Welcome to the Board and the Hobby, Joseph and Figen!
That's a real good rockhounding area up there. Of course you have the world class calcite and quartz crystals that come from the Rougemont Quarry, but yes, the field trip opportunities have come to a halt this year. But those guys at that quarry really support the rock collecting and will most likely resume field trips as soon as possible.
Lots of real interesting volcanic rock around Rougemont. Red Mountain is a dome of rhyolite. I'd say really take your time and really enjoy getting to know all the natural 'host' rock around you. It's really beautiful interesting formations that nobody pays much attention to because it's not a "gem". It's still worth looking at and learning about. And it get's you outside.
And yes, there's no shortage of old mines and prospects to research. You might want to check with "TheDiggings" link above. He was working around the Blue Wing Mine last I heard and I don't know if he has tailing piles for the public to go through or not. And it looks like they own several mines in the area.
Your comment about the "Durgy Mine, Dig Here" sign is funny. I remember the first few times I went looking for the "Durgie".
There's a bunch of old mines in the area and back when they were operating they all had different names but overtime Durgie is the name to survive. I'm still not sure if the one I was told was the Durgie is or not. There's a clump of old mines around Lawson Adcock Rd and then up by Blue Wing Rd. Not much left to look at of any of the mines by Lawson Adcock Rd, but it been 15-20 years since I've been there so there's no telling. It's all on private property but some of the old landowners would give folks permission. One was just a back filled hole in the middle of a field and another was a place to dump trash.
But they're putting those housing developments everywhere. And, like it or not, development is about your best opportunity to rockhound these days. It's your best look at the ground. Before they pave the roads. Once they have the roads in it's pretty much done.
Yes, I think you can get away with 20-30 feet up or downstream at bridges. If you can float a boat, the water is public access, but not necessarily the land. If the creek is too small for a boat, you're on someone's property.
Healthy Hunting and Happy Holidays!
Joe