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Franconia Meteorite Field


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Allen,

  Havent been to Franconia since the beginning of the year, but get out there at least 2-3 times a year. Fun place and always produces meteorites, along with .50 cal, .30 cal, bits of wire, ect. Still pretty warm there now, suppose to be about 114 this weekend there. A friend about a year ago got a multi pounder out there, so there still there, just not as many.

If you get out there hope you get some good ones.

Dave

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Hey Dave back in the day there was a guy from Kingman that passed away and I held a Memorial Hunt for him at Franconia and there was some funds raised to put up a memorial bench in Kingman. He had a lot to do with meteorite hunting. Do you remember his name. Since we sold our property at the end of 23rd st haven't been back. Found a lot of gold and meteorite's in Gold Basin. Threw alot of nice ones away as hot rocks before they were identified as meteorite's. Might have to make a trip back that way someday.

 

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Allen,

  Was it Jim Smaller? He mapped out the original meteorite strewn field. Was a nice guy, talked to him a few times.

Dave

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13 hours ago, Allen in MT said:

Anybody still hunting Franconia with results? been a lot of years since I was there. Lots of 30 & 50 cal bullets.

There are still lots of little irons on the north side.  I've found gold but never a meteorite on the south side.

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When we had the outing for Jim Smaller a guy showed up with a MXT and didn't know how to use it so I showed him and later that day he found a base ball sized meteorite with it on the south side. We usually camped on the S. side about 3/4 mile off the highway.

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The south side produced some large pieces, back in the day. Nowadays it's really hard to find any on the south side. The north side extends quite a ways up, and smaller pieces are still around, including small irons like Mitchel said. I am enclosing a picture of the meteorite strewn field extended from Jim Smallers original map, this map is a few years old, a lot more have been found since..

Dave

1212793286_FranconiaStrewnField.thumb.jpg.b87397626f75aab37a514cb424f4ca26.jpg

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  • 2 years later...

DolanDave, or anyone out there... we want to go to the Franconia Wash with a small group of prospectors (9) to look for meteorites.  It is totally new to all of us!  Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.  We will have metal detectors and neodymian magnets.  Is this a public area, we don't want to do anything illegal!  Thank you!

 

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Hello,  I've been to Franconia many times and I have a plan to go back in the next couple of months.  The way I hunt it now is different than the first few times.  It is a large area that holds meteorites from more than one source as it seems.

Here is a reference database that describes meteorites from all over the world.  You can download files from it that will work as a layer on Google Earth.

Meteoritical Bulletin: Search the Database (usra.edu) 

I searched for Franconia and only found one entry.  A name associated with many meteorite discoveries at Franconia and Gold Basin is Robert Verish.  He would be a good name to look up as he has many pictures and slices on the internet.

The following are some directions to how I go into Franconia these days.  I get off the I40 and go North until I get to the RR Tracks.  I go to the right until I get to the RRXing.  I cross the tracks and turn to the left (west) and use the upper track road until it drops down to the dirt wash again.  (I don't know what the rains might have done to it this winter so be careful.)

Now that you are on the north side of the tracks you go for 2-300 yards or so and come to a choice of roads.  You take a small road that goes UP 80 feet or so and then it levels off and you follow that road until you come to a circle with signs that say Wilderness.  You can't drive any closer than that and be legal.

When you stop there several cars can park and you will be about 3 miles or so north of the I40.  Hike across those deeper washes to the North and East and you can find meteorites with metal detectors.  The first portion is mostly irons (small, highly magnetic pieces) and the more east you go the closer you get to the center of the chondrite field.  Some patches out there have been highly gridded removing most of the original meteorites so keep trying to find a less hunted area.

If you don't want to go up the steep little road you can follow the bigger roads up to the north.  They go up several miles.  I've hunted up there also and while less dense there can be some good meteorites found up there.  Just stop at any likely spot and mostly walk East towards Kingman.

If you send me a PM with your phone I can send you a map pinpoint for the first location.

I hope this helps.

Mitchel

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  • 3 weeks later...

There are a couple of cool days to be had in Franconia.  I'm going in a few hours.  It is a 300 mile drive for me.  Look for a white SUV.  I'll stay overnight and probably look for gold on day 2.  We'll see about a second night.

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