Annual rock swap set for Sunday

Those looking for hidden and unhidden gems will be able to find them at an annual rock swap on Sunday

The Loup Valley Gem and Mineral Society will be hosting its third Rock Swap from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at Izaak Walton in Columbus. Admission is free.

Several dealers and collectors will be on hand, as well as several displays of fossils, minerals, agates, artifacts, faceted gemstones and jewelry. People are invited to buy, sell and trade at the swap.

Mary Wemhoff, society board member from Platte Center, said collecting rocks and gems is a hobby that can be enjoyed by many and is a particularly good activity for the whole family to get involved in. Kids like learning about fossils and artifacts, and getting them interested at young age can turn result in a lifelong hobby.

"You pick it up as a child. When you see a rock glistening on the ground, you pick it up," Wemhoff said.

Her group, which has about 60 members from Columbus and the surrounding area, does its part to help youths learn about rocks and minerals through presentations at local schools.

Finding treasures such as woolly mammoth fossils and other artifacts can easily be done in the state, Wemhoff said.

"Woolly mammoths were all over Nebraska. They lived next to rivers and water," she said. Some have found woolly mammoths fossils in Skull Creek in Schuyler.

Aside from school presentations and the Rock Swap, the group also holds monthly meetings. The site of the meetings switches every other month between the Mural Room in the Loup Power building in Columbus and the museum in Schuyler.

The Rock Swap will also feature children's activities and a silent auction. Members will also be available to identify rocks and fossils that individuals bring with them.