Onion River

Minnesota

Find: Calcite, fragile thomsonite, possible Lake Superior Agate nodules

GPS: 47.6093, -90.76955

Nearest city: Duluth, MN

Recommended Vehicle: Any

Summary:

I visited this spot before I began creating this website and videos. This was a fun spot to explore that was different than normal beachcombing for agates. There was a significant amount of calcite here.

To get here, park at the Ray Berglund State Wayside off of HWY 61. You can get here in any vehicle. Getting down to the river requires taking the well-worn footpath from the parking lot. There’s nice restrooms here as well as a scenic overlook, if I recall. My only regret was not walking further down the river.

If I could only bring 3 tools…

Chest Waders

Chest waders were the single best investment I made for exploring the shores of Lake Superior.

Agate Scoop

An agate scoop is helpful for both keeping dry and picking up rocks faster. You don’t need a fancy one. Mine is a golf club welded to a kitchen scoop.

Classifier

A classifier is helpful if you’re a fan of small agates and stones. One with a larger, 1-inch mesh would be what I’d pick.