets are 12 inches wide, so the outer 3 inches of material on my 18 inch saruca are waste. In the mean time, any mud clod that doesn't break easily, you put into an extra bucket of water to soak, then later you can work that bucket. If you find an area that is producing a sizable white ring, keep digging in that area. What you have found, is an ancient gully or stream bed that has been covered up. Your chances of finding a diamond has just gone up. Diamonds being heavy, tend to collect in stream beds much like gold does. Happy hunting.