According to Google Maps, it is over 700 miles and a 12-hour drive from where we were staying in Franklin, North Carolina to our new base camp, cottage, in Murfreesboro, Arkansas. Our plans included two objectives during our stay here. The first being, collecting at the Crater of Diamonds State Park. The second objective was to collect Arkansas Quartz Crystals at Mt. Ida. When you hear the name Mt. Ida you should immediately think of Quartz Crystals.

The cottage we had rented in Arkansas was about a half mile from the Crater. It was a perfect location being so close. Mt. Ida was about fifty miles to the north, less than an hours drive. We were strategically located within a reasonable distance to both collecting areas.

During the week in Arkansas, the temperatures never fell below 105 degrees. This kind of heat certainly placed a very large obstacle in our collecting plans. At the Crater, after only five hours of diamond hunting we were forced to abandon our search as the temperature hit 114 degrees. I was concerned about collecting in Mt. Ida.

Mt. Ida, Arkansas is called the “Quartz Crystal Capital of the World”. The major deposits of quartz crystals lie in the Ouachita Mountains, in a narrow band about 30-40 miles wide and 170 miles long, from Little Rock, Arkansas to eastern Oklahoma. The most numerous veins being located along the central core of the Ouachita Mountains. According to H.D. Miser, a well-known and recognized geologist, quartz crystals have been known since humans first occupied the area. Native Americans, it was recorded in a report from Hernando de Soto, used quartz crystal chips as projectiles. De Soto himself is reported to have died in on the banks of the Mississippi River in Arkansas or Louisiana in 1542. Early sources of crystals were in the Crystal Mountains of Montgomery County. By the late 1800’s crystals were being mined in Garland and Saline Counties. With the coming of radio and communication equipment quartz crystals became a highly sought after commodity. Though, I myself, have not studied radio equipment specific parts in communications equipment use quartz crystals. Specifically “oscillator grade quartz”. Please see Wikipedia use keyword crystal oscillator for a full description. During WWII with federal agencies stimulating domestic growth quartz crystal mining was in it’s hayday. That was of course until, the General Electric Company developed a technique to grow quartz crystals artificially during the 1950’s. After this, the bottom basically fell out of the crystal mining business. Later because of tourism, collectors and museums Arkansas Quartz Crystals were making a come back. There are now dozens of “pay to dig” sites offering Arkansas Quartz Crystals.

The crystals themselves were formed some 280 million years ago in cavities, cracks and crevices by deposition of the host mineral while in a hot water solution. The town of Hot Springs, Arkansas located nearby was world famous and still is for it’s natural hot spring bath houses. Most of the quartz occurring here is what is called “milky quartz”. As the name implies a whitish coloring is imparted to the quartz. This coloring is due to the presence of microscopic bubbles. These bubbles were also in solution while in the crystal forming process and deposition. As light enters the quartz, the bubbles cause the light to scatter instead of penetrating and traveling through the quartz causing the milky color appearance. The clear quartz is absolutely superb. 

As I had mentioned earlier, there are dozens of “pay to dig” sites offering you the opportunity to dig for Arkansas Quartz Crystals in the Mt. Ida area. A short Internet search will give you all the information you need to choose your sites. I had already chosen two sites in particular due to the detailed research I had conducted prior to this trip. The two sites I chose were the Arrowhead Quartz Crystal Mine and Wegner Crystal Mines. 

Talking about communication equipment, the websites for the sites I chose listed their addresses among other information. I have a GPS unit in my vehicle as well as a handheld unit connected to my laptop while in the bush. Modern day technology has made finding locations easier than ever. I enter the site address into the GPS and start driving. The little lady living inside my unit tells me to turn right, turn left, approaching destination. Before you know it we arrive at the Arrowhead Crystal Mine.



The Arrowhead Mine has a very large sign posted at the highway. The entrance to the mine is by their sign. We turned onto the dirt road leading to the mine. The beginning of the dirt road was wide, graveled and well maintained. The farther we traveled the narrower and bumpy it got. After maybe half a mile the road was washed out in spots with very large deep ditches in it. A vehicle with four-wheel drive is highly recommended. In a few spots, my son had to get out of the vehicle to push small trees from our path in order we might proceed. It became quite obvious this site was not being used or maintained. It probably was not even open any longer. Finally we could precede no farther. The roadway was blocked by a very big gate, which had a very big lock on it. On the gate was a sign which read ”Road closed call for mining info”. 




I’m not one to complain…but don’t you think the owners of this site would have the simple courtesy to post that very same sign at the beginning of the road ??? Maybe even post several signs so as to discourage visitors the drive to no-where. I now was faced with the extremely difficult maneuver of turning my vehicle around, as there was no room provided to do so. Back to the highway we went. My wife called the phone number listed on the gate sign …no answer. In fact we called five additional times over the period of that day and still no answer. We tried on other occasions on other days also. Each call was the same…no answer. Should you decide to visit this site, I recommend you call ahead, days ahead. That is if this site is still operating. We did not return nor will I return. My plans allowed two days at two different sites. This first site was done for. We proceeded to the second site.



We arrived at Wegner Crystal Mines and were immediately struck with awe. Outside of their old barn type office, rock shop were numerous large tables containing unbelievable specimens of quartz crystals. Thousands of specimens in fact, all shapes all sizes, from single crystals to crystal clusters to large rocks to boulders all containing beautiful crystals. All collected here at their mine. I must admit I was in my glory. It would take a day alone just to examine the specimens they had for sale here. 




We quickly looked over the samples realizing this was the right place to have come. Inside the building there were shelves and shelves and shelves full of crystals…it was a paradise. I was in heaven. A younger man offering assistance greeted us. I regained my composure and asked about digging for crystals. The man explained the set-up. The price was $15 per head for 2 hours. Only 2 hours I questioned ??? He said that if in that time you didn’t find crystals, you weren’t looking for them. Here at Wegner’s they have three 2 hour-long trips to the mining area per day. You can not drive your vehicle to the mining area. Later I would see why. Another man would drive us. The mining area was on top of the mountain maybe two miles away. The next trip was in about one hour when the driver was to drive up and pick up the previous group of diggers. I paid the digging fee for us three. We returned to our vehicle to get our digging clothes and gear. We changed in the washroom/changing area and were ready. Having some time left, we were able to look over the crystals for sale in more detail. This is a wonder site just to come and walk around at. There is no charge to walk around. The staff will answer all your questions.

The driver met us shortly and told us to meet at the picnic table in a few minutes. There he explained all the rules of the site. He stated that at the digging site was provided bottled water, a first aid kit and a cell phone to be used in case of an emergency. He also said it is about a twenty minute drive to the digging site, should the weather look like rain or a storm we were to call immediately and be prepared to leave in a hurry. The management did not want anyone on the mountain in a storm.

I was extremely pleased at how well organized and how well prepared this site is, nothing was left out. 

The vehicle they use to transport diggers to the digging site is an older model Ford with a few modifications. The bed of the truck was modified to accommodate the diggers and their gear. Padded bench type seating was installed around and inside the bed. The tailgate uses a hydraulic lift, like many delivery trucks use. The diggers step onto the lift and like an elevator are raised to the seating area. The lift is also used in case a digger finds a large specimen to heavy to physically lift and place into the bed. Just roll the specimen onto the lift an up it goes. It was now time to go. We climbed aboard and were ready.




It was about two o’clock in the afternoon. The temperature was at 109 degrees. The sky was clear sun was shining. Only us three were going this trip. The driver turned around and off down the red dusty clay soil we went. Turning the bend at the big pine tree, I could see the road winding up the mountain. The road was completely enclosed by the forest and from its condition I could see why you can not drive your personal vehicle. This road was worse than the road at the Arrowhead. It was beautiful climbing to the top and very, very bumpy. The scenery was beautiful. The drive alone was worth the $15.




After about twenty minutes, the driver pulled over to the side and stopped. He lowered us to the ground and showed us the digging area. The digging area was not a single wide-open area but actually numerous smaller areas all separated by mainly pine trees. He said we could dig any where in any of the areas. The driver explained there are no boundaries just do not wander off to far. You are supposed to remain within sight of other diggers. All the digging areas were plowed to some degree. The soil was broken up, loose, with both large and small chunks of rock exposed on the surface. The digging areas must have been logged which would explain the absence of trees on them.




As we were walking toward the digging area we selected, the diggers from the previous trip were starting to walk up to the truck congregating there awaiting their return trip. I was looking into their buckets to see if any of them had found quartz. All the buckets I saw were loaded with red clay soil stained quartz. Oh, ya!!! Adam lead the way.



We each picked shady spots along the tree line and went about searching for crystals. The search did not take to long. In fact, within minutes all three of us were yelling to each other they had found crystals. It was though the soil was saturated with crystals. I was picking up crystals from a quarter inch in length up to one inch long. 




My son and wife said they were finding even bigger ones than that. The site we picked it seemed was a treasure chest. I think the entire area was a treasure chest. I walked over to see what my family was finding. Just as I arrived, my son pulled a mammoth sized rock from the ground completely covered in crystals of all sizes. All three of us worked this same area together. It was amazing by the number of crystals we dug up. Most of what we found were beautifully shaped “water clear” crystals. It reminded me of the clarity of the crystals from Herkimer, New York. Being in the shade made all the difference. The heat was not a factor as at the Crater. Finding crystals and the numbers of crystals as we were finding was remarkable. It was like a flash and the 2 hours were over already. We had filled 3 five gallon buckets full of red soil stained quartz. Unbelievable!




A large portion of the Arkansas Quartz Crystals have long eroded from the veins and cavities in which they were formed. The erosion process took millions of years breaking down the softer sandstones, shales, and other rock material housing the crystals. The crystals lie buried beneath or directly on the surface of the iron rich red clay soil. When I first questioned the 2-hour trip, I see now, 2 hours is plenty of time. Like the man said… if in that amount time you didn’t find crystals, you weren’t looking for them. He was exactly correct.

I would have loved to have stayed just to see what could be found here, even if it meant not collecting any more specimens. The soil was easy to dig, with the smell of pine all around you. But, unfortunately our 2 hours came and went. We packed up our gear and started to carry our very heavy treasure laden buckets back to the waiting truck. The driver carried two of the buckets just to help us. 

The trip to Wegner Crystal Mines was a wonderful trip. If you are planning to visit this area put this site on your list.

Since the crystals are stained from the red clay soil you will need to clean them. Before you attempt anything like this….research, research, research. The Internet has thousands of websites containing information concerning the cleaning of quartz crystals. Be aware of the proper use and disposal of chemicals. Oxalic Acid is usually recommended to remove the staining after power washing or gentle scrubbing. Do not attempt to work with this acid without knowledge of what you are doing. You must follow all safety precautions and safety gear must be worn. Failure to follow all labels and directions can and will put you or a loved one in harms way. Acid will cause burns.

We did visit other quartz crystal “pay to dig” sites as well as a few rock shop along the way. We did not do any farther digging however. It was a pleasure just to look at the specimens on display and for sale. With three buckets full of our own specimens there was no need to do any farther digging. So ended our two-week collecting trip.


Thank you and good hunting

Franko