Mineral Collecting

Mine Run Dump

The Mine Run dump. conveniently located adjacent to the visitor parking lot, contains hundreds of tons of high-grade zinc ore from the depths of the Sterling Hill mine. Much of the ore is highly fluorescent, making this area a favorite of collectors. Also in this area is a separate, smaller dump containing diverse minerals and rocks from all over the world. A small brick building on the edge of the dump contains a scale and an ultraviolet lamp, so visitors can weigh their specimens and view them under shortwave ultraviolet light before deciding on purchasing them.

When we are Open:  The Mine Run dump is available for collecting from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. every day the museum is open for tours (see our Calendar for current schedule). 

Fees:  Admission to the collecting area is $5, plus $1.50 per pound for whatever specimens you choose to take with you.

Who may Collect:  The dump is open to adults and children from age 7 on up.

What you Should Bring:  Sturdy shoes and protective eyewear are necessary for admission. Please bring your own hammers, ultraviolet lamps, carrying bags, etc., as we do not rent such equipment to visitors. However, our gift shop contains a good selection of ultraviolet lamps for sale, should you decide to purchase one. Please note that the rock from this mine is both heavy and hard, and for that reason, claw hammers are not allowed – not only are they ineffective, but they can easily break. We recommend hand sledges of 40 oz or greater weight, plus long-handled sledges if you wish to break some of the larger rocks. A carrying sack or backpack is useful but not necessary, because the collecting area is immediately adjacent to our parking lot. Also useful, if you wish to collect fluorescent minerals, is a black barbeque cover to exclude light, so you can see the minerals fluorescing even on brightly sunlit days. (You will look ridiculous, a black blob slowly migrating across the dump surface, but you’ll find some wonderful things.)

What you may find:  Fine specimens of zinc ore, consisting of variable proportions of brown willemite, red zincite, black franklinite, and white calcite, can be collected on the dump with ease.  Much of the willemite and calcite are brightly fluorescent, green and red respectively.  Fluorescent sphalerite is commonly found as well, fluorescing variably orange, pink, or blue.  White calcite marble from a nearby excavation contains pale blue-fluorescing diopside and yellow-fluorescing norbergite.  Also found here are some of the rare species that made Sterling Hill famous as a mineral locality, but please note that these minerals are not called “rare” for nothing.

Passaic Pit Area

The floor of the Passaic pit, the “saddle” area leading up to the Noble pit, and a flat area adjacent to the Fill quarry are available for collecting by the public only on the last Sunday of every month the museum is open. Group collecting is occasionally possible by prior arrangement; for details call the museum at 973-209-7212 and ask for Richard or Robert Hauck.

The minimum age for collecting in these areas is 13. Fees and equipment needs are as stated above for the Mine Run dump, but due to the distance between the collecting area and the parking lot, a hand truck or similar wheeled conveyance will prove useful in transporting heavy rock to your car.  In contrast to the Mine Run dump, most of the rock in the Passaic pit area is not ore, but marble and gneissic rock from horizons below the orebody.  Collectible minerals vary accordingly. Wollastonite, sphalerite, and hydrozincite are popular targets among enthusiasts of fluorescent minerals.

Night Collecting

Night collecting at Sterling Hill is scheduled four times a year, twice for members of the public and twice for museum members only. Both the Mine Run dump and the Passaic pit area are open for collecting, but different Age Restrictions Apply: 7 and up for the Mine Run dump, but 13 and up elsewhere. Fees are the same as for other collecting events: $5 admission plus $1.50 per pound for all material taken.

For Members of the Public:  Nighttime collecting is available Saturday night only, from 7:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., during the same weekends as our two local mineral shows.  The spring show is held during the last full weekend in April, and the fall show during the last full weekend in September. 

For Museum Members Only:  Nighttime collecting for museum members only is held on the third Saturday of June and October of every year.  Hours are 7:00 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. in June and 6:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in October.

For Groups:  Groups interested in scheduling a nighttime collecting opportunity at Sterling Hill are encouraged to call Richard or Robert Hauck at 973-209-7212 to discuss possible dates and terms.