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 Ten obsidian domes, formed during an eruption approximately 860 years ago, rose up to form Glass Mountain, so collecting a large sample appeared to be an easy task. But after spending hours scouring its slopes, accompanied by Julie, Glenn, and Glenn's son Travis, Ro's hopes of finding a giant boulder of obsidian were beginning to fade.
 When Ro, Travis, and Glenn scrambled up the domes to inspect the rock, they found that the obsidian was fractured and shattered. Although not unusual for this type of rock, Ro had hoped that by combing through the mounds of obsidian at Glass Mountain, she would be able to find the type of sample she had planned the expedition around.
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"Everything was broken and small," she said, finally settling on a rock about 10" by 10" by 24" long. "A nice sample," said Ro. "But not the piece I came out to get." 
When Ro drove back to her hotel that night, she began to worry about the feasibility and success of her mission. The next day, as she watched Glenn load another selected volcanic rock, a 300-400 pound boulder of andesite, his wife Heidi Malby sensed Ro's disappointment. She told Ro about a local family, and a collection named "Rockopolis".
