Sign in on the clubs sign in sheet when you arrive
Sign any forms required by the quarry (printed and signed ahead of time, if they were provided)
Listen to the Quarry Guide and your Tar Heel Gem & Mineral Club Field Trip Coordinator while on a trip
Abide by any and all rules set forth by the quarry that we are visiting, including MSHA regulations
Required equipment
The following gear is required, when attending a quarry. No exceptions, no substitutions.
Hard Hat
Steel toe or composite toe boots/shoes
Safety Goggles (ANSI Rated)
Pants (No shorts or Capris)
Gloves
Reflective Vest
Regarding Safety
Serious safety violations could result in MSHA fines for the quarry. For this reason, serious safety violations could result in being banned from attending any future club field trips.
If you are asked 2 times to stop doing anything against the rules and are becoming a safety hazard, you will be asked to wait in your car until the end of the trip and/or not invited to attend future trips.
Stay at least 10 feet from any highwall that is 15 ft - 20 ft high,
and 15 feet from highwalls that are 20 feet or higher,
unless it is otherwise stated to be a farther distance,
by the field trip coordinator or quarry.
The start of the highwall in which to measure from, would be the part that sticks out the furthest, which sometimes is very high up and called an “overhang”.
Keep in mind that the chance of falling rocks increases if there is water or ice involved.
Stay on the safe side of the berms and never cross to the other side.
Do not climb any large rock piles. (On small piles, when it looks safe, it is okay to step a few feet from the ground, and reach for something, so long as you are using common sense and being safe.)
You must not go near any bodies of water bigger than puddles, even if they don’t look deep.
If you are using a hammer, make sure your safety glasses are in place, but also notify everyone around you that you will be hammering and verify that they all have their glasses on.
Regarding Trip Sign Up and Attendance
If you have any problems, you must go to the Club’s Field Trip Coordinator and not the quarry guide. This includes needing to leave because of an urgent unavoidable matter, or if you need to use the bathroom and can’t wait.
If you sign up for a trip, you are signing up for the whole trip, not just part of it, so you need to stay for the whole time.
Bathrooms are usually available before we head down into the pit, so you need to use them beforehand and avoid asking to go once we are in the pit. (People have emergencies, and that is understandable, but they need to be just that….emergencies)
If you sign up for a trip, you need to show up for a trip.
If you sign up for a trip and need to cancel, please give as much notice as possible, but at least cancel before the “Sign Up/Cancel By” Date (Usually 24 hours to 1 week prior to the trip)
If there is a genuine emergency/urgency to cancel, after the “Sign Up/Cancel By” Date, you will need to contact the Field Trip Coordinator directly
If you, or a family member, are feeling sick the night before a trip, and feel there might be even a chance you won’t make it, let the field trip coordinator know of the situation as soon as possible, do not wait to see if it gets better.
If you repeatedly sign up for trips and cancel at the last minute, or even worse, not show up at all, you will not be invited to attend future field trips
Contacting Quarries
Club members are not permitted to contact (call, text, email, etc.) quarries/mines.
The only member that may contact quarries on behalf of the club or as a Tar Heel Gem & Mineral Club Member, is the Tar Heel Gem & Mineral Club’s current designated Field Trip Coordinator. Calling a quarry and mentioning that you are a club member, implies that you have the clubs insurance if you go to their quarry. You are only covered by the clubs insurance if it is a trip set up by the Tar Heel Gem & Mineral Club’s current designated Field Trip Coordinator.
Attending with Family Members
Show respect to the quarry and their representative(s), your Club Field Trip Coordinator and your fellow Tar Heel Club Members
You may bring a family member under the age of 18, from your membership, on trips where “Under 18” is allowed and when you and they have been signed up
You are required to bring all of the required equipment to any quarry, both for yourself and anyone under 18 that you are bringing with you, and to wear all of the above listed gear the entire time that you are out of a vehicle (excluding the main office). Some quarries are okay with you hooking your safety glasses on your vest if you are only ground hunting (no hammers), but this is up to each individual quarry. If you do not have all required equipment, you will not be permitted to enter the quarry and will have to leave.
You are responsible for:
that person
making sure that person is following the club and quarry rules
bringing all of their safety gear
Photos/Videos, Social Media, and Sales
No Videos are to be taken while at a quarry. Photos may be taken if the quarry is okay with that, but may not be posted online with any information that identifies the quarry
If you post photos online or elsewhere of what you got on a field trip, take the photos of your items after you leave the quarry, since the photos have metadata that often include the gps location, and also do not post the name of the quarry or the location
The Field Trip Coordinator may use appropriate judgement to take and/or choose photos to add to the Tar Heel Gem & Mineral Website, but will leave off information about the quarry.
If you sell any specimens from trips, you need to leave off the quarry information, including the town and may only include county information.