The following pictures show some of the more noteworthy specimens that we
liberated from the upper trench area.
At around 4:00 PM, we decided to move on to go check out another cut
or two. For more than any other reason, Wayne wanted to visit a few more of his many
holes and cuts to see what changes have taken place since the last time that he and Patty were
there. He pointed out this hole and that hole telling us when he dug each and how much, if any,
each had been enlarged by other subsequent rockhounds. Throughout the two days spent on the Gal, I
noticed that many of Wayne's old digging spots did not appear to have been touched - I guess that is
his reward for a vast knowledge of the area that allows him to stay off the beaten path. If you
are on a well-worn trail and you find a hole, it probably wasn't dug by Wayne, or he dug there
before the rest of the thundering herd stumbled upon it and he moved on to "redder" pastures.
It wasn't until late-afternoon, when we were on our way back down the mountain to
our vehicles, that the sun finally decided to make a brief appearance. We sure could have used it
earlier in the day to keep us warm and to spot the corundum. But, our time spent on the Gal
wasn't just about the how much corundum we found (and we found plenty), it was about getting
back to nature and spending time with good friends, including Opal who, by the way, is
quite handy with a digital camera.
After we got back to our vehicles, it didn't seem like Patty and Wayne were quite
ready to leave, so we took a leisurely stroll along a dirt road. I guess it was their way of
bidding farewell to the Gal. Sometimes, you can find a errant corundum crystal even in
the middle of an area road but none of us were really looking very hard by then. I did carry
my 6-pound hammer with me because you never know when big rock will sneak up on you. After
saying our good-byes to the Brantleys, we took a cue from a soon to set sun and called it a day.
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