Finding Clay in the Wild

You ever wish you could just find some of that clay sitting around on the ground? Well, the truth is, sometimes it really is.

I was in the mountains to get wood. My daughter was driving the car while I drove the pickup. I stopped along side the road, where a million other people have pulled off onto this plain dirt area. It was just to stop and see if the kids needed anything before we hit out on the highway.

As I stepped out of the pickup, my foot landed on hard dried mud. As in, previous tracks had become a permanent indention in the mud while it was wet. Hmmmmm.....only clay does that.
I followed the deep red clay up the side of a small hill. Never did find out where it was originating from but did I ever find a solid patch of it, where ATV's had ground it to almost a powder.

Here's my scientific, never fail test. I took a little of the dust in my hand and spit on it. Sure enough, it was just as slimy and smooth as it could be. If it had been grainy, it would not be clay.
How's that for a test? ha

I came back later, with a 5 gallon bucket and filled it up. Then I took it home and poured water over it until it was completely covered. After a couple days of soaking, I took another bucket and an old piece of screening, I stretched the screening over the bucket and secured it with a mold strap to hold it in place.

Then I just sat there pulling out hand fulls of the wet clay. I dumped it on the screening and worked it through, leaving the sticks and small stones on top. Those, of course, I dispensed with and just kept the fine clay.

After it had dried enough for me to handle it, I formed a small bowl and covered it to dry slowly, to see if it would crack. This particular clay, I had found, was superb just the way it was.

In the past, I've found pockets of clay in the river bed. Usually, in December when the rivers are at their lowest. Some of that clay is just too pure and has to be mixed with fine sand, to keep it from cracking.

Oh, and by the way, I fired that clay I had found and it fired beautifully at 04. The only problem is, when you want to glaze. There's no possible way to already know the shrinkage rate of the clay without some testing.

Looking for and finding clay can be fun and it sure is a cheap way to get your hands on clay.