Wasco County


Frieda Bed

Frieda Bed thundereggs are rare, but offered frequently. Thundereggs from other beds in the Deschutes River area, going by names as Hunt Ranch and Twin Oak and Big Oak Springs, are even more rare and seldom seen. Mainly because the area is very unaccessible, and nowadays bordering on, or part of the Warm Springs Indian Reservation. They're often big thundereggs, and got chopped like those from Janos in Mexico and Semipalatinsk in Kasakhstan to save on transport weight. The most desirable pieces have tube structures.  This mine was used in the past by Dant & Rusell inc. to explore the perlite.

Frieda Bed
Frieda Bed

size: 

 

An intersting Frieda Bed thunderegg with deep blue chalcedony and a bit of blueish opal in the bottom right corner.

 

 

 

 

 

 

size:

Frieda Bed
Frieda Bed

Warm Springs Indian Reservation

The reservation lies primarily in parts of Wasco Co. and Jefferson Co., but there are smaller sections in six other counties. Three tribes form the confederation: the Wasco, Tenino (Warm Springs) and Palute. Since 1938 they have been unified as the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs (wikipedia.org).

There are many thunderegg beds in the area, most are recently found ones.

Happy Valley

Most recent finds in the Reservation are the Happy Valley thunderegg locations. Many eggs from these are surface finds by Elke Littleleaf.

Warm Springs Indian Reservation "Happy Valley"
Warm Springs Indian Reservation "Happy Valley"

size: 90x93 mm


Quite typical for the Happy Valley thundereggs is green jasper mostly brecciated. Often one can find waterlevel agate aswell.

There's a sublocation somewhere called "Bear Hole". The eggs are really fantastic.

Mutton Mt. area

There are also several outcrops of thundereggs in the Mutton Mt. area. Most are not named further than Mutton Mt.

Mutton Mountain
Mutton Mountain

size:

 

Bulls Eye! A very neat thunderegg from the Mutton Mountain deposits with nice level banding and opal filling from white to golden orange.

The really new discovered outcrop is the so called Squatch Bed. The thundereggs I've seen so far are elongated and show flow lines in the matrix.

This specimen was kipped about 90° after the chalcedony geode filled, and a bit of white opal leveled at the bottom.


    sice: 90x147 mm

Warm Springs Indian Reservation "Mutton Mt. - Squatch Bed"
Warm Springs Indian Reservation "Mutton Mt. - Squatch Bed"

Petroglyph Bed

Warm Springs Indian Reservation "Petroglyph Bed"
Warm Springs Indian Reservation "Petroglyph Bed"

size:

 

Not the best thunderegg for the location of the Petroglyph Bed concering the filling but the matrix color is amazing.