desert calendar - Desert Magazine of the Southwest

Agate Hunting
Along the Gila
By FENTON TAYLOR
Photographs by the Author
Map by Norton Allen
ESCRIBING THE canyon dell
immediately below Coolidge dam
on the Gila River in Arizona, a
rock collector said, "It is the only
place I know in the Southwest desert
where you can pick up gem quality
agate with one hand and catch fish
with the other."
This description sounded like a
corner of paradise reserved for the
rockhounds. Being a zealous collector
of quartz family minerals, I visited the
location without delay and was convinced
that except for obvious exaggeration
my friend was right. Good
agate can be found in nearly every
direction, and bass, perch, catfish and
carp abound in the river.
Saguaro, cholla, pear and other
cactus species are scattered over the
encircling hills. It is truly a desert
land—where you must bring your own
drinking water unless you are one of
the few who find the brackish river
water palatable.
Not to Scah
Last March this secluded but easilyaccessible
valley of the Gila River was
selected for a joint field trip for members
of the Mineralogical Society of
Arizona, Maricopa Lapidary Society
and the Gila Valley Gem and Mineral
Society. Eighty-nine members of the
three groups spent the day picnicking
and collecting specimens.
Protected by steep canyon walls, the
area is reached from Highway 70, the
paved trans-Arizona route which
crosses the Coolidge dam 105 miles
west of the Arizona-New Mexico line.
The highway generally follows the
course of the historical Gila River,
which was an international boundary
after the Mexican war until the Gadsden
Purchase in 1853 placed it entirely
in the United States.
Above the dam, San Carlos lake
this year contains more water than it
has for many seasons. From this
reservoir irrigation canals serve ap-
GLOBE, 26 MILES
SAFFORD
63 MILES
"A rock collector's paradise,"
Fenton Taylor calls this agate
location just below Coolidge
Dam on Arizona's Gila River.
Hunting in the lovely canyon
dell beside a river abounding in
bass, carp, perch and catfish,
members of three Arizona mineralogical
societies collected gem
quality material on a joint field
day last March. Here is one of
those rare collecting sites — a
mineral-rich area easily accessible
by paved highway.
proximately 120,000 acres of fertile
land in the Casa Grande Valley.
Beneath the waters of the lake is
the location from which the Apache
renegade Geronimo once led many of
his raids. The place later became the
headquarters of the San Carlos Indian
agency. Here too, is the ancient Indian
burial ground which became a
highly controversial topic during the
days when the project was being
planned.
The Indians contended that the creation
of the lake would inundate the
graves, and thus would be a violation
of their treaty rights. They refused
to consider a proposal that the bodies
be removed to a new cemetery.
After much discussion the tribal
council approved a proposal that a
concrete blanket be poured over the
entire cemetery, a project which the
Reclamation Bureau carried out at a
20 DESERT MAGAZINE