The Bondyweb Adventure Team (Tim and Addie) took an exploratory hike for some rock hounding along Gedney Wash just off Highway 51 in Owyhee County on October 12th, 2013. I found what I’ll call “opaque white agate” but not in Gedney Wash. This cool white rock was found roughly along the 4940 foot contour line on the north side of Peak 4972. And this is my story.
Cooler Weather Puts Owyhee County in Play
The recent cool weather and some rain opened up the cool weather hiking and exploration season of the vast mountainous high desert of Owyhee County. I haven’t done a lot of rock hounding along Highway 51 but Gedney Butte and the nearby dry wash caught my attention when researching a trip on Google Earth near Grasmere, Idaho.
The self-named “Gedney Wash” is plainly visible on Google Earth and dry washes are usually pretty cool places to rock hound and explore. So off we went on a nice Saturday afternoon in October. Only 60 road miles south of Mountain Home, a quick turn-off Highway 51 and Addie the Plott Hound and I were were ready to explore.
Where is Gedney Wash?
Click HERE to see if you can find Gedney Butte, Peak 4972 and the “wash” on the topo map. Or you can use the coordinates N 42.47267 W 115.86971 and your own maps.
Gedney Wash is a Mud Flat Without the Mud
Heading east on foot through the sagebrush steppe along a dirt trail was rather discouraging. The biggest problem was the lack of rocks. And I mean, there were no rocks in what I have to call a mudflat dry wash. Trash and cow patties didn’t help matters any either.
Should I Stay or Should I Rock Hound Now
I had to get out of the dry wash if I had any hopes of finding cool stuff. The slight rise to our south was the last hope before I would head back to the car. If rocks didn’t start showing up and interesting rocks at that, I was heading back. The first cool rock I found was a chalcedony frosted rock that keep me moving forward.
On the immediate horizon was a slight peak and we headed that direction. I found the occasional piece of “opaque white agate” in the lower elevations. As we drew close to mighty Peak 4972, there wasn’t an interesting rocks to be had. We headed north and down towards Gedney Wash where I started finding some signs of the opaque white agate. We hiked side-hill and found a good supply of cool rock along the 4920 contour line on my GPS unit. Trying to stay at this elevation, we headed back to the car.
The Results
Here is a picture of all the rocks I brought home. And what will I do with them? Into the rock garden I have out back as they are nothing special…but they are cool.
The Adventure Scorecard – 5 Stars or Worse
- Remoteness: 3 Stars – Highway 51 was visible almost the entire time. Otherwise this place is darn remote.
- Beauty: 3 Stars – I have a soft spot for the desert.
- Cleanliness of Our Lands: 2 Stars – Sporadic junk found along entire hike. Lots of cow patties too.
- Rock Hounding: 3 Stars
- Wildlife: 0 Stars – Saw a few birds and dried up deer, antelope pellets.
- Overall Score: 2.5 Stars – Enjoyable but not going back again.
Link to More Pictures
https://skydrive.live.com/redir?resid=4D25E44B90AD42DA!877
This is my Life Off Interstate 84 in Mountain Home, Idaho
