Brookwood Strip Mines: Hematite & Quartz Rockhounding in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama

Plan your visit

Confirm rules before collecting

County

Tuscaloosa County

State

Alabama

Nearest road

Rocky Branch Road

Postcode

35444

Coordinates

33.26145, -87.38753

Coordinates are approximate. Confirm the exact ground in the RockHoundR app, where land overlays show which agency manages the area.

Land & collecting status

Confirm rules before collecting

Land status here is not confirmed. Verify with the managing agency before collecting, federal, state, and tribal rules differ.

Public-land rules vary by agency, season, and field office. The RockHoundR app pulls live BLM, USFS, NPS, and tribal overlays so you can see exactly which agency manages the ground at this spot.

Best time to visit Brookwood Strip Mines

Comfortable months (45 to 90°F highs)

Best months: September to June. Typical highs run 91°F in midsummer and 55°F in midwinter, with winter lows near 34°F.

Climate normals: NOAA 1991-2020 monthlies, NORTHPORT 2 S station (12 mi away), adjusted for elevation.

Geology at Brookwood Strip Mines

This spot sits on Tuscaloosa Group; Coker Formation, mapped as sand and clay that formed roughly 145 to 66 million years ago. Petrified wood typically travels as tough float, and worked gravels like these are exactly where weathered pieces tend to collect.

Mapped unit

Tuscaloosa Group; Coker Formation

Age

145–66 Ma (Cretaceous)

Rock types

sand and clay

Elevation

460 ft

Geologic mapping via Macrostrat and the underlying state geological survey maps (CC BY 4.0). Bedrock at the surface can vary within a mapped unit.

Sources & verification

Spot details combine the public RockHoundR location dataset, normalized mineral labels, agency land-status checks in the app, and community submissions. Coordinates are approximate until verified in the field.

• Geological Survey of Alabama
• National Forests in Alabama
• Alabama State Parks rules
• Community submissions reviewed against published agency rules