We Will Ocotillo Rock You!

~ Rebecca Santiago, Education Specialist

James Egger cutting a geode

Your Imperial Valley Desert Museum team rocked out at the 2019 Ocotillo Rocks! event providing educational geological speeches, hikes and games. Ocotillo Rocks! focuses on the importance of geology not only in the desert, but also the adjoining mountains of the desert and dunes on the eastern side of the Imperial Valley. We brought along our partners at the Imperial Valley Gem and Mineral Society to showcase the proper skills needed to be a successful gold miner, part a geode to reveal the hidden beauty within a plain rock, and spin a wheel of fortune for a chance at winning desert treasures, including geodes and rocks native to the desert.

Luis showing soapstone to a visitor

James Egger, Vice President of IV Gem and Mineral Society, shares his love and passion for desert rocks by cutting plain white and buffed rocks to expose the sparkling build up of crystals within, showcasing the hidden beauty that lies in our deserts. Along with Egger's passion for rocks, came the IV Gem and Mineral's society's passion for gold! Visitors were taught the proper methods to pan for gold guaranteed to find a nugget every time. After the thrill of finding gold or hidden beauty came an educational talk done by Education Specialist, Luis Landeros. His lecture was intriguing, interactive and inclusive of the visitors eager to know where their favorite rocks resided on the scale of rock labels. Last but not least, hiking the trails along the wash just behind the museum building, Cory Fitzsimmons and myself showed our visitors where to find milky quartz, petrified wood, sandstone and a few natural habitats of animals residing within the sands. We even had a young hiker find a beautiful piece of salt turned blue by the natural introduction of copper, leaving him excited to find more!

 Once hikers were done exploring the different mysteries of the desert, they were welcomed by the warmth of fresh lunch and cold beverages along with a fun activity for those who enjoy arts and crafts. The Petrified Wood painting booth was led by Education Coordinator Lesliee Parker
, where learning was made fun by letting the artistic juices flow. By painting a petrified piece of wood, visitors were not only learning about the process of minerals overtaking wood but also being able to create their own pieces of history. Ocotillo Rocks! is an event of its own that pushes the importance of education of not only the animals residing in the deserts of Ocotillo, but also the often overlooked and stepped on rocks that make up the majority of it. We thank everyone that came to enjoy this event with us as well as those who volunteered their time to be with us to make a spectacular event.