Coast to Country

We headed to Hot Springs for a birthday getaway, celebrating both Nana and my husband, but the highlight quickly became Nana’s big wish: digging for crystals. With the car loaded down with boots, shovels, and plenty of water, we set off in search of sunshine, red clay, and a little natural sparkle.

No Grit, No Glitter!

We spent the day at Ron Coleman Mining, which is part working mine, part public dig site. You can bring your own tools or rent what you need and spend the day hunting for treasure, real quartz crystals, just waiting to be unearthed.

The day was already heating up when we arrived, sunlight pouring over the red clay hills. My husband and our son headed right for the tallest dirt piles, shovels in hand, ready to dig in. Nana and I took our time, wandering until we found a few “lucky” spots that seemed to call our names.

Digging In

At first, it’s hard to tell what’s crystal and what’s just plain rock. Everything is coated in red Arkansas clay, and by the time we’d been digging for an hour, we were completely covered in it too. Still, there’s something addictive about scraping away layer after layer, waiting for that tiny flash of sparkle to catch the light.

We found a mix of clear quartz and milky quartz, some small points, some clusters, and even a few we’re sure are going to clean up beautifully once we get them home.

Then, just as we were hitting our groove, the mine crew came rumbling through with a fresh load of dirt… and dumped it almost on top of us! We had to scramble out of our holes before they filled them in completely!

When that fresh load of dirt hit the ground, everyone rushed toward it, it was a total free-for-all. We were elbow-deep in mud, grabbing at anything that glimmered. The crystals were coated so thick we could only spot them by the dark shine peeking through the muck. We filled our bags fast, knowing we’d have to wait until we got home to wash them and see what treasures we’d actually found. By then, we were worn out from all our earlier digging and still had to haul our heavy, mud-filled buckets back to the car. It was exhausting, messy, and absolutely worth it.

Learning, Creating, and Getting Dirty

One of my favorite things about trips like this is how much learning sneaks in naturally. We talked about how quartz forms, how sediment settles, and how to tell different varieties apart, all while knee-deep in the real stuff. Homeschool doesn’t always happen at the kitchen table; sometimes it happens under a big Arkansas sky with a shovel in your hand.

Nana was already planning her jewelry pieces before we even packed up. She’s got an eye for turning these raw crystals into something beautiful, necklaces, rings, and little wire-wrapped charms that carry the story of the day.

Our son wants to start a “rock museum” shelf in their room, and honestly, I can’t blame them. These crystals are gorgeous, even before they’re cleaned.

The Drive Home

By the time we left, we were hot, tired, and a little sunburned, but our buckets were full of muddy treasures. We can’t wait to wash them off at home and see what kind of beauty’s hiding underneath all that clay.

Trips like this are exactly why we love mixing learning with living, family time, a bit of adventure, and memories that sparkle as much as the crystals themselves.