FMF - Friends of Minerals Forum, discussion and message board

[al kirky]

Hi all, I'm new to this site and have only been collecting for about 3 months.
I live in Yorkshire UK and wondered if there is anywhere nearby where I could hunt for samples.

Cheers.

Al

[SteveB]

Near UK? There’s europe. Samples of what? Pretty useless question really. Go outside and look at the ground, find forrested areas, national parks, but i get the feeling you want to keep stuff for free. What you find laying on the ground is usually ok and you can find really good things like that because most people are too lazy to bother to look in the first place. Go to the seaside where all sorts of rocks and minerals can be found nicely rounded by the waves. If you have a gravel driveway you can search that too as there are a lot of interesting things that end up in gravel deposits. If you are found picking things out of cliff faces or digging though expect hefty fines as you require permission in the UK, I think its a licence you need. Due to the extensive history in the UK where you could be ruining a scientifically valuable location or blow yourself up from unexploded WW2 ordnance.
Just go look at the ground, dont ever go disturbing the ground, join a lapidary club as they often have outtings to locations where they have pre-arranged diggng permissions. If you go onto someones property expect to be shot at, so always always get permission first.

[alanbartlett]

If you're in Yorkshire you're not far from Whitby - I, my children and grandchildren, could spend forever on the beach there! You don't need a licence and won't get shot at!

[Jesse Fisher]

North Yorkshire, Co. Durham, and Cumbria have many famous and historic mineral locations. If you are interested in learning about these, I would recommend starting with getting a copy of "Minerals of Northern England" by Symes and Young (2008). Most of the locations described in the book are on private property and many are no longer accessible, but it will give you an idea of what has been found in the region. It, however, is not a field collecting guide. Potentially productive mineral localities that are still accessible to private collectors are often jealously guarded secrets of those who know of them. Getting to know people who spend their spare time field collecting will be key to finding out where one may go and have some success. Mineral shows are a good place to start. One of the best in the UK is (or was prior to covid) held in Bakewell, Derbyshire every March. I recall there was also a decent one in Harrogate each August, but I don't know if it still occurs. Joining a mineral collectors group such as the Russell Society is also a good idea. It is a national organization that has many local chapters and organizes field trips (or at least used to). If you are interested in fossils, I know that some areas along the Yorkshire coast are good hunting grounds for ammonites and such, but this is not something I know a lot about.

[al kirky]

Alanbartlet ,Thanks for the reply. Whitby isn't all that far away from me so I will give that a go.

Jesse Fisher. Thanks for the reply. I could fit those locations in on the trip to Whitby.
I looked at notifications for the mineral fairs but they all seem to be cancelled because of Covid but maybe they will open later in the year with the restrictions being lifted.

Steve B. How is it a "useless question ? If you read my question carefully you would have noticed that I live in Yorkshire. Are you always so obnoxious ?

[James Catmur]

I agree with that advice.

Do look at British dealers websites and auction sites to get an idea what is being found. If you are willing to go further afield and cross the border Wanlockhead/Leadhills is a good area and you can find masses of common minerals and a few very rare ones there - but do check the legality of where you collect. The Isle of Skye is superb but the better sites are very hard to access. I know a few good sites in Fife, but I tell no one where they are!

In the end the secret is 'look at the ground and check every rock' - that has meant me finding stone age axes, plesiosaur fossils, and lots of minerals