Rockhounding West Cuesta Ridge 🪨🐾

Rockhounding West Cuesta Ridge 🪨🐾

Due to different school schedules for Thanksgiving week, Rocko and I had a chance to search along West Cuesta Ridge's TV Tower Rd. Sometimes Joy discovers friendships at school and Rocko and mommy get some time together.

We parked at the little dirt lot by the freeway and began walking the trail/road looking for geodes along with our dog. We had heard that there were geodes somewhere on Cuesta Ridge but we didn't know where. West Cuesta is mainly in Los Padres National Forest and therefore you can keep up to ten pounds of stones for personal collections without a permit and as long as you just pick them up off the surface.

With a rock hammer, Rocko could test breaking open some rocks. The road is steep and after a while, Rocko insisted on a snack break. We hadn't found anything until we sat down in the shade. Suddenly, we noticed quartz all around us!

Rocko said: "Mommy, I'm glad I brought you here."

My reply: "Me, too, bud."

Then, on the way down, we saw a ton of construction vehicles because they were starting to pave the trail! Rocko, being a five year old boy, couldn't have been more excited to wave at the truck and equipment drivers.

Our haul may not look like much, but we'll update the blog post with the final polished picture. I'm glad we got these before they got paved over.

A small bucket of quartz rocks found on West Cuesta Ridge trail while rockhounding

When Joy is old enough, Rocko and I will be helping her discover this trail with its magnificent views. So I got to rockhound with my Rocko and our hound (rescue pitbull). A wonderful bonding day.

Our rockhounding kit, which we love because it has a pair of gloves for each of us, is below. One note - it is too heavy for my son to carry, so I assume the parent is meant to carry it. (If you purchase from this link, we may receive a small commission, at no additional cost to you.):

 

Are you looking for adventures nearby? Check out this list!

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