My favorite rock (although it’s so hard for me to pick ONE favorite) would probably be the LAKE SUPERIOR AGATE.  I picked this one because there are SO MANY BEAUTIFUL VARIETIES of this type of agate!

First of all, the patterns & features come in so many types.  Some have fortification banding, with lots of alternating colors of bands, while other “Lakers” have banding of the “water-level” (straight, parallel) type. There’s another type of feature in some Lakers called “tubes”.  The best way to describe tubes, is sort of like circular, straw-like patterns running through a portion of the stone.  Some Lakers have what’s called “peeling”. Picture a part of the stone which was eroded to produce a smooth, very thinly-layered step formation. That’s peeling.  A rather rare type of Laker pattern is the “spaghetti-strand” type, whose pattern speaks for itself.

Another type of Laker is called a “floater”. This type consists of fortificaton banding which is suspended within a section of quartz.  That quartz can, sometimes, be amethyst.  Some Lakers also have “eyes”, with any number of small-to-medium-size eyes (which really DO look like eyes) on the surface of the stone.  Some Lakers have beautiful inclusions, such as “moss”, which resembles little plants, and “sagenite”, which are needle-like, spray formations in the stone.  It is not uncommon to also see well-defined “crystal impressions” in a Laker. These were left by Calcite crystals which were, at one time eons ago, embedded into the rock, and now long-gone.  Be aware that there can often be any number of the types of patterns, features, & inclusions mentioned above combined in the SAME stone!

 But WAIT….THERE’S MORE!   What often draws one’s attention to a Laker is its MAGNIFICENT coloration!   The colors of Lakers are limitless, as any color of the spectrum is possible.  I’d challenge anyone to find a Lake Superior Agate with less than 3 colors in a single stone.  Most Lakers have, at least, 5 or 6 colors/shades in a stone.  The variation of colors can be seen within the banding, tubes, peeling, quartz, moss, sagenite, and on the “husk”, which is commonly referred to as the “matrix” in the mineral world.   Yes, even the husk adds much to the character of a Laker!  The stones that have predominately red & white banding are affectionately called “candy” by collectors.  The multi-colored Lakers are, obviously, incredible.  Another one of my favorite-colored Lakers is the “paint” Laker.  This type comes in various shades of red, orange, brown, & yellow, sort of blending into each other.  There are also the “blue paints”.

To sum it up, I’ve never met a Laker I didn’t like!  If you are enticed by my article, & want to get into the wonderful world of Lake Superior Agates, contact me, & I’ll inform you of the best locations in Minnesota to hunt for and/or purchase these ULTRA-SWEET GEMS of many patterns, features, inclusions, colors, & sizes.

“LONG LIVE ROCK, I NEED IT EVERY DAY!”  (Pete Townshend)

“KEEP ON ROCKIN’ IN THE FREE WORLD!”  (Neil Young)

“ROCKS IN MY HEAD!” ……………..Sheldon