Many have noticed I have some stories that are password protected…if you are interested in reading them, email me at jwjphoto7@gmail.com and let me know your name, your location, club if you are with one, and any other information about you that I should know.

My protected stories have some info that I prefer not to share with the general public in most cases, because I have found out that some in the general public of rockhounding, do not follow the same safety rules / policies / advice, as the rest of us do. Some have no respect for the property of others, either.  I have lost access to a few locations because of this erosion of respect by others, so I take precautions these days to protect those sites and those landowners.

I get some strange requests sometimes and have found out the hard way about some people using the info in my stories, in the wrong manner, such as trespassing to obtain pretty rocks and then dropping my name,  saying they had my permission to go collect there. That type of behavior will only land you in hot water if you try to do that, as I am on good footing with many mine owners, especially out west, and they can call or text me anytime to verify situations like that, anytime of the day or night. They also know I will not give anyone permission to go to their claim or mine, that isn`t how I operate, it all about mutual respect and keeping my word.

I tell the mine owners I know well, that I will contact them first to find out if a friend of mine can come to their location, I will not just send someone to a location or give them directions how to get there, without first checking with the land or mine owner. I also do not give out the mine owner`s name or contact info until I have their permission to do that.