I guess it has been about 5 years or more now since I learned that a certain "hot rock" that I had been quite bothersome was in fact the now well known Gold Basin L4 Ordinary Chondrite. That day was the turning point in my nugget shooting carrier that I began to open my eyes just a little bit further to focus on meteorites as well as gold. As many a nugget hunter before me I was hooked and would permanently add meteorites to my list.

I started my first hunt for meteorites as many have here in Arizona by hunting Gold Basin and you guessed it I was looking for the very same rocks I had been discarding since about 1994 and I now have a goodly supply in my collection. The best part is that along with the meteorites every now and then a gold nugget shows up. A good friend John B. is a great meteorite hunter and loves nothing more than getting a group of nugget hunters together for a very educational lecture on meteorite hunting and it was during such an outing my eyes were opened. John dropped a small stone chondrite in my hand that had a window cut into it to show the bright metal flecks within and I immediately recognized the stone to be a dreaded Gold Basin "Hot Rock". I still have that stone in my collection, thanks again John!

Now there is a marked difference in hunting technique when you are out after meteorites as far as hunting in washes etc because most times any meteorites that end up in the washes are soon destroyed by the forces of nature. Instead the ideal hunting site is long stretches of desert pavement unchanged for centuries and subject to wind erosion. In many cases in such areas you can find meteorites sitting in plain view waiting to be discovered! Many folks simply walk with a cane/pole with a rare earth magnet attached to the end to check suspect rocks.

The above picture shows a 325 gram Franconia, Arizona H5 stone chondrite in situ "as found" on the desert pavement where it has been for centuries. I hunt Franconia with a metal detector, but this and many others were spotted well before getting close enough to detect them. Why use a detector then? Simply because not all of the specimens are on the surface and by incorporating two tools, eyes and ears, I increase my finds. Seeing the meteorite in the photo above should not be a problem as it just doesn't fit in with the surrounding soil matrix.

Now as I write this today I have a find of my own called Trilby Wash from Maricopa County, Arizona classified as a L5-S1-W3 by ASU and as a fledgling meteorite typee fellow this is quite a big deal to me to have a meteorite with me as the finder go down in history! Yup and you guessed it I was hunting nuggets when I made the find. Believe me it takes your breath away to find and hold a 4.5 billion old falling star.

So I hope to pass along to you the thrill and enjoyment I find hunting meteorites by sharing my experiences here at this web site, HUNTING METEORITES! So I will be continuously be adding new articles and adventures, so check back often!