Where to Find Geodes in Iowa
Iowa has 13 mapped collecting spots that report geodes, spread across 9 counties. The largest share sits in Hardin County with 3 spots. 13 of the spots are on land mapped as publicly accessible.
Every geode spot we track in Iowa
Best spotBurlington (geodes)Des Moines County, IowaPublic access · Lake Superior Agate, Quartz, Geode
Best spotSteamboat RiverHardin County, IowaPublic access · Geode
Skunk RiverHenry County, IowaPublic access · Geode, Petrified Coral, Limonite
BrandonBuchanan County, IowaPublic access · Geode, Fossil
Mount PleasantHenry County, IowaPublic access · Chert, Geode
ChapinFranklin County, IowaPublic access · Geode
DonnellsonLee County, IowaPublic access · Geode
EldoraHardin County, IowaPublic access · Geode
Farmington (geodes)Van Buren County, IowaPublic access · Geode
Hamilton (west)Lee County, IowaPublic access · Geode
Riverview Recreation AreaBlack Hawk County, IowaPublic access · Geode
SheffieldCerro Gordo County, IowaPublic access · Geode
UnionHardin County, IowaPublic access · Geode
Standout geode spots in Iowa
Hand-picked from the full list above, with the reason each one earns a trip.
Burlington (geodes)
Des Moines County
Burlington marks the transition between Iowa's two great rockhounding stories: the Keokuk geode belt to the south and the Lake Superior agate fields carried in by glaciers.
Steamboat River
Hardin County
The Iowa River around Steamboat Rock cuts through glacial drift and Mississippian bedrock, concentrating agate, chalcedony, and clear to smoky quartz in its gravel bars.
Best counties for geodes in Iowa
Ranked by the number of mapped geode spots. County links open the full rockhounding page for that county.
- Hardin County3 spots
- Henry County2 spots
- Lee County2 spots
- Black Hawk County1 spot
- Buchanan County1 spot
- Cerro Gordo County1 spot
- Des Moines County1 spot
- Franklin County1 spot
- Van Buren County1 spot
Before you go
Read the geodes identification guide so you know what a keeper looks like in the field: Geode in the encyclopedia.
