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Field Collecting - Basic Safety Rules
IMPORTANT: Mineral localities listed
on this website are not necessarily open for collecting. Some are fee
sites, open only on specific days of the week; some are active mines; and
some have irate owners who do not take kindly to trespassers. Find out who
owns the property and whether they allow collecting before you go pounding
on any rocks. Those foolish enough to trespass on posted land or enter
active mines or quarries without permission endanger themselves and may
cause the permanent closure of that site.
Collecting minerals and fossils in the field is a safe and enjoyable
hobby.
Follow the basic rules below, use a bit of common sense, and have fun!
Rule #1 The easiest way to maim yourself is to use a rock hammer of any
kind without eye protection. Chips of rock and steel blast into your face
at high speed when hammering or chiseling, so unless you want to look at
the world out of one eye, keep the safety glasses on.
#2 The easiest way to kill yourself is to enter abandoned mine adits or
climb down shafts. Ontario has plenty of old mine shafts hidden in the
bush, often unmarked, and just about every year somebody is killed by
falling down one.
#3 There are three basic pieces of safety equipment that you need. All are
cheap and easily available: Safety glasses of high-impact plastic protect
your eyes. Safety boots with steel toes and a steel sole protect you from
rolling rock, sharp objects, and twisted ankles. A hardhat is required in
active mines or quarries.
#4 Hammering on or near any kind of vertical wall that is higher than you
are tall is not a good idea. Rock slabs can come loose very easily, or
loose material at the top can come down with just a bit of wind. Very
stable-looking walls occasionally landslide in a spectacular manner. A
good rule of thumb is that if the wall is 10 meters high, stay at least 15
meters away from it.
#5 Before you go wandering off in the bush by yourself, think for a bit
about how much fun it would be to get good and lost, or have to walk back
to the car with a broken leg. Bring along a collecting buddy at the least;
a topographic maps, a compass, GPS unit or a cell phone are useful as
well.
Miscellaneous tidbits:
Summer temps can often get up towards 90 to 100 degrees, so when exerting
yourself drink lots of water, wear a hat, and take the odd break. Heat
exhaustion kills lots of people every summer in North America, so do take
this seriously.
Bug dope is almost always a necessity. West Nile disease is carried by
mosquitoes, and you really do not want to contract it. A long-sleeved
shirt and high-SPF suntan lotion will keep skin cancer at bay. Jeans are
the best collecting pants, allowing you to sit and kneel on rough
surfaces. Good heavy leather work gloves will protect you from sharp
rocks, quartz is especially nasty, broken edges are actually sharper than
a razor blade.
Keep a close eye on children, and remember that nobody under sixteen is
allowed into active mines or quarries in most locations.
Stay within shouting distance of other collectors, and familiarize
yourself with the layout of the area beforehand. Taking shortcuts or
wandering off on your own is a good way to get lost. If you do get lost,
stay cool, stay put, and wait for the cavalry to arrive. Tell somebody
where you're going and when you expect to be back before you go.
Talus slopes or rock piles are often not as stable as they look. Do not
collect directly above or below another collector unless adept at dodging
rolling rocks.
Keep in mind that when you get tired you get sloppy, and by the end of a
hard day it's easy to smash a hand with a hammer or take a hard fall,
especially with a heavy backpack affecting your balance.
When using a hammer and chisel, it's easy to really clobber the hand
holding the chisel. Take it easy until you build up the necessary hand-eye
coordination. A glove on the chisel hand will help, and a first-aid kit is
a good thing to have if you're unlucky. Hitting a chisel with a
small-headed hammer, like an Estwing rock pick, is not wise. Claw hammers
and screwdrivers are not meant for rock collecting; do not use carpentry
tools on rock.
Special Thanks to
ontariominerals.com for this great list of basic safety rules which we
only modified slightly for use on our site.
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