Tips to Finding Petoskey Stones and Leland Blue from the Owners of Northport Trading Post

Northern Michigan’s most iconic rocks are Petoskey stones and Leland Blue, and a couple is pretty good at finding them.

Scott and Jennifer Wack’s love for rocks started decades ago.

“My grandfather used to polish rocks in the sixties and early seventies before he passed on,” said Jennifer Wack, Co-Owner of Northport Trading Post.” When I met my husband, we decided to move to Michigan, and his rock shop was still on the family property. We thought we should learn how to use this equipment.”

After the Wack’s mastered the necessary equipment, they began finding and creating things out of rocks, eventually opening Northport Trading Post.

“My grandfather would be tickled pink that we took on this wonderful hobby God’s country, the land that he loved, in the land that we love,” said Jennifer Wack.

Most of their pieces are made of Petoskey stones, but finding them isn’t easy.

“If you happen to have one already and you can put it into the sand along the other rocks and kind of look away and look for it again, it helps you looking for soft gray color, looking for circles, and that helps you a lot because then you’ll train your eye to see those circles,” explained Jennifer Wack.

Leland Blue is another of the Wack’s favorites.

“It’s such a bright blue that no other rock looks like it, so you’re really going to be drawn to it,” said Jennifer Wack.

The veteran rock hunters say they’ve seen the hobby boom over the last two years as more people discover what this couple has enjoyed for years.

“There’s always something to pick up on the beach. There’s always some cool rock or some cool artifact that comes up on the beach,” said Scott Wack, Co-Owner of Northport Trading Post.

Northport trading post also offers rock polishing classes.