Where to Find Apatite in North Carolina

North Carolina has 6 mapped collecting spots that report apatite, spread across 5 counties. The largest share sits in Mitchell County County with 2 spots. 6 of the spots are on land mapped as publicly accessible.

Spot list checked against source data on April 1, 2026.

Standout apatite spots in North Carolina

Hand-picked from the full list below, with the reason each one earns a trip.

Island Creek
Vance County County
Island Creek represents the Hamme tungsten district, where NCGS work identifies hubnerite-bearing veins with quartz, sericite, fluorite, and scheelite at the Tungsten Queen mine. That tungsten-fluorite-sulfide suite gives Vance County a very different collecting story from the Blue Ridge pegmatites and Macon County corundum fields.
Burnsville
Yancey County County
Ray Mine gives North Carolina a rare free public pegmatite locality, with Mindat documenting aquamarine, beryl, amazonite, muscovite, rutile, tourmaline, and other Spruce Pine district minerals. Its strength is the combination of a historically worked mica mine and Forest Service surface-collecting access, provided current closures and mine hazards are respected.

Best counties for apatite in North Carolina

Ranked by the number of mapped apatite spots. County links open the full rockhounding page for that county.

Every apatite spot we track in North Carolina

Sorted by county. Coordinates open in Google Maps.

Spot	County	Minerals	Coordinates	Access
Foote Mine and other minesKings Mountain Gateway Trail	Cleveland County	Apatite Beryl Calcite Cassiterite Moonstone Purpurite Rhodochrosite Spodumene +2 more	35.2111, -81.3556	Public
Roberson RidgeRocky Branch Road	Haywood County	Ankerite Apatite Biotite Garnet Muscovite Pyrrhotite Quartz Tourmaline	35.4150, -82.9962	Public
Crabtree Emerald MineEmerald Mine Road	Mitchell County	Apatite Emerald	35.8743, -82.1205	Public
Sink Hole Mine and other area minesNC 80	Mitchell County	Blue Beryl Apatite Garnet Kyanite Thulite	35.9757, -82.1766	Public
Island CreekTungsten Mine Road	Vance County	Apatite Chalcopyrite Fluorite Galena Hyalite Opal Quartz Rhodochrosite Scheelite +2 more	36.5050, -78.4765	Public
BurnsvilleRay Mine Trail	Yancey County	Albite Amazonite Apatite Aquamarine Autunite Beryl Emerald Fluorite +8 more	35.8883, -82.2747	Public

Before you go

Read the apatite identification guide so you know what a keeper looks like in the field: Apatite in the encyclopedia.

Apatite in North Carolina FAQ

Where can you find apatite in North Carolina?+

The mapped spots concentrate in Mitchell County County, Cleveland County County, and Haywood County County. Every spot on this page appears on the map above with coordinates and access notes.

How many apatite spots are mapped in North Carolina?+

6 spots across 5 counties. The RockHoundR app keeps the same spots on an offline map with public land overlays, geology layers, and your saved finds.

Is it legal to collect apatite in North Carolina?+

Hand collecting of common rocks and minerals in small amounts for personal use is generally allowed on BLM and U.S. Forest Service land, with limits set by the local field office. National parks, most state parks, and tribal land are closed to collecting. 6 of the 6 mapped spots here sit on land marked public. Always confirm current rules with the managing agency before you dig.

Where else to find apatite

More minerals to hunt in North Carolina

Hunt apatite in North Carolina with the map in your pocket

RockHoundR puts these spots on an offline map with BLM and Forest Service overlays, geology layers, and a log for your finds.