SIDE TRIPS OF GEOLOGICAL INTEREST

Gold Panning

There are several locations immediately adjacent to the Calvin Coolidge State Forest Park where some gold can still be obtained from stream sands and gravels. The abandoned town of Five Corners offers the park visitor ample chance to “try his luck.” In fact, several local people still obtain small gold nuggets and a good deal of gold dust from the streams in the vicinity of Five Corners (See geologic map for geographic location). Other possible “panning” locations would include Reading Pond Brook, Buffalo Brook and Kingdom Brook. The gold which is found is probably derived from nearby gold-bearing quartz veins.

The equipment needed for an afternoon of panning is relatively simple to obtain. A wide, rather shallow pan with gently sloping sides is really all that is needed. Gravel and sand, which you find concentrated on the upstream side of natural rock riffles in the stream bed should be placed together with water in your pan. Then the pan should be rotated and the lighter rock materials decanted. The heavy gold will be concentrated in the bottom of the pan.

Asbestos and Talc

For you who might be interested in mineral collecting it is suggested that a trip to an old pit near Five Corners might prove rewarding. Walk down Broad Brook from the bridge at Five Corners until you locate the first small tributary entering on your left. Turn left up this tributary and continue to walk for approximately one hundred yards. On your left you will see the remains of a pit dug into the side of the stream bank which, at this location, is lined with rocks of the Ottauquechee formation. 19 You will quickly note the fibrous asbestos in the walls of this pit; however, if you wish to collect specimens of this mineral be extremely careful and avoid standing beneath any overhanging rock material. Talc, which feels “soapy” to the touch, is also abundant in this immediate area. This asbestos and talc occur in a lenticular-shaped body which is perhaps eight hundred feet wide and of an undetermined length. It is not certain when these minerals formed; however, it was probably in the early history of the region.

Garnet

Good specimens of garnet can be found in the rocks of the Bethel formation. These garnets are not of gem quality but still offer good collecting for the amateur mineralogist. Good collecting localities exist along State Highway 100A and at several different spots within the Park itself. A hike along the northern boundary of the Park would intersect several excellent collecting spots.

Vermont Marble Company Exhibit, Proctor, Vermont

If time permits, or a rainy day arrives, a visit to the Vermont Marble Company Exhibit in Proctor, Vermont, is highly recommended. Marble is a metamorphic rock which was originally sedimentary in nature. Lime muds hardened into limestones and then, converted by metamorphism, became marble. The marble exhibit at Proctor, termed “The largest Marble Exhibit in the World,” displays over 100 varieties of marble and igneous rock, granite. Fossils can be seen in some of the varieties of marble, which demonstrates that under certain conditions recognizable fossils do occur in metamorphic rocks. Most of the marble seen in this exhibit is quarried nearby; however, for safety reasons visitors are not allowed to enter the quarries. It is interesting to note that these marbles are about the same age as the rocks seen in Coolidge State Forest Park.