So I don't know how or when I became interested in rocks, but it's been awhile. I suppose it began with Petoskey stones. They are unique to this area, difficult to find until you get the knack and becoming more rare every year. They are only found on the shores of Lake Michigan.....from Petoskey and along the Leelanau coast. The Petoskey stone is a fossil of a long ago coral that made its home in this fresh water lake. The Great Lakes are inland seas, just not salt. Largest body of fresh water on the planet. Anyway, right from the start we have looked for them, became more expert as time went on. There are so many pretty rocks on these shores that it's easy to become distracted. I remember my mum and dad loved to go looking for pretty rocks. I can see my dad now head down and pockets full of rocks and mum saying "Harry you aint taking them home on the plane you know" ........but he would keep on filling his pockets.
My husband is a builder and has found large stones on the building sites, that means that the land was once under water quite far in. Things have changed a lot since the glaciers disappeared.
Petoskey stones come in very large to very small and it is more common to see the small these days.
The beaches have been gleaned and picked over. I would imagine that there is still a lot out there and when the storms rage they bring in more. Still, they can not be limitless. After all they are ancient.
When polished they are quite beautiful in their own way. The local craftsmen make jewelry from them.
The stones do not need a polisher, a rock tumbler like most do. You polish them by buffing with a soft cloth and some powder of some kind. You rock hounds will know what I mean.
In their natural state they are sort of hard to spot until you get the idea. You need to wet them to be sure.
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