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It has been some time since I posted anything of note. I'm still adjusting to my new surroundings here in Colorado but I did at least join a local Paleontological Society (WIPS) Western Interior Paleontological Society. My first field trip with the group was out to Baculite Mesa in Pueblo, CO. A location that is famous with a storied history, that is still giving up its ancient treasures. The weather here in Colorado can be touch and go at best, and our trip was almost delayed/cancelled by a late winter storm. This was our neighborhood in Denver the day before the trip. But temperatures rose fairly quickly (?) and the rain/snow abated enough for a window to open into the past. I brought the kids along on this trip. Here are the kids speeding along the ancient ocean bottom, which reverted to 4-6 inches of mud after the rain/snow. It returned to its roots you might say, and in the process my children grew 6 inches that day !! ... until dad had to scrape the sticky mud off of their shoes. 30 minutes later ?? .. yes, they were 6 inches taller once more. Screaming across the muddy ocean bottom. Here is our fearless leader Malcolm Bedell braving the mud and standing in front of one of the many "teepee buttes" that dots the landscape. These ancient methane seeps were built up by small communities of worms, bivalves, gastropods, crabs and the like. Food provided by the methane fixing bacteria at the seeps, and the communities of critters creating these limestone mounds. A closer look at one of these small communities. The baculites (mostly Baculites scotti) can be found eroding out of the shale and concretions that dot the landscape. This is how they typically present themselves at the site. It is rare, but occasionally you can find the Baculites with some of their original nacre still attached. But something to "fix" the nacre to the core is recommended. I think the wet mud helped to preserve this shell until I could return to the car and consolidate it .... the exercise was akin to lifting a shattered pane of glass lying on the ground to safety. Next time something to consolidate the nacre in the field and tin foil would be advised. The second location we moved to in the flats, was cut by many small and large arroyos, and could at times be treacherous for man and beast. This poor cow twisted it's legs on the way down into one of these arroyos (steep-sided gully) and had been lying there in the mud for some time, unable to move. These arroyos cut deeper into the Pierre Shale and most of the fossils here present themselves in hard concretions. I wasn't able to hang around for too long in this location. The cold and mud was too much for the kids and they retreated into the car. Next time I know what to look for and will be better prepared. I know next time will be more successful. Visually I know what I'm after and where to find it. The area is quite literally littered with fossils. I left most where I found them, eroding out of the muddy landscape. Next time I will explore the sides of the arroyo and bring a nice 3lb hand sledge. Here are ammonite bits .. found within eroding concretions. The desert has begun to bloom once again. Cheers, Brett