Rockhounding Trips in the Atikokan / Quetico Ontario Area

The town of Atikokan was built largely on the strength of Steep Rock Iron Mines, which was one of the greatest engineering feats ever in Canadian history.

Although Steep Rock and Caland Mines closed for good in 1980, their legacy lives on in Atikokan with features mining murals and exhibits throughout the downtown as well as "The Atikokan Mining Attraction" - an extremely interesting "museum" of the town’s mining history.

The rocks in the area are part of the ancient Canadian Shield, one of the several remaining segments of the earth’s original crust. These Precambrian rocks are over three billion years old!

Did you know that 20% of Quetico Park is still exposed bedrock – sometimes rounded and smooth, sometimes scratched, crushed and shattered forming spectacular cliffs and scattered boulder deposits.

The Steep Rock & Caland pits are a success story as far as reclamation goes. The former lake sites that were drained to form the huge, open pit iron ore mines are now being allowed to refill naturally and turn back into large, deep lakes.

The sites are also very popular for rockhounding enthusiasts from around the world.

Caland has been known for some excellent manganite mineral samples, and Steep Rock for pyrolusite.

The vast array of minerals in the region have resulted in a great degree of mining exploration in the area. Many feel that it’s only a manner of time before the next "big find".

My father, Carl Branch, was a prospector and geophysicist for 20 years, living in a tent and exploring regions throughout Canada and the United States for companies such as Noranda and Mining Corp.

Since coming to our camp in 1967, he has done a fair bit of recreational prospecting and even staked some claims. He endorses the area as a great potential as well, and often talks about an old theory of many prospectors and geologists that a vein of rich minerals that stretches across Canada that starts in Labrador and passes right through the Atikokan area.

Any number of area prospectors & geologists will tell you that this is an exciting time to be exploring the Atikokan area for mineral deposits.

We can outfit you with maps, boats & motors and canoes to help with your rockhounding adventure.

Watch this page for any exciting developments with our rockhounding trips and mineral exploration in the Atikokan / Quetico region!