Keweenaw a treasure trove of geological specimens
Michigan is among the most unique places in America to hunt for rocks, particularly the Keweenaw Peninsula, says the website at miroadtrip.com,.
“The shoreline from Ontonagon to Copper Harbor is littered with rocks of all kinds,” the website asserts, “and speaking relatively compared to other beaches in Michigan, covered in agates.”
Cheryl Ochodnicky, owner of Keweenaw Agate Shop, in Copper Harbor, says that in the Keweenaw Peninsula, people enjoy hunting rocks, minerals and gems of all sorts.
“Certainly, we have agates, that’s the big one. But people also love to find copper,” she said, adding with a chuckle, “and if you could get the two together, copper and placement agates, that would be even better.”
Part of the peninsula’s draw, she said, may be that they’ve heard of the area, they have heard of the geology and the rocks, they are just drawn. There is the added aspect, too, that Lake Superior beaches are so pretty — and so full of rocks. Unlike the other Great Lakes, she said, many of the western UP’s beaches are more sandy.
“So, they just look for rocks that are interesting to them,” she said.
So, where are good places to hunt for rocks and agates?
“Everybody has their secret places; we don’t tell those ones,” Ochodnicky said with a smile, but all of the great beaches are good for rock hunting.
“All the way from McLain State Park to the Lighthouse Overlook at Fort Wilkins State Park, in Copper Harbor,” said Ochodnicky, “are all great places to look for rocks — Gratiot River Park is a great place.”
Although M-26 from Eagle Harbor to Copper Harbor is officially closed while the Silver River bridge is being replaced, it is still worth the drive from Copper Harbor to Ezry Park to hunt for rocks.
“That’s one of my favorite beach,” said Ochodnicky. “We take a picnic there, take a pasty, climb on the rocks, and listen to the waves.”
“It’s funny seeing people coming up here so early in the season,” said Ochodnicky. “The early bird gets the worm.”
There are countless reasons as to why people like to hunt rocks, including an opportunity to get outside, enjoy the fresh Lake Superior air, the beauty of the beaches and the surroundings.
“It’s all of the above,” Ochodnicky said. “I mean, who doesn’t like to find a treasure? Who doesn’t like a good treasure hunt, even if it’s just that you came home with a bunch of pretty rocks?”
It is more fun, she added, that there is such a variety of rocks to learn about on the Keweenaw Peninsula.
A rock that has recently become popular to hunt is Flourescent Sodalite, commonly referred to as “Yooperlite.”
Mymichiganbeach.com says: “Walking along the coast at night with a black light or UV light begins to feel otherworldly as the luminescence hiding in plain sight becomes revealed. You’ll see rocks that feel as if they’ve fallen from space rather than washed ashore from the depths of Lake Superior.”
“Yooperlite is not a fair name for the rock, though, because it implies that it can only be found in the Upper Peninsula.
According to the Michigan Rockhounds website (https://www.michiganrockhounds.com/articles/glowdalites), the geological name for the rock is fluorescent sodalite-bearing syenite. It can be found across much of the Great Lakes and even scattered around the world from different sources.
What cannot be found around other Great Lakes, or the world, however, are Lake Superior agates and native copper.