Want to see what these gems looked like after just a week of tumbling? Check out the picture I shared in the Community section of my channel here: www.youtube.com/@MirandaGoesOutside/community. Rock lovers and geologists - comment below if you can help me determine if we identified them all correctly!
Miranda, I admire so much your consideration and awareness to put back the arrowhead - I'm sure a lot of people wouldn't have thought twice about keeping it. I didn't realize such artifacts were federally protected and appreciate seeing you research the local guidelines. You truly are a role model for environmental and cultural stewardship! Also you better show us how your rocks turn out!!
Hi Geologist here! I love that you enjoyed your time rockhounding. Here are a few helpful tips though for rockhounding in the future: 1. the pointy end of a rock hammer is to NEVER be used to hit a rock it is meant to scrape but never break a rock open, use the hammer side for that. For the flat end rock hammers those are meant to help sift through the dirt or break open rock layers to help find potential fossils, that side is not meant for hitting or breaking a piece off! 2. eye protection is always mandatory. 3. for finding places to rockhound most national forests are okay to take rocks from, and in my areas some state parks. However national parks are never okay to take rocks froms and if you're caught you can face severe fines. In terms of rock hounding it's always good to research before you go and start taking rocks and to look into your local laws. 4. If looking into rock ID, I find the rock ID app is not the greatest, a better option for rock ID is an app called ROCKD, it has a geologic map on it and descriptions fo the rock formations and I find this app is far better at trying to ID a rock/ fossil than the rock identifier app. 5. also look into local mineral collecting/ rockhounding groups if you find something and want to figure out what it is many times if you attend a meeting you can learn what your rock is. and if there isn't one near you there is also a subreddit for rock ID, discords, and facebook groups.
Miranda needs to be on Sesame Street. Not just because she is a Muppet in human form, but because her enthusiasm for teaching and sharing is so engaging and I'm sure kids would LOVE her (as do we all!)
Yeah, her inner child really shines through in everything she does. It's what makes her adventures so fun to watch. The child like wonder with everything is so endearing.
Past Miranda: “I don’t really do ultralight”. Present day Miranda: “I am literally loading my pack down with rocks”. Cannot wait to see what future Miranda loads up with! 😂
Hi, Archaeologist here! That was an arrowhead (you don't look stupid at all). I did a quick Google/research and I think it dates to the Archaic Period and you beautifully demonstrated what to do if you find/come across an artifact (which is anything older than 50 years) and that is LEAVE IT THERE! I was chanting "Put it back" the second you picked it up.
Miranda, thank you so much for checking what you should do when you find artifacts, and for returning the arrowhead to where you found it. I think a lot of people would be caught up in the moment and would just pocket it. You showed great respect and also educated all your viewers. Kudos. Nice find with those gems. I'd be interested to see how they turn out after a minth of driving you crazy in the tumbler 😉
I just finished my master’s degree in geology and am from Idaho! I’d LOVE to go rock hounding with you! Agate, chert, and jasper are all basically the same material. They’re all made of microcrystalline quartz (SiO2), but have different impurities or trace elements that make them different colors, and transparent or opaque. ❤
Indigenous (Diné) anthropologist with NPS experience here 👋🏽 Thank you for explicitly naming and briefly discussing the Antiquities Act of 1906. People recreate on Indigenous lands everyday without ever thinking of how local Indigenous people have been systematically removed from these places. Yet, artifacts like you found predate any and all parks or monuments established by government entities for “recreational use.” Non-Indigenous people have been taking cultural items since the invasion of our lands and doing so has always been harmful. Those who wish to recreate responsibly on Indigenous lands (again, which is anywhere) should also be familiar with Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) of 1990. Thanks again for bringing this up. I appreciate the teaching moment.
Thank you for this response! Yes - all land is Indigenous Land. Thank you for the reminder that it’s important to know and understand how to responsibly recreate on - and be respectful of - these places. 💚 it was definitely a learning moment for me, too.
Wow! That arrowhead was an amazing find. Kudos to you for researching and putting it back. I absolutely love rockhounding and glad to know I’m not the only one who gets excited by rocks 😊
I haven't finished the entire video yet, but Wow… finding an arrowhead!!!! I LOVE that you read the fine print and returned it to the land. I just hope that someone else doesn't take it. Thanks for educating us, Miranda!!! What an incredible experience.
I love how much intention you put into respecting the trails and their ecosystem, including anything that is there already. You inspire me to place that same intention when I explore! Thank you, Miranda!
Thanks for mentioning that folks need to look into the regulations in their areas. I was wondering about the "leave no trace" mentality with rockhounding.
Hi Miranda and friends! I’m a geology student and an Olympic Recurve Archer. I loved this video! Chert is a chemical sedimentary rock. It’s has conchoidal fractures which enables chert to break in thin rounded flakes . This feature allows indigenous peoples to flake it and make sharp tools just like the arrow head you found! You could make your own arrow heads from that piece chert ! This is one of my favorite videos! Thank you 🙏
Sooooi, the LMNT. I am amazed more backpacking/hiking load out vids don't include electrolytes! They have been the difference between staying on trail and calling it off for me. Particularly on hot, sticky humid days. Electrolytes should be a must have for every hiker!!
... Love the positive energy in your video's ... Your interest and curiosity to research answers and history of of any subject that fits the content ... Enjoy your travels and stay safe ....
This video killed me. Then revived me. Then killed me again. But, I'm ok now. That arrowhead was, for many, a lifetime find. That you found on your first time out. With zero help. I was so glad you treated it with the respect it deserves and did the right thing. Thank you for that! (Also, I was insanely jealous when you found it!) Also, chert can be really cool and fun. Chert is flint, which means it can make sparks. That should land (pun intended) near and dear to your heart! ;) Banded chert can be just as cool as some of the more well-known rocks. As others have already said, please don't rely too heavily on rock ID apps. They're basically sh*t. ;)
Love your show!! I just started watching this and thought.... You should totally do a show on geocaching. I took my kids when they are little and you would have sooo much fun.
Loved this video. When we do kayaking trips or hiking trips always looking for unique stones. I too have a rock tumbler. Fun way to have memories of trips!
I have studied a little bit of archeology and just want to say you did a great job, Miranda!! One thing I learned from my class is that if you see a cool artifact-LEAVE IT IN ITS PLACE-but also take pic of it and note the location you found it at. It may be an important archeological site that has never been properly excavated by professionals. Try to contact your local archaeologists or archaeology communities to share what you find and give the professionals the opportunity to excavate if they deem necessary. Otherwise, you may disturb a sensitive archaeology site and prevent scientists from getting the best possible idea of how and why an artifact is there.
If you want to find some very interesting things in the rock go up past John day to a place called Canyon city in Oregon and then head up into the hills into the old Forest Service roads, they'll be the red cinder roads that go way up into the mountains then you just stop anywhere along the road when you get up in the top of the hills and pull rocks down off the side and they'll have seashell fossils in them, the mountains up in that area are literally covered in fossils. Another very interesting place to visit is down just South of bend OR, they have some wonderful rock gardens and you can find some amazing volcanic rocks, Obsidian, crystals and all kinds of different things they're absolutely beautiful. There are even some privately owned places where you could pay to look for geodes, and if you find them some places will even cut them open for you to display.
I gotta say, this is my favorite Miranda Goes Outdoors video! I love rocks and gems. On a scale of 1 -10, this video is a solid 12 plus! What's a Creek Devil? One of many names for Sasquatch before the "Bigfoot" moniker became popular. Cheers.
I think you found TWO artifacts! The piece you're holding at 10:19 looks like it was worked into an edge! If you have more footage of that, it might be worth a second look!
Love how excited you are to find cool things in nature! Even poop! I would love to visit the trail you found your cool rocks! I hope to see another video when your rocks are done tumbling! Excellent video as usual!! ❤💎
My dad used to tumble rocks, mainly seaside pebbles in his case. Our kitchen constantly echoed to the rumble of stones inside plastic drums. It was always fun to see the shiny stones emerge after a couple of weeks.
Nice content. I do a lot of rockhounding in the Mojave desert. I've found a ton of neat stuff on BLM land around Bartsow and Helendale. A tip, find an abandoned mine and CAREFULY search the edge of the tailings pile outside it. You'll find tons of neat crystals. I've got tons of multicolored crystals like malachite, azurite, fire agate, celestite, selenite, fine pink quartz, geodes, etc.
Great video, I love rock hunting and wish I had a better background in geology. Despite offloading two liters of water on most hikes, my pack is always heavier at the end. Look forward to seeing what your gemstones look like when they come out of the tumbler.
I don't know anything about this but I do know rock collecting and polishing is super popular along the great lakes, particularly Lake Superior and Lake Michigan, and it'd be something cool to check out!
Thank you on behalf of professional archaeologists everywhere for educating everyone on the regulations/laws, thinking about the ethics of artifact hunting, and not becoming another youtuber to destroy another site for views.
Thank you for putting the arrowhead back. It's amazing to think you might be the first person to touch that in 200+ years...? If you're interested in learning about rocks/geology Shawn Willsey is a professor in So. Idaho who does YT videos on rocks, rock formations and lots more. Kinda like taking a geology class at my own pace.
So cool to see you out trying something new like this! I'm always torn about taking rocks from a well travelled space and i appreciate your reflection on your own experience out there. Just fyi on the editing end, your audio in this video was fairly inconsistent and hard to hear in some places. Just wanted to let you know in case you were unaware and it is something you might want to fix! Still very enjoyable to watch :)
When I was younger, during my summers my family and went to the Oregon Idaho border and Leslie Gultch to hunt for geodes aka thunder eggs. And I was just in Leslie Gultch in 2020😂
Hi Miranda, I'm a current student studying geology! It's great that you enjoyed rockhounding! I wanted you to know that jasper is indeed a type of chert, so you were successful in your jasper hunt!
Hi from Australia! 😀 Amazing park to visit and that arrow head was quite the find! Would be interesting to know (looking in the future) if anyone else will ever find it again? 😊
Hello Miranda! I have recently discovered your channel while looking for inspiration while rehabbing from hip preservation surgery. I have now watched all of “Miranda in the Wild” and am working my way through “Miranda Goes Outside”. After watching this episode on gem hunting, I am convinced now more than ever that you need to come and hike in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula! The beaches of Lake Superior are some of the most beautiful you will see anywhere and they are covered with beautiful, smooth stones of all different colors. You will find quartz, granite, jasper, and agate to name a few! There is also some of the most amazing hiking and backpacking in this part of the country! I am very partial to the western UP and Porcupine Mountains State Park with its many waterfalls but Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is also breathtaking! My favorite part of the UP would have to be the Keweenaw Peninsula. Copper Harbor is amazing and you can do some backpacking and car camping at the northern tip of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The entire area is rich in history, scenic drives, beautiful hikes, waterfalls and pristine nature. You would have an amazing time! I am in for at least a three month recovery from this hip surgery but it is the very first place I plan on going when I can get back out on a trail. That puts us in the fall which is my favorite time to be there anyway! Give it some consideration! I would love to see you “Outside” in the UP! PS- thank you for giving me so much inspiration to get past this surgery! I will be 50 in a couple of weeks and bouncing back takes a lot more out of me than it used to. Having a goal and something to look forward to is making all the difference!
The arrow head was likely made of Chert. While not a pretty stone it is used for stone tools and weapons. and also throws sparks when struck on high carbon steel.
🤣🤣 Miranda: That's to big for the tumbler Me: You have a hammer. Miranda: That's to big for the tumbler Me: You have a hammer! Miranda: That's to big for the tumbler Me: HAMMER!!! 🤣🤣
