Quartzville Recreational Mining Corridor: Gold Prospecting in Linn County, Oregon

Plan your visit

Generally open to casual rockhounding

County

Linn County

State

Oregon

Coordinates

44.55746, -122.41663

Coordinates are approximate. Confirm the exact ground in the RockHoundR app, where land overlays show which agency manages the area.

Land & collecting status

Generally open to casual rockhounding

Most public-tagged spots sit on BLM, U.S. Forest Service, or other federal land where reasonable hand collecting of common rocks and minerals is allowed. Confirm posted rules and active mining claims before you dig.

Access note: Recreational panning, sluicing, and small-scale work are allowed on the BLM portion of the Quartzville Back Country Byway with no fee and no claim required, though active claims exist nearby and should be respected. Access is by paved and gravel road from Sweet Home; late summer and early fall bring the lowest, safest water levels.

Public-land rules vary by agency, season, and field office. The RockHoundR app pulls live BLM, USFS, NPS, and tribal overlays so you can see exactly which agency manages the ground at this spot.

Best time to visit Quartzville Recreational Mining Corridor

Comfortable months (45 to 90°F highs)

Best months: February to November. Typical highs run 78°F in midsummer and 44°F in midwinter, with winter lows near 32°F.

Climate normals: NOAA 1991-2020 monthlies, CASCADIA station (12 mi away), adjusted for elevation.

Geology at Quartzville Recreational Mining Corridor

This spot sits on Little Butte Volcanics, mapped as autoclastic breccia, bluish gray, purplish red; andesite, basalt clasts, andesite flows, bluish gray; fe-ti oxides blebs; zones: andesine compositional zoning; calcic andesine, clinopyroxene, orthopyroxene phenocrysts; alteration: andesine altered to calcite, pyroxene altered to calcite, chlorite, montmorillonite; matrix: plagioclase feldspar microlites, basaltic andesite flows, medium to dark gray; calcic andesine, orthopyroxene phenocrysts; alteration: andesine partially altered to clay minerals, orthopyroxene replaced by chlorite and calcite, iddingsite, quartz, ilmenite; zones: zoned calcic andesine; fe-ti oxides phenocrysts; fe-ti oxides blebs; matrix: andesine microlites, brown glass, fe-ti oxides, and orthopyroxene that formed roughly 34 to 5 million years ago. Gold in volcanic terrain like this is usually tied to old vein systems and the gravels that drain them, so nearby washes tend to carry the color.

Mapped unit

Little Butte Volcanics

Age

34–5 Ma (Oligocene to Miocene)

Rock types

autoclastic breccia, bluish gray, purplish red; andesite, basalt clasts, andesite flows, bluish gray; fe-ti oxides blebs; zones: andesine compositional zoning; calcic andesine, clinopyroxene, orthopyroxene phenocrysts; alteration: andesine altered to calcite, pyroxene altered to calcite, chlorite, montmorillonite; matrix: plagioclase feldspar microlites, basaltic andesite flows, medium to dark gray; calcic andesine, orthopyroxene phenocrysts; alteration: andesine partially altered to clay minerals, orthopyroxene replaced by chlorite and calcite, iddingsite, quartz, ilmenite; zones: zoned calcic andesine; fe-ti oxides phenocrysts; fe-ti oxides blebs; matrix: andesine microlites, brown glass, fe-ti oxides, and orthopyroxene

Elevation

1,220 ft

Geologic mapping via Macrostrat and the underlying state geological survey maps (CC BY 4.0). Bedrock at the surface can vary within a mapped unit.

Sources & verification

Spot details combine the public RockHoundR location dataset, normalized mineral labels, agency land-status checks in the app, and community submissions. Coordinates are approximate until verified in the field.

State guidance last verified: April 1, 2026

• BLM Oregon/Washington, Rockhounding & mineral material
• Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI)
• Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, beach collecting rules
• Community submissions reviewed against published agency rules