Rockhounding in Summit County, CO: 368 USGS Mineral Sites (2026)

Check access before you go. Most sites listed here are old mines, quarries or prospects, and many are on private land or active mining claims. Get the landowner's permission, check the rules of the agency that manages any public land, and never enter mine workings. Locations are approximate.

Sketch map

Past ProducerProducerProspectOccurrenceStatus unknown

78 paw pins; nearby sites are grouped into one pin. Hover or tap a pin for the site name. 6 site(s) with USGS coordinates outside the outline are not pinned. County outline: US Census Bureau cartographic boundary file (2023). Locations approximate.

Woof’s favorite find

Ling Mine

We picked it because its USGS record mentions 3 gem or collectible minerals (Quartz, Gold, Silver) and 7 of our card minerals overall. No other named site here scores as high on both counts. USGS lists it as past producer for Gold, Silver. Minerals mentioned: Quartz, Gold, Pyrite, Galena, Copper, Silver, Scheelite. Approx. location 39.379, -106.103. USGS record.

Ask first: a USGS record doesn’t mean you can visit. Find out who owns the land and get permission before collecting.

Field cards: what kind of sites?

192

Past Producer

Produced ore or material at some point in the past.

Occurrence

The mineral was noted here, without development.

Producer

Was producing when the record was made.

Unknown

Status not recorded.

Prospect

Explored or test-dug, with no recorded production.

Status terms come from USGS MRDS records.

Mineral cards

Silver
Mohs 2.5–3. Native silver tarnishes black. Mindat
306 sites
Gold
Mohs 2.5–3. Soft, heavy and bright yellow; it doesn’t tarnish. Mindat
305 sites
Copper
Mohs 2.5–3. Native copper is soft and turns green as it weathers. Mindat
220 sites
Galena
Mohs 2.5–2.75. Heavy, silvery lead ore that breaks into cubes. Mindat
91 sites
Pyrite
Mohs 6–6.5. Brassy “fool’s gold,” often cubic. Mindat
70 sites
Quartz
Mohs 7. Six-sided points; smoky quartz is NH’s state gem. Mindat
42 sites
Beryl
Mohs 7.5–8. Six-sided crystals; aquamarine and emerald are beryl. Mindat
2 sites
Scheelite
Mohs 4.5–5. Tungsten mineral that glows blue-white under shortwave UV. Mindat
2 sites

Counts are sites whose USGS record mentions the mineral or commodity. Hardness from Mindat.

Minerals recorded here

Galena 90Sphalerite 71Pyrite 43Chalcopyrite 24Silver 14Gold 13Tetrahedrite 12Molybdenite 6Pyrrhotite 5Argentite 4Ankerite 3Ferrimolybdite 2

Commodities

Gold 254Lead 143Silver 118Zinc 72Copper 34Molybdenum 11Bismuth 5Tungsten 5Manganese 4Iron 3

Sites (first 40)

Site	Commodity	Minerals recorded	Status	Approx. location
Carbonate Mine	Zinc, Silver, Lead	Anglesite, Galena	Producer	39.462, -105.983
Kokomo District	Gold, Lead, Zinc, Silver	Anglesite, Galena, Cerussite, Gold, Covellite, Marcasite, Malachite, Pyrite, Smithsonite, Pyrrhotite, Silver, Sphalerite, Chalcopyrite	Past Producer	39.425, -106.191
Superior Mine	Lead, Silver, Copper, Zinc, Gold	Ankerite, Chalcopyrite, Galena, Sphalerite, Tetrahedrite	Past Producer	39.566, -105.862
White Swan	Lead, Silver	Ankerite, Galena, Pyrite, Sphalerite	Occurrence	39.506, -105.878
General Teller Lode	Silver, Lead, Zinc	Argentite, Barite, Galena, Sphalerite	Producer	39.556, -105.882
Saints John Mine	Silver, Lead, Gold, Zinc, Copper	Argentite, Chalcopyrite, Galena, Polybasite, Proustite, Silver, Sphalerite, Stephanite, Tetrahedrite	Producer	39.570, -105.878
Boss Mine	Silver	Argentite, Chalcopyrite, Galena, Sphalerite	Past Producer	39.696, -106.196
Bell	Silver, Lead, Zinc, Copper, Gold	Argentite, Galena, Gold, Proustite, Sphalerite	Producer	39.565, -105.869
Solitary and Big Bonanza Mine	Silver, Gold	Barite, Chalcopyrite, Galena, Pyrite, Sphalerite	Occurrence	39.434, -106.108
Golden Crest Mine	Gold	Beryl	Occurrence	39.414, -106.130
Monte Cristo	Lead, Zinc, Copper, Beryllium	Beryl, Chalcopyrite, Galena, Pyrite, Sphalerite	Occurrence	39.387, -106.069
Slide No 1 & 2 Claims	Gold, Silver	Chalcopyrite, Galena	Occurrence	39.551, -105.858
Ling Mine	Gold, Silver	Chalcopyrite, Galena, Gold, Huebnerite, Molybdenite, Pyrite, Scheelite, Sphalerite	Past Producer	39.379, -106.103
Revenue, Brittle Silver, Delaware	Gold, Copper, Silver, Lead	Chalcopyrite, Galena, Gold, Sphalerite, Tetrahedrite	Producer	39.582, -105.814
Navy Mine	Tungsten	Chalcopyrite, Galena, Huebnerite, Molybdenite, Scheelite, Sphalerite	Past Producer	39.382, -106.093
New York Mine	Lead, Zinc, Copper, Molybdenum	Chalcopyrite, Galena, Sphalerite	Producer	39.579, -105.865
Lucky Baldwin, Blanche	Lead, Silver	Chalcopyrite, Galena, Sphalerite	Producer	39.564, -105.837
Michigan - Uthoff	Lead, Zinc, Copper, Silver	Chalcopyrite, Galena, Sphalerite	Producer	39.421, -106.196
Pennsylvania Mine	Copper, Zinc, Gold, Lead, Silver	Chalcopyrite, Galena, Sphalerite, Tetrahedrite	Past Producer	39.601, -105.810
Maid of Orleans, Jumbo	Lead, Silver, Gold, Zinc, Copper	Chalcopyrite, Galena, Sphalerite, Tetrahedrite	Producer	39.601, -105.853
Lower Chatauqua Mine	Lead, Gold, Zinc, Silver	Chalcopyrite, Galena, Sphalerite, Tetrahedrite	Producer	39.553, -105.869
Governor Mine	Lead, Zinc, Copper, Gold, Molybdenum, Silver	Chalcopyrite, Molybdenite, Pyrite, Sphalerite	Past Producer	39.395, -106.053
Arrastre Queen Mine	Silver, Gold	Copper, Galena, Iron	Past Producer	39.533, -105.903
Salamander & Blue Valley	Molybdenum	Ferrimolybdite, Molybdenite	Occurrence	39.383, -106.080
Humbug	Molybdenum	Ferrimolybdite, Molybdenite	Occurrence	39.457, -106.135
Wild Irishman, Altoona, Herman	Silver, Lead, Copper	Galena	Occurrence	39.560, -105.887
Allan Emory Mine	Silver, Zinc, Lead, Gold	Galena	Past Producer	39.583, -105.841
Silver Cord Mine	Silver, Copper	Galena	Past Producer	39.568, -105.835
Radical	Lead, Silver	Galena	Producer	39.545, -105.867
Mohawk Mine	Gold	Galena	Past Producer	39.550, -105.858
Erickson Mine	Gold	Galena	Past Producer	39.556, -105.914
Briar Rose	Silver	Galena	Producer	39.444, -106.098
Buena Vista Mine	Gold	Galena	Past Producer	39.578, -105.844
Glendale	Gold	Galena	Past Producer	39.574, -105.831
Radical Lode	Gold	Galena	Past Producer	39.545, -105.867
Iowa Lode	Gold	Galena	Past Producer	39.549, -105.858
Paymaster	Silver, Lead	Galena	Past Producer	39.620, -105.799
Rothchild	Gold	Galena, Copper, Silver	Past Producer	39.604, -105.821
Minnesota	Lead, Zinc	Galena, Gold, Pyrite, Silver	Producer	39.522, -105.994
Jessie Mine	—	Galena, Gold, Pyrite, Silver, Sphalerite	Occurrence	39.512, -106.018

Fossil collections

The Paleobiology Database lists 2 fossil collection records in Summit County. These are research records, not public dig sites.

Nearby counties

Park County · Lake County · Kit Carson County · Eagle County · Clear Creek County

Colorado mineral guides

Back to all Colorado counties.

Is It Legal to Collect Rocks on Public Land? BLM, Forest Service and National Park Rules

How we built this page: we counted named sites in the USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) for this area, left out sand, gravel, crushed stone, clay pits and unnamed sites, grouped them by Census county, and linked every site to its USGS record. We did not visit these sites, and MRDS does not tell you who owns the land or whether collecting is allowed.

Source: USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS). USGS ceased systematic updates to MRDS around 2011, so status and details may be out of date. Each site links to its USGS record.

Updated October 2026

Rockhounding in Summit County, Colorado

Sketch map

Ling Mine

Field cards: what kind of sites?

Mineral cards

Silver

Gold

Copper

Galena

Pyrite

Quartz

Beryl

Scheelite