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Hey everyone! I'm Justin from SW Florda. I recently got stationed out of the Charelston, SC. I've been doing a ton of research, looking at map, and have driven around looking for sites with little luck. If anyone could point me in the right direction I would greatly appreciate it, I also have an 8 year old daughter that loves collecting, so kid friendly would be appreciated as well. I travel from Charelston, SC back home to Venice, FL regularly so I would be happy to trade out info. Thanks in advance!

I'm going to be in San Diego for a couple days next month and would love to hit a site for a bit of collecting, IF I can talk my wife into breaking away from the beach and the sea lions for a few minutes. Can anyone give me some insight into possible locations? Any help is greatly appreciated.

IMHO, if you set up a date and time to meet someone who is taking their time and effort to take you around to collecting sites in their area, and you can not make the appointed meeting at least have the courtesy to call them and let them know you won't be there.

Hello! I'm heading out to spend a few days in the DC Area visiting with family, specifically around Potomac, MD. I have never been there, so I've been trying to collect info about the geology in the area, and fossil sites. I've found some Maryland sites on the forums (along the Potomac River, and the Calvert Cliffs). Most of the maps I can see locate spots farther south than Potomac, so I was wondering if it was worth looking along the river that far north? Thanks, any hints would be welcome!

Over the summer we are doing a trip to Maine and I would like to go fossil hunting one day while there but I have no spots and very little information. I would appreciate anyone that can tell me a place to go and the method to finding fossils there

Hello fellow forum members, it's Trevor. I am deciding between attending two different colleges, one is near Cleveland, Ohio and the other is near Lewisberg, PA. Fossiling is a large part of my decision. I already know some fern sites in PA and PA is closer to Maryland and Jersey so that's a plus. Can anyone tell me the fossil situation of Ohio or surrounding areas.

So, I have this idea -- maybe it's nuts. What if we, as a community, started a census of sorts for road cuts. Every time I pass an attractive shale road cut, I think to myself, "I should really stop there and see what sorts of fossils are there." Then I got to thinking, there ought to be some way to share standardized information on what is in any given site. So here's what I propose: Every time I stop by a road cut, I will rummage around in the scree for exactly 30 minutes. Then I will post an exact location (drop a Google maps pin, maybe), and precisely what I find. That way, the next time a Forum member goes down that road, he can know what sorts of fossils are to be found. Because I will look for exactly 30 minutes, it will also give some estimate of fossil density. (Sites where I find ten fossils in 30 minutes are likely more fossiliferous than sites where I find only one.) Over time, this road cut census will give clues about where to look for new, undiscovered sites. Any thoughts on this approach? Would this be useful to other amateurs? Are there improvements to be made in my standardized approach? Would anyone else like to join me in this endeavor? Just think how useful it would be to know before your road trip which areas have fossils in nearby road cuts... Cheers, Matt

I am going to visit family in Bomlo Norge in May. Has anyone done any collecting in Norge? It's an island just south of Bergen. Can anyone recommend any stops? I know theres an old gold mine there. Any chance of some amber? prehistoric or viking age finds are all good for me.

So I just recently found a new trilobite site in GA only an hour and a half drive away from where I live. I plan on going there this weekend (tomorrow), but I do not know the exact age. I have currently been unsuccessful at finding a reliable geological map so far. Anyone have an idea on the age? Thanks!

Being a pretty young amateur, I have not had the chance to visit all too many sites, due to time constraints. Knowing that most anyone has their spot where they make their best finds, enjoy the hunt more, etc., I wonder what place is your favorite for finding fossils.

The following are Ordovician sites I plan on going to in the near future. Ever come across either of them?

I am currently staying in Pigeon forge in Tennesse, and am looking forward to a spring break with tons of new specimens (and maybe even a FOTUM entry?(excuse my current inability to find a way to get better pictures of my bivalve last month)). Being a state very abundant in Ordovician fossils, I have heard across the internet that Tennessee is LITTERED with specimens (especially Nashville, not to mention a site being at a Target). I would willingly take the 3 and a half hour trip from pigeon forge and hunt in Nashville all day each day of the week, but before I went through the trouble of going to such lengths, I was wondering if there were any fossil sites closer to Pigeon forge where you could find specimens (not including Cades Cove), as I cannot find of any said sites on the internet. Any ideas? Thanks!

I'm going back to visit my hometown in the Philippines. Are there any fossil sites in the Philippines? I heard there is fossilized coral there, but where is it, specifically? Thanks.

So I've had a post before asking this but, does anyone know any fossils sites near Minneapolis, I know there is Lilydale, but it's currently closed, I don't care if it's a ditch next to a road, or if you need a permit I just want to know LEGAL fossil sites that I can go to, hunt, collect and leave! Thank you for the help!

Hello All! I need your help, but first I'd best introduce myself. I'm the new Program Coordinator -- and on-site paleontologist -- for the Waco Mammoth Site. For those of unfamiliar with the site, it's a late-Pleistocene recurrent mass-mortality site for Columbian mammoths and a scattering of other Rancholabrean megafauna. From 68 KA onwards at least two groups of mammoths and their camp-followers got caught in flash floods along a tributary of the Bosque River in what would become the western outskirts of Waco, TX. The site is currently a city-run in-situ display of six of those mammoths, in an enclosed climate-controlled shelter. The facility is loaded with educational potential, but at the moment all we've got is a (very nice) guided tour. I want to do better. One of the educational activities I'm looking to add in the near future is a screen-washing. I'll have the students screen and pick fossiliferous sediment and ID what they've found. They'll be able to keep most of what they find (with exceptions for scientifically important specimens) and all of their findings will get entered into a database that will be run through the PAST statistical package. I'll write up the results and try to get them published -- with the kids listed individually in the acknowledgements. The kids get real fossils, they get to participate in a real scientific study, and I get to do some research. I think it's an idea with potential, with one wrinkle; I'm having a hard time getting the sediment! I've tried buying phosphate gravel from the mines in Florida and North Carolina, but my efforts seem to be stalling. I know that some such gravel is available for resale, but it's a tad pricey. There's no way I could afford to buy the 100 or so kilos I want on the shoe-string budget I've got for the time being. If anyone has a line on a better source of bulk sediment, I'd love to hear from you! In fact, if you've got any ideas for spreading interest in paleontology, we need to talk. Paleontology is the gateway drug of science -- if we want to teach critical thinking in this country, fossils are the best place to start. Please help me work to make that happen. Regards, Don Esker