Crystal Peak: a world-famous home for blue-green amazonite

Rockhounds around the world know the name Crystal Peak. The high ground between Woodland Park and Lake George, in the western part of Teller County, sits on the Pikes Peak Granite — a billion-year- old body of rock whose pegmatite pockets grew beautiful crystals of blue-green amazonite, smoky quartz, and topaz. Colorado’s amazonite is prized because it can form large, well-shaped crystals.

Good to know before you grab a shovel: much of the best ground at Crystal Peak is private property or is held under active mining claims, so you’ll want permission before you dig. Even where the land looks open and empty, collecting without the owner’s or claimant’s okay counts as trespassing — so it pays to ask first.

The good news is there’s plenty of rockhounding to enjoy in Colorado. The state has authorized collecting areas elsewhere, and rules differ by who owns or manages the land — private, Forest Service, or BLM all work differently. The easy habit is to confirm exactly whose land you are on and what is allowed before you collect anything, which keeps the welcome warm in Teller County.

To understand Colorado’s gem geology and collecting rules, start with the Colorado Geological Survey’s gemstones and minerals pages.