Big Sapphires Keep Coming.

Last Saturday, after a storm on Friday night, some of our group spent the day specking. In a gully that we hadn't dug before Marie found a 6.1ct pale blue sitting on the side of a small gully. Garry and Marie decided to move their diggings to this area on Monday. In the first bucket of wash Garry found a 9.93ct green sapphire. A guess the weight competition was organised with all 21 having a go The closest was Jane who won a very nice cut garnet donated by Garry. The rush was then on and further good stones were dug by Garry and Marie.

By Wednesday, Milton, Ross and Wanda and I were all in "Marie's Gully" trying our luck. Milton,Ross, Garry, Marie and I were all in the same part of the gully where Marie specked the first stone. Graham and Pam joined in the rush on Thursday but dug in the lower part of the gully. Milton got some nice cutters from his channel.

On Friday, Garry took 185 carats of sapphire and zircon from the Gully but the rest of us could only manage small chips.

Today with the last full day of digging ahead of us Ray and Toni joined in the dig at Marie's Gully. Before morning tea, I was lucky to pick up a lovely large green sapphire in the quarter inch sieve. Garry adjudged that my stone was heavier than his, and the enthusiasm lifted in all of the diggers. A guess the weight competition in the afternoon at happy hour resulted in Colin getting nearest (weight of 16.09cts) and winning a very bright piece of polished boulder opal. Garry, not to be outdone bagged 158 carats for the day, with one stone being over 24 carats but with some flaws. In the afternoon I again bagged the best stone of the session with a 6.68carat absolutely crystal clear emerald green, with a teal blue showing on the opposite axis.

In tonight's session, yes tonight, Ross was the clear winner returning home with a 26 carat stone that appears by torch to be pale yellow green, but it does have some flaws. Ross decided to put in a few hours tonight sieving stones ready to wash tomorrow morning and found the giant in his half inch sieve. The find excited camp members and there was a passing suggestion for us to take down some flood lights to get into the sieving but the coolness of the night soon prevailed.

At this afternoon's hapy hour, it was agreed to extend our stay at Glen Alva by one day and do away with the planned day trip from Winton to Opalton.

Happy hour is now a big circle with our party currently numbering 23, having been joined earlier in the week by Judy and Warren and yesterday by Rick and Kay, who are friends of Barry and Dawn from Hervey Bay club.