If you like nodding and specking for opal gemstones Lightning Ridge is the best place.
Free of charge when purchasing stones over $191. Graham’s jewelers will hand make professional custom goldsmith design jewelry to suit the gemstone purchased,clients personal designs excepted. The gemstones at wholesale direct form our mines, or try your luck on your trip to mining location.
Opal rings and jewelry.
Nodding is looking around trying to find free gemstone, the term specking opal the same meaning,if you fine some stones.A lot cheaper if i make your next jewelry for you, “Stones from the only mine lease listed on State Heritage Register” List as an item of environmental heritage in LEP National Trust of Australia Register. Heritage submission read opal More rarely, specimens contain precious opal and these are surely among the most beautiful natural objects on earth. The opal is of the highest quality, characterized by red/black gems of superlative brilliance.
Specking opals noodling looking for free stones and if you have a trail bike or four-wheel-drive they are a must to take on your tour to the mining towns like the Ridge, as the Australian landscape is quite isolated, most towns are in the Australian outback , you can ride off road prospecting all the old fields . You will find fields old mines as far as 100 km from the township of lightning Ridge, Camp free of charge around the old fields as there is usually plenty of water available. You are bound to find some opals searching the ground around the old claims, I would imagine you’re thinking how do I prospect, it’s simple on top of the claims you will find large heaps of white clay and sometimes the piles of clay have mixed colors a light brown to orange color mostly white mounds.
Specking opals simply take with you a pair of tiller cutters or something similar a large open mouth tool that can crush something similar to the strength of glass. If you see beautiful color simply take the stones back into town to be cut, you will find a lot of gray and black or mixed color pieces.
“Do not throw them away you must chip at the edges with the tile cutter and if you see color the stone also can be cut. Any solids with out color is simply called porch which can be all throw away as it is practically worthless in Australia.
The best time to go noodling specking for opals is after rain as a lot of the white clay around the claims have been washed off the solids and if it is sunny after the rain any color can be seen easily by the naked eye and will stand out. You never know what the old miners have missed or simply through inexperience or frustration left behind, people have found a dollars $10,000.00 stone noodling around .
Don’t forget sale free of charge when purchasing stones over $191. Graham’s jewelers will hand make 1 jewelry item free .
A conventional two wheel drive car ok but obviously better to have a four-wheel-drive, you can even book a room and they even have tourist guides available these days at some of the locations outside of lightning Ridge also . A four-wheel-drive is truly a great way to travel and nodding specking for opals around the Ridge as you will have closer encounters with native Australian animals also a four-wheel-drive will allow you to go prospecting with only your favorite friends anywhere wet weather. Why sit at home and watch Indiana Jones on TV, when you can become a real gem hunter on your next safari of the outback . Don’t fear if you have problems there is a hospital in Ridge and most of the surrounding towns also have hospitals or at least the flying doctors service, the Ridge also has a great search and rescue team for any emergencies” you might be in the outback but as Australia is a first world country the technology like the Internet services are all first,class.
Opal fossicking and specking for opals in old mines.
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Opal gemstone.
I would recommend you to visit the towns in spring September October, tours are all so great in autumn April and may, winter June July August is ok the nights are cold. You will definitely fine some stones so get them cut and polished in lightning Ridge as there are many cutters available their but not many jewelers , when you arrive back home at the end of the tour you will find my advice helped a lot as once you leave the fields you will find it hard to find a cutter to polish the gemstones that you found on your last trip . On your return back home you can have your jeweler make some beautiful crystal, black,grey opal jewelry. you can even find white opal around town what ever type of color you find I can guarantee you everybody wants a souvenir of their adventures in the outback and some opals you find can always be worn by you or love one’s you will never forget the great time you had on that trip to the gem feels to outback township of Lightning Ridge Australia.
Also great advice to take note of is that many jewelers do not understand the requirements of Opals being , crystal, grey, semi-black, as it is quite a specialist field of jewelry and goldsmith design. I would recommend you to find a jeweler on your return back home that has handmade this gemstone, have jewelry skills and understands this particular stone requirements for setting the gem into the finish jewelry item “as this is quite a skill and only can guarantee there work”.
International gemstone lovers there is so much more to the Ridge and gemstones, bird watching so many exotic birds the Major Mitchell, animal watching there is a 6 foot bird that cannot fly that has eggs the size of a child’s head. Great fishing during the wet season the list could go on and on cowboys cattle drafting sheep herds horse riding ,camping in the great outdoors, the Ridge provides a professional shooter’s club as there are a lot of environmentally destructive introduced animals that makes great eating pork free range pig rabbits that all need keeping under control, ” do not forget all you out door active people you might even stumble across a fortune in Opal gemstones while you’re crossing the landscape around lightning Ridge.
And of course if you want to be part of this exotic industry it is easy you can quickly survey some land, because after purchasing a books form the blue book shop you will have a good idea where to peg a claim why you’re in town, register the claim at the government offers and you’re ready to go mining. Buy all the tools and machinery that you need in town .
