5 TIPS AND GEAR FOR SUCCESSFUL ROCKHOUNDING

Muck Boots for lakeshore hunting —they are insulated and keep feet dry and they have a good grip on the bottom. Hunting elsewhere, be sure you have a good pair of hiking shoes or boots, with good soles and good grip, that you’ve worn a few times before. A sturdy backpack that fits well and allows you room to safely collect rocks. Plus, if you have an ingenuity friend like Rintamaki’s pal, Jeff Smith, they may come up with a unique device to help make depositing the rocks into your backpack that much easier. Good UV light. Rintamaki’s Recommendation: The Convoy C8. It’s durable, dynamic, and has great range. Speaking of UV light, as Rintamaki explained, he didn’t always use a top-notch light, but he was inspired to use one as a way to discover his Yooperlites more than 15 years ago. “Several years ago, I taught my brother-in-law to hunt agates, and he became really good at it. We were always trying to figure out a way to hunt for rocks at night, and wouldn’t you know, on the back cover of Rock & Gem magazine we saw an ad for shortwave midwave long wave light. It looked like a big shoe box that would be shipped in parts that you’d have to solder to-gether yourself, and it cost between $500 and $600.” “We thought ‘Man, can you imagine if we had that? The whole beach probably lights up with glowing rocks.’ Fast forward 15 years and one day I’m searching eBay and a mineral detection light appears and the agate is glowing. I picked it up right away for only $7, and it was a horri-ble UV flashlight, but it helped me spot the Yooperlites that first time.” Glow sticks and a head lamp. This is for safety and using as “breadcrumbs” to guide back to one’s entry point to the beach from the forest.

Holster where extra batteries can be stored.

BONUS TIP: Be sure to always tell someone where you are going – the location – and if you are able, take someone with you. There is safety in numbers.