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Unusual for a Saturday, I went hunting. Took this photo about 90 minutes in ... not too bad 3 nice Makos, and a couple of larger hemis. I did not find as much variety the rest of the day. This thread is not about what I found, but what I saw. I have Kayaked rivers and streams , upstream and downstream 100s of times... I note the antics of the birds.. when I arrive one scene. Some like Vultures, Hawks, Owls see me/my kayak and head into the woods away from the river; Most little birds are oblivious... they ignore me. The Ibis, ducks and Herons are usually feeding on the shoreline. trying to catch a meal.. Mostly they continue eating until the nose of my kayak reaches their latitude and they take off initially in the direction that the kayak nose is pointing. They repeat this not more than 3-4 times and then on the 5th reoccurrence , they take off and then fly into the woods or much more likely , fly directly over my head, back to where they came from.... But Kingfishers repeat this behavior MORE than others up to 7 times in my experience.. Did I tell you, I really like Kingfishers best.. I have noted when they dive into water trying for a fish and indeed have enjoyed watching them catch fish many times... but never when they are leading me up or down stream. Today the distance I was kayaking was over 3 miles by river , maybe more.. It used to take me about 2 hours up and 15 minutes less with the current.. but I am getting older and slower... Today a belted Kingfisher joined me almost immediately as I started back to my truck. I think it was one of the bigger males I had ever seen.... they can grow to 13 inches Generally, these are solitary birds and they are territorial, constantly chasing other Kingfishers away. You will know that a Kingfisher is your area by their constant loud call, which sounds much like a machine gun! So, I was about 40 feet away, when I heard that Machine gun call, looked up to see a female (?) on a dead branch and she immediately launches heading downstream... This behavior was repeated 18 times in the next 2 hours... When I would come into view, she just sat there, when I would approach within 20-25 feet, machine gun call, launch , gone. After a couple, I felt she was waiting for me, and started yelling "King Fisher, King Fisher and doing a poor imitation of a whistle..., did not make a difference.. as I got close to 20-25 feet , she launched. I could slow down her launching by going slower....or so it seemed .. At occurrence 15 or 16, I thought I lost her... Upon launching. she took off directly into the woods...!!!! But it was a right S curve and as I navigated the curve , there she was , waiting for me... Occurrence #18... She landed on a branch of a tree directly over my morning launch site, and as I closed to 20 feet, repeated her call and launched downstream.. Please to anyone who has insight to bird behavior, please explain what was going on and why... why would she spend over 2 hours today with me.. ? I had a GREAT day.. There is nothing better than communicating with a Kingfisher....

I want to go back to Peace River but I don't want to do the normal canoe outpost thing this time. I want to take a kayak south of Zolfo springs were the river gets bendy, shallow, and remote. I don't have a kayak so I'm wondering if anyone has any recommendations for where I can rent one or if they want a hunting buddy for the second week of May.

So, springs a happenin and I had two opportunities to float the Kaw river, a shallow, shifting sand bar river meandering through central Kansas to western Missouri where it connects to the Missouri river. My first trip a couple weeks ago focused on the macro pleistocene fossils, a bison ulna, astralagus, phalanges, ribs, metatarsals, busted scapula, calcaneous, and various vertebral bodies , some chert flakes from early hominids, pieces of fossil wood, etc. The second trip focused more on micro fossils - I had flipped my kayak in the river on the first trip, and though cold and soaking with waders filled, I recovered everything. The second trip I prepared a little better- I needed a 5 gallon bucket, my 5 sieves, a smaller bucket, and my hiking stick. I needed to figure out how to get to the sandbars, so I tethered the sieves in an inner tube, and sealed the bucket and tethered that as well- worked perfect as there was little drag on the whole train!. I always check the CFS and never go when it is above 5,000, and almost always between 2-3,000 and this was no different, with warm weather and not one person in site! I found portions of ribs ( very common), this bison tooth, a fossil turtle scute, stalagtite, and this corner notch spear point. Most people would call it an arrowhead, but actual arrowheads are far smaller-this was hafted and likely placed on an atlatl, or throwing spear. Numerous chert flakes from working pieces, and then, after sifting several pounds of sand, I found these microfossils. The first reminds me of a cowrie shell but looks more like a piece of coral? The second, and most common fossils I found were these very small, colorful corals? and then this interesting piece i have simply no idea.....even if it is a fossil? there are three ridges on one side-thoughts? then a worn crinoid piece?.....I am assuming ...I haven't even gone through 10% of what I collected!. And I am a little in awe of the color in the sand .. all in all a successful trip, made even better by my new macroscope, camera, HDMI screen, etc .... Its just nice to get out, get fossil hunting and fishing!!!!. Any help identifying these appreciated as always!!!..... Bone 1705181703_kawrivermicrofossils.pptx

I found my first megatooth today! This was found in Calvert Cliffs Maryland, on my second kayaking trip down the Calvert formation. My and my friend visited beaches as we kayaked from Chesapeake Beach to Breezy Point and back. I found this tooth about half way down. Unfortunately this will be my last trip down Calvert Cliffs for a long time, so I am very happy I found this! I believe this is Carcharocles Subauriculatus, could anyone verify this?

Hi All! I'm camping in the Chesapeake area of Southern Maryland and am trying to plan out a little Calvert Cliffs trip. It seems like COVID has closed off almost all the access points to the Cliffs except for Matoaka and Calvert Cliffs State Park--a bummer, but I'm new to this so it will take very little to make me happy... Should I take my kayak? I've never been to either location but saw that the hike from parking to the beach area at the state park is 1.8 miles, so I'd hate to get the kayak all the way down there and find out I didn't need it after all. Any general advice would be most welcome too. Thanks!

As always, my yearly Florida trip report will be picture heavy and cover a multitude of activities, some of the story line may be embellished with a few (actually many) exaggerations. To begin with, why would any sane person want to leave this countryside behind for the lush greenery that Florida provides? My yearly trip to Florida blessed me in many ways, most importantly, uniting me with our son for a few weeks. My son lives in Bradenton and we had a wonderful time together. Unfortunately, he had to work during much of this period, which left me with ample opportunities to explore what Florida has to offer a fossil enthusiast. Upon arrival, we started our vacation by meeting up with Jack @Shellseeker and his wife for a delightful lunch at a very nice restaurant on Sanibel Island. Jack even presented me with dessert (some wonderful fossils that he had recently found). From there we proceeded northward to Bradenton. The following morning, my wife and I had a shopping list to take care of. I am not a shopper, so when we arrived at Costco, I was ecstatic to see the grounds surrounding the building were not finished and talked Jeanette into leaving me mosey around outside while she shopped. As with most exposures in this area of Florida, fossils abound. In fact, I did find a Megalodon tooth next to the building. (true!) Beat up, but what a way to start this vacation!! In the mornings to come, I took the opportunity to explore various areas in Bradenton where digging had occurred. As always plentiful shells from the Tamiami Formation were discovered. MikeR has graciously agreed to ID them before I post my finds. So, it may be a few weeks before this can be accomplished. But on with the most exciting part of my trip. Jeff @jcbshark and Jack, two guys that I used to call “guides” but now call good friends, allowed me once again to join them in an adventurous Kayak trip deep into the heart of Florida’s interior. We met at the launch just as the sun could be seen shining through the old moss covered oak trees. The beach was beautifully white, the water calm and clear. All indications pointed towards a fun day ahead of us. Jeff on the left, Jack on the right led the way to a secret fossil site. My paddling skills are not anywhere near their level and I headed up the rear. Truth be told, they often had to wait for me to catch up. After having traversed a mile or so, the river began to NARROW.

I recently went on a vacation to Lake Texoma, Oklahoma and rented a fishing kayak there. It proved to be indispensable for collecting. It had a decent amount of storage for my specimens and gear and it only took me about 4 hour to collect my specimens and return to the dock. I ended up spending about enough money to buy a cheap kayak. Lesson learned I guess.

Does anyone here use a trolling motor with their kayak while fossil-hunting? If so, how did you mount the motor to your yak? I have a "Lifetime" brand kayak with a flat back on it. They sell a metal bracket to mount a small motor that straps on to the back of the yak. Unfortunately, the bracket is almost $200 - about double the cost of the trolling motor I am considering. While I might be able to convince the wife that a $99 trolling motor (plus $50 battery) is necessary, I doubt I can push my luck and drop another $200 on a bracket that is basically $10 worth of stamped steel and a couple of $2 straps. Honestly, even if I had the cash, I wouldn't drop it on something that probably costs $20 to make. I'm more of a DIY guy. So, how did you mount your motor?

For those of us that love to collect sharks teeth this is probably not the way we want to find our great white teeth. :-) https://www.foxnews.com/great-outdoors/great-white-shark-bites-into-scuba-divers-kayak-loses-2-teeth

Hey everyone, just looking into kayaks a little. I see a lifetime tandum posted below which looks very stable. Does anyone have any recommendations for SOT ones that dont flip easy and handle nicely? Something what doesn't break the bank since most are 600+.

I was wondering if anyone here has made any modifications to their kayaks with the purpose of fossil-hunting in mind? Having just received a new tandem kayak, I find it lacking in attachment points for gear. It has a good amount of cargo space, but most of it is inside the hull and only accessible through two, 6-inch ports. So, you can only put small-diameter objects into the hull storage. During my previous hunting trips on a single kayak, I always found myself a little short here or there on storage space for my gear : backpack, shovel, screen, probe/walking stick, machete, loot bag, drinks/consumables, and the usual keys/wallet/phone/etc. The result is always a kayak that resembles something out of the Beverly Hillbillies : stuff awkwardly strapped to every surface and poking out in all directions. So, after looking all over the web at various websites about kayaks, building kayaks, fishing with kayaks, etc, I have yet to see anything closely related to fossil hunting. Some of the modifications made for fishing could prove useful, but I am curious if my fellow fossil-hunters here have done anything to their own boats with an eye towards improving the fossil hunting experience.

Got this early Xmas gift. It's a tandem kayak. It hasn't touched water yet, but I hope to break it in sometime shortly before or after Xmas. It can be used in a solo or tandem configuration. The two 6-inch deck hatches give access to plenty of storage room inside the hull - lots of space to stuff fossils. Now I just need a break in the rain and for this holiday madness to be over with. I'd love to take it out before Xmas, but I don't know if my schedule will allow it with the upcoming holiday and family things going on. The first water it will touch will likely be the Peace River (Florida) looking for Meg teeth and Pleistocene megafauna.

Hello fellow fossil hunters,. I am looking for one or two volunteers to navigate unexplored river ways in New Jersey and Connecticut for Triassic/Jurassic lacustrine cycles for dinosaur footprints and other trace fossils. The sites I have in mind are hot leads and require kayaks or a canoe to explore and are inaccessible by land. What we find we can split up. You provide the canoe or kayak and I will provide the leads. One car for drop off and one car to pick us up. Who is up for an adventure this fall? I will be planning more trips to the CT Valley this fall and seeing if anyone would like me to tag along at some cool dinosaur track sites. I am looking in particular for Eubrontes tracks or reptilian footprints from late Triassic/early Juraasic periods. No rock is too big to haul or break loose with the right techniques. I help you you help me we both get to take some fine specimens home. Who wants to go?

Hello to you all from SE Virginia. First, I'd like to say thank you to the forum for access to the wealth of information that's helped educate me along my fossil journey so far. I grew up on the local rivers fishing, paddling, and etc. I always knew that people were finding sharks teeth in our freshwater rivers, but the "bug" never bit me. After a long hiatus from the local rivers, I recently invested in a kayak to get my then five year old daughter onto the river. In September the "bug" bit. I had a friend help me learn how to read the river bed and clay banks one Saturday afternoon. That first shark tooth has led me on at least monthly paddling/fossil hunting adventures since then. I even bought a second kayak that would protect me from the winter elements, ha ha. So far my time has been spent paddling the Nottoway, Meherrin, and James rivers. The shark teeth and vertebrae caught my attention at first, as it seems to with most people. However, I've also really enjoyed collecting scallop fossils and other bivalves that originate from the Yorktown and Eastover (I assume as I'm still learning). It's fascinating to go out on the lower James one week and find many scallop shells and then the following week find the same species of those bivalves 60 miles inland on the Meherrin. Finding small specimens of the same creatures (and a tooth) from a new water well in the same area was cool too. I'm beginning to understand how scientist and geologists these species to identify and age different formations. Everyone's information that I've read has been helpful. It's neat learning from everyone's posts, especially the ones that give a wealth of information without divulging all of the secrets. I've enjoyed taking what I've learned online and figuring it out myself. I'll try to help others in that manner as well. For me, given my location, all of the entries by MikeR on his project were a wealth of information. Also, the geology/mineral reports from NC and VA are awesome. I've read thousands of pages from the late 1800s to current day. To read reports about localities done over 100 years ago and then visit these spots to educate myself first hand.....good stuff. Dr. Ward's information is priceless. Apologies if this introduction was too much. I just wanted to show some appreciation for what you all have helped me find over these past few months. If you're in my part of the world and want to adventure together sometime, feel free to reach out. I'll gladly give back to others that are as appreciative of this addiction as I am. You'll have to work for it though, just like I'm doing! I've posted pictures of some of my growing collection below. Thanks! - D.B.

I purchased a large, unwieldy, rotomolded sit-on-top fishing kayak recently but haven't had a chance to try it out until today. A friend and I launched in heavy rolling chop and paddled out past Chesapeake Beach and headed south toward Randall Cliffs. Every bit of awkwardness this boat has on land melted away in the water. She rolled up and down the waves easily, barely weather cocked and despite the size, handled well. Best of all, I can load this boat down with all the collecting tools I want, which I couldn't do in my more high-performance boat. We have had a lot of rain and as we skimmed near the cliffs, we saw a lot of newly fallen rock. I found a beachhead and turned the kayak's nose toward it. Rolling waves on the way out meant surfing on the way in, and we hit that beach at a high enough speed to almost completely get the boats out of the water. I'm very respectful of newly fallen cliffs and overhang, and my friend mentioned a desire to NOT be buried alive, so we kept close to the water and walked the shoreline. I had packed the trusty litter box scooper. I'm a little disappointed that there wasn't more sizable teeth to be found, but maybe I didn't have the luck today. However, there were quite a few almost whole scallop shell remains and the bull shark tooth wasn't a bad find at all. I'm always amazed when a shell can survive the pressure of a fall. Tough little things. I wish I was able to take a few pictures on the way back into the waves. The Eastern Shore of Maryland had a huge, very bright rainbow arcing over it from cloudbursts that were ranging up and down the Chesapeake, but the chop was too much to try and test my photography and paddling skills simultaneously. We made it back to the launch in a full sun shower. My friend scooped up a nice little sand tiger specimen as we landed. I'm looking forward to taking this boat out again for a more serious hunt.