On Sunday morning a group from Sunhaven got up early and headed West to Tonapah.
Using a map from Bruce's work buddy we easily found the perfect place to hunt the agates.
These are some examples of the pretty rocks. Picture on the left is the raw mineral. Polished agates are gorgeous.
We packed a picnic lunch with plenty of food and water for the excursion. Arriving around 10 am we all set off in different directions to find the elusive Arizona Fire Agates. Around noon everyone started to wander back into camp for lunch, everyone except Anne. We all started making sandwiches and Glen set off to find Anne. Nobody had seen Anne for at least 30 minutes. At this point we weren't really all that concerned since we were in a pretty open area, with only a few boon dockers around. I stayed at the camp and kept track of the searchers. After a couple of hours we all started to panic. Anne was nowhere to be found. Calling her name, using binoculars and driving the pickup to higher ground was not successful. Finally, at 3:00 we called for help. A deputy sheriff arrived and joined in the search. Anne had been out in the desert for at least 5 hours without water or a hat. The sheriff called for search dogs and warned us not to touch Anne's jacket she left behind. A search helicopter was also on the way. Finally, at 4 o'clock Glen's phone rang, it was Anne. She was safe and down the road more than two miles. Anne had been searching with her head down for the agates using the wrong camp as her guide. A nice couple had spotted her alone and asked if she needed help. Anne used their phone and Shari and I went to pick her up. Tears of relief were flowing and Anne was like a little kid with her Easter basket full of agates.
Anne told us all about her adventure and how she thought a group of pickup trucks was our camp. What were the odd's every pickup truck in the desert that day was silver? Anne also using a power plant as a reference. The huge power plant was on the opposite side of the main highway we had driven in on. Trouble was, there were multiple roads heading into the BLM land. And, all the entrances to the BLM land looked the same with the same sign limiting camping to 14 days.
I did see a completely different side of Glen today. What a sweetheart. His love for Anne was overwhelming. Glen prayed for her safe return and wasn't afraid to show his affection.
Love, Sweet Love!
We were all exhausted and so happy for the excellent ending to our adventure. Con and Shari headed to a casino to try their luck. Becky, Ellen, Anne and I had dinner at Famous Dave's BBQ and Glen, Bob and Bruce had steak at a steakhouse.
What we learned from this experience:
Always have a plan
Know what everyone is wearing (we thought Anne had a red and white flowered top)
Carry a whistle, water bottle and just in case a cell phone. This location actually had excellent cell reception.
All is well that ends well.
