Rockhounding in Natrona County, WY: 286 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

84 paw pins; nearby sites are grouped into one pin. Hover or tap a pin for the site name. 7 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

Koch gold and silver deposit

We picked it because its USGS record mentions 2 gem or collectible minerals (Gold, Silver) and 2 of our card minerals overall. No other named site here scores as high on both counts. USGS lists it as occurrence for Gold. Minerals mentioned: Gold, Silver. Approx. location 42.708, -106.292. 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?

158

Occurrence

The mineral was noted here, without development.

Past Producer

Produced ore or material at some point in the past.

Prospect

Explored or test-dug, with no recorded production.

Producer

Was producing when the record was made.

Unknown

Status not recorded.

Status terms come from USGS MRDS records.

Mineral cards

Magnetite
Mohs 5.5–6.5. Black and strongly magnetic. Mindat
4 sites
Quartz
Mohs 7. Six-sided points; smoky quartz is NH’s state gem. Mindat
2 sites
Gold
Mohs 2.5–3. Soft, heavy and bright yellow; it doesn’t tarnish. Mindat
2 sites
Feldspar
Mohs 6–6.5. Blocky crystals with flat cleavage faces. Mindat
1 site
Pyrite
Mohs 6–6.5. Brassy “fool’s gold,” often cubic. Mindat
1 site
Silver
Mohs 2.5–3. Native silver tarnishes black. Mindat
1 site

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

Minerals recorded here

Carnotite 4Uraninite 3Tyuyamunite 3Apatite 2Torbernite 2Hematite 2Ilsemannite 2Jarosite 1Coffinite 1Liebigite 1Uranophane 1Gold 1

Commodities

Uranium 146Bentonite 111Sodium Sulfate 6Sodium Carbonate 5Salt 4Iron 3Asbestos 3Titanium-Heavy Minerals 2Gold 2Vermiculite 2

Sites (first 40)

Site	Commodity	Minerals recorded	Status	Approx. location
Dick Claims	Uranium	Apatite	Occurrence	42.992, -107.492
Al-Job Mine	Uranium	Apatite, Torbernite, Uraninite	Occurrence	42.829, -107.494
Dry Lake and Zero Claims	Uranium	Carnotite	Occurrence	42.983, -105.251
Lyberger Claims	Uranium	Carnotite	Occurrence	42.961, -106.333
Dry Lake Claim	Uranium	Carnotite	Occurrence	42.961, -106.333
Gas Hills Mines	Uranium	Carnotite, Coffinite, Liebigite, Tyuyamunite, Uraninite, Uranophane	Past Producer	42.847, -107.501
Koch gold and silver deposit	Gold	Gold, Silver	Occurrence	42.708, -106.292
Unidentified Occurrence	Iron	Hematite	Occurrence	42.728, -106.313
Koch hematite deposit on Casper Mountain	Iron	Hematite	Occurrence	42.728, -106.314
Ranrex Mine	Uranium	Ilsemannite, Tyuyamunite	Occurrence	42.817, -107.472
Ranrex Mine	Uranium	Ilsemannite, Tyuyamunite	Occurrence	42.815, -107.474
Bountiful #1 and #9	Uranium	Jarosite, Uraninite	Past Producer	42.815, -107.455
Aljob No. 9	Uranium	Torbernite	Occurrence	42.829, -107.494
Wentz Mine	Uranium	—	Producer	42.887, -107.455
Buss Mines	Uranium	—	Producer	42.800, -107.494
Ran-Rex	Uranium	—	Producer	42.815, -107.474
Last Chance	Uranium	—	Producer	42.526, -107.063
Pipe Dream Claims	Uranium	—	Occurrence	42.671, -106.669
Pine Tree No. 2 and No. 4	Uranium	—	Occurrence	42.657, -106.689
Black Cat Group	Uranium	—	Occurrence	42.713, -106.688
Dyper Bar Mac #7	Uranium	—	Occurrence	42.786, -106.648
Pay #9	Uranium	—	Occurrence	42.829, -107.494
Aljob Mines	Uranium	—	Producer	42.829, -107.494
Pay #11	Uranium	—	Occurrence	42.829, -107.494
Cyclone Ridge	Uranium	—	Occurrence	42.887, -107.494
Dick #1	Uranium	—	Occurrence	43.004, -107.494
Coalbank Hills	Titanium	—	Occurrence	42.947, -107.408
Clarkson Hill	Titanium-Heavy Minerals	—	Occurrence	42.646, -106.681
Poison Spider	Titanium-Heavy Minerals	—	Occurrence	42.865, -106.849
Nine Mile Lake Project	Uranium	—	Producer	42.966, -106.335
Verne Bell Claims	Uranium	—	Occurrence	42.729, -106.944
Locality 13	Uranium	—	Occurrence	42.966, -106.800
Bengal Mine	Uranium	—	Occurrence	42.800, -107.494
Pay #7, #8	Uranium	—	Occurrence	42.829, -107.494
Meyers	Uranium	—	Occurrence	42.965, -106.338
Koch siliceous iron prospect	Iron	—	Occurrence	42.736, -106.284
Valley-Dean Mine	Uranium	—	Producer	42.800, -107.494
Veca Mine	Uranium	—	Producer	42.815, -107.494
Pat N' Bill Mine	Uranium	—	Producer	42.815, -107.494
Kidd Ranch North End #7	Bentonite	—	Occurrence	43.305, -106.779

Fossil collections

The Paleobiology Database lists 145 fossil collection records in Natrona County. These are research records, not public dig sites.

Nearby counties

Fremont County · Johnson County · Converse County · Campbell County · Washakie County

Wyoming mineral guides

Back to all Wyoming 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 Natrona County, Wyoming

Sketch map

Koch gold and silver deposit

Field cards: what kind of sites?

Mineral cards

Magnetite

Quartz

Gold

Feldspar

Pyrite

Silver