Good Day on the Peace

[Florida Larry]

Had a great day out on the Peace up in the north section. I'm primarily a tooth seeker but welcome other rare finds. Luckily the river will sever up plenty of teeth for years to come. This was my first time out in my new canoe(previously used inflatable kayaks due to convenience in my Camry.) And it makes a world of difference especially when to 12 ft. dinos make the plunge from the bank. 

 

Anyways the water levels were perfect. We found a nice pit that looked to be previously bank dug...... and it caused some concern from passers by. We only encountered 2 groups on the river. One being Fred Mazza and a group of guided customers who went pretty well upstream from us. The others were just a senior couple enjoying the float. Fred expressed his distaste at the bank diggers and I can only assume he thought we were doing the same. LET ME MAKE THIS CLEAR. If anyone can pass the word. That is scum of the earth behaviour. I'm a pretty conservative individual and I don't outstep what is written. And I certainly respect; demand respect from the farmers and local gov. out there that boarder the river. I go far out of my way to respect the land and laws. So much so that I won't even dig near a posted sign just to ensure that I cause no ill will between any parties. Which is why I can only hold my tongue is certain situations that I see on most of my trips. 

 

Here are the finds for the day. Might get one more trip in before the rain but if not.... i'll be updating with any land explorations. 

 

I'm planning on filling that juvenile meg with a silver plug. Let me know if you'd like to see that process! 

Edited April 24, 2021 by Florida Larry

[jpc]

a silver plug?

[Florida Larry]

1 minute ago, jpc said:

a silver plug?

Yes, to join the two pieces. I can't say i've ever seen that done, or know the best terminology for it but it seems like it would be a pretty cool way to display. 

[Shellseeker]

1 hour ago, Florida Larry said:

Fred expressed his distaste at the bank diggers and I can only assume he thought we were doing the same. LET ME MAKE THIS CLEAR. If anyone can pass the word. That is scum of the earth behaviour.

As a fossil enthusiast who will grow to love the Peace River,  you should come to realize some basic facts of life.

The Peace River is unique. There are laws on the books that state it is illegal and you may be fined for digging in any state waterway with more that a hand shovel --that long handle shovel in your hand and mine in our Avatars is prohibited. Fish & Wildlife choose not to enforce that rule the length and breadth of the Peace River. 

We are very fortunate to have a fossil hobby and the right to hunt the Peace River and keep what we find!!!  That is not the situation in much of the rest of the country,  think about BLM lands/rivers.

Summervile, SC has some very large , gorgeous Megs. Years back the city council instituted regulations with stiff fines prohibiting fossil hunting in the local creeks because Meg hunters were destroying the banks.

The banks of the Peace River are PRIVATE PROPERTY.  Most of the people who dig in the banks of the river do not care. It is certainly possible that the State of Florida could start enforcing the ban on long handle shovels or remove the right to fossil hunt in the Peace River entirely.

 

Do not rant about those who fail to appreciate the gifts they have been given.  Do what I do.

 

Serious stuff,  Make sure you see the persons/person digging in the bank.  Help Fred to keep his Fossil Hunting tour business.

[Florida Larry]

2 hours ago, Shellseeker said:

As a fossil enthusiast who will grow to love the Peace River,  you should come to realize some basic facts of life.

The Peace River is unique. There are laws on the books that state it is illegal and you may be fined for digging in any state waterway with more that a hand shovel --that long handle shovel in your hand and mine in our Avatars is prohibited. Fish & Wildlife choose not to enforce that rule the length and breadth of the Peace River. 

We are very fortunate to have a fossil hobby and the right to hunt the Peace River and keep what we find!!!  That is not the situation in much of the rest of the country,  think about BLM lands/rivers.

Summervile, SC has some very large , gorgeous Megs. Years back the city council instituted regulations with stiff fines prohibiting fossil hunting in the local creeks because Meg hunters were destroying the banks.

The banks of the Peace River are PRIVATE PROPERTY.  Most of the people who dig in the banks of the river do not care. It is certainly possible that the State of Florida could start enforcing the ban on long handle shovels or remove the right to fossil hunt in the Peace River entirely.

 

Do not rant about those who fail to appreciate the gifts they have been given.  Do what I do.

 

Serious stuff,  Make sure you see the persons/person digging in the bank.  Help Fred to keep his Fossil Hunting tour business.

 

Very fortunate! 

 

For sure will keep that number on speed dial if I see anyone..... another fortunate thing is that the area for fossil collecting is so vast that I rarely bump heads with anyone. 

[jpc]

I still don't get it... silver plug?  What is that?  I have a plug in my sink but it is made of rubber and even if it were made of silver, it would not fix a broken tooth?  

[Bone Daddy]

This pisses me off and it's the kind of thing that will ruin it for everyone. Josh and I put in at Payne's Creek to hunt and we were fully aware that hunting within or near the park boundaries was forbidden. So, we were going to paddle very far upstream, well away from the boundaries and do some hunting there. To make a long and aggravating story short, some clowns had dug big holes at the water-line and left giant spoil piles on the banks - not only inside the park boundaries, but within 100' feet of the ramp. Whoever had done it was recklessly destructive and either oblivious to or uncaring about the laws. It made us a little nervous because we didn't want to get blamed if we ran into any rangers. We ended up paddling quite far upstream and didn't find any promising or productive spots. On the way back, I had planned on informing a ranger if we saw one, but we didn't. In hindsight, I should have reported it, but I didn't know who/where to call and whether or not they (the authorities) would take it seriously.

 

99% of the other fossil hunters I see on the river are nice, respectful, law-abiding people. But all it takes is a few bad apples.