Business booming at Crater of Diamonds State Park

MURFREESBORO — More than 62,000 people have visited Crater of Diamonds State Park so far this year, according to a news release from the park.

By the end of June, the park’s staff had certified 216 diamonds, including 146 white, 35 brown, and 35 yellow gems. The single-most productive month was March, with 69 diamonds registered at the park. Visitors from Arkansas registered 43 diamonds during the first half of 2018, while travelers from 26 other states and one foreign country registered 173 diamonds. The total weight for all diamonds registered was 38.658 carats.

Three diamonds weighing at least one carat each were registered by park staff during the first half of 2018. The largest was a 1.42-carat white gem discovered on April 18 by a visitor from Mississippi. Another guest from Texas found a 1.40-carat white diamond on March 31. On June 29, a traveler from Indiana recovered a 1.08-carat white diamond. Including these three large gems, 24 diamonds were found on the surface of the park’s 37-and-a-half acre diamond search area between January and June. The search area is plowed periodically to loosen the diamond-bearing volcanic soil. Rainfall washes the soil through the search area, concentrating heavy gravel and sometimes leaving larger, heavier diamonds on top of the ground for visitors to find.

Park staff urges visitors to wear a hat and sunscreen, bring plenty of drinking water, and take breaks from searching to cool off and help prevent heat-related illness.

Visit http://www.craterofdiamondsstatepark.com, call 870-285-3113, or email CraterofDiamonds@arkansas.com for more information.

The search area was last plowed on June 20, and the most recent significant rainfall was on July 8. Diamond finds for the week of July 8 (100 points equals 1 carat) included a 1.33-carat brown on July 9 by John Pease, of San Antonio, Texas, and a 53-point yellow on July 13 by Marissa Hoversten, of Pilot Hill, Calif.