Salt River

Name: Salt River
Start: 2026-01-14T08:30:00-07:00
Location: 2831 N Gilbert Rd, Mesa, AZ 85203, United States

Schedule

Wed, 14 Jan, 2026 at 08:30 am

UTC-07:00

Location

2831 N Gilbert Rd, Mesa, AZ 85203, United States | Mesa, AZ

LOCATION
• The area we will be in is on the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community north of Mesa.
• We will be in the Salt River bed, 1 ½ miles west of Gilbert Road, and a few feet north of Thomas Road.
• The exact location will be at the intersection of Thomas Road and Horne Road, and it will be across the street from the Xalychidom Piipaash Nyvaash Indian Cemetery.
• We will have one or more representatives with us from the Indian tribe.
WHEN and WHERE TO MEET
• We will meet at 8:30 a.m. at the Gilbert Road Park and Ride located at 2831 N. Gilbert Road in Mesa.
• This is located just north of the 202 Freeway (Red Mountain Freeway), and it is on the north-east corner of North Gilbert Road and East McDowell Road.
• There are no public restrooms at the Park and Ride site. If needed, we suggest taking care of your personal needs before arriving at the meeting location.
TRANSPORTATION/VEHICLES
Any vehicle will make it to the meeting location and the field trip site.
WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR
The Salt River has proven to be one of the very best river beds in Arizona for collecting rocks and minerals. Like the stars in the heavens there are countless rocks in the Salt River. Most of them are worthless leaverites, but many of them are worth collecting. There are agates, quartz, hematite, red and yellow jasper, striped rocks, polka dot rocks, painted rocks, and much more. Many of these rocks are very hard, and they polish really well.
WHAT TO TAKE
Club badge, buckets, basic rock hunting tools, water, and lunch. A trash grabber is highly recommended for this trip. A water spray bottle will help you see what a rock can look like when polished.
TRIP FEE
$5 for adult members, $10 for adult guests, and all youth under 18 attend free.