Willow Creek (permission required): Amethyst & Chalcedony Rockhounding in Mineral County, Colorado

Plan your visit

Permission required before collecting

County

Mineral County

State

Colorado

Nearest road

West Willow Creek Road

Coordinates

37.86997, -106.92924

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

Land & collecting status

Permission required before collecting

Requires landowner or agency permission before any collecting. Do not enter without explicit authorization.

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 Willow Creek (permission required)

Comfortable months (45 to 90°F highs)

Best months: March to November. Typical highs run 77°F in midsummer and 35°F in midwinter, with winter lows near 4°F. At about 9,230 ft, snow can block access from late fall well into spring, so check conditions outside of summer.

Climate normals: NOAA 1991-2020 monthlies, CREEDE station (1 mi away), adjusted for elevation.

Geology at Willow Creek (permission required)

This spot sits on Ash-flow tuff of main volcanic sequence, mapped as volcanic that formed roughly 34 to 23 million years ago. Volcanic ground like this is where agate, jasper, and other chalcedony typically form, filling old gas pockets and fracture seams in the flow rock.

Mapped unit

Ash-flow tuff of main volcanic sequence

Age

34–23 Ma (Oligocene)

Rock types

volcanic

Elevation

9,230 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.

• BLM Colorado rockhounding rules
• Colorado Geological Survey
• Pike and San Isabel National Forests
• Community submissions reviewed against published agency rules