Devil's Den: Smoky Quartz & Quartz Rockhounding in Rutland County, Vermont

Plan your visit

Generally open to casual rockhounding

County

Rutland County

State

Vermont

Nearest road

Seasonal Forestry Road

Coordinates

43.35693, -72.89278

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

Land & collecting status

Generally open to casual rockhounding

Most public-tagged spots sit on BLM, U.S. Forest Service, or other federal land where reasonable hand collecting of common rocks and minerals is allowed. Confirm posted rules and active mining claims before you dig.

Access note: Reach it via Forest Road 10 (Mount Tabor Road) from Danby and park at the Devil's Den area. National forest rules permit hobby collecting of common rocks and minerals for personal use with no permit, a reasonable limit, and no mechanized digging. Vertebrate fossils may not be collected.

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 Devil's Den

Comfortable months (45 to 90°F highs)

Best months: April to October. Typical highs run 73°F in midsummer and 25°F in midwinter, with winter lows near 6°F.

Climate normals: NOAA 1991-2020 monthlies, PERU station (7 mi away), adjusted for elevation.

Geology at Devil's Den

This spot sits on Biotite-muscovite-plagioclase-quartz schist, mapped as mica schist that formed roughly 1600 to 1200 million years ago. Metamorphic terrain like this typically carries quartz veins and sweats, and weathered crystals tend to end up in the soils and streams below.

Mapped unit

Biotite-muscovite-plagioclase-quartz schist

Age

1600–1200 Ma (Mesoproterozoic)

Rock types

mica schist

Elevation

2,110 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.

• Vermont Geological Survey
• Green Mountain National Forest
• Vermont State Parks, Camp Plymouth
• Community submissions reviewed against published agency rules