Arizona Agates

The collecting area in Payson is known as "Agate Mountain" once you have reached this spot it is easy to understand why the Agate Mountain name has stuck. The hiking trail is littered with agate, cobbles and chunks are everywhere which lends me to believe the agate is occurring as a seam or "cap" on the mountain itself.

Most of the agate to be found here is full of color some of which can contain multiple fortifications unfortunately almost all of this material is widely fractured. 

  The Agate here also tends to be full of different mineral type inclusions ranging from soft Onyx, fractured Quartz and even some Jasper. 

Most of the material here is better suited for cabbing due to the frequent occurrence of fracturing it is easier to pick out a nice fortification or two for cabbing from out of an otherwise large unworkable specimen.