cowsharks Posted December 31, 2013 Share Posted December 31, 2013 So, 2014 is right around the corner and I can't help but wonder if there will be a fossil collecting season at Lee Creek this Spring, this year, or ever again. Below are a couple pics from Google Maps and Mapquest showing the progress of the mining operation and how it has expanded in the last few years. It looks like they have made significant progress in the expansion process. I recall the mine tour guide on our bus at the Aurora Fossil Festival last year saying he thought fossil collecting would be permissible within the next 3 to 5 years once the mining operation and area is a bit broader and collectors wouldn't be so close to the tall walls. Although I'm content with my collecting spots in the MD/VA area, it sure would be nice to be back in the mine for a few trips per year . Daryl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickNC Posted December 31, 2013 Share Posted December 31, 2013 It sure would be nice to get in there, especially for those of us who have never had the opportunity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowsharks Posted December 31, 2013 Author Share Posted December 31, 2013 It's an awesome experience, but sort of like Disney World in that you need more than one trip to "see" everything. The collecting area is (was) so large at times that even with 50 to 75 people you might not even bump into anyone the whole day. I wish I had thought of bringing out buckets of "raw" dirt/material a lot sooner than I did. The last few trips I brought in 10 empty 5-gal buckets, then used the last hour of the day to fill them with dirt; always picked an area closest to the ramp near the bus so I didn't have to carry them more than a couple hundred feet. I understand the mine folks have deemed the mining area too unsafe for collectors; too many trucks driving around, and according to the guide on the bus tour last year, he said the collecting area was "too narrow" to allow sufficient room away from the tall walls around the perimeter of the area. Looking at the satellite images I'm curious to see which area they mine in over the next couple of years because it looks like they already reached the river at the one end. I always heard folks say that collecting would/should be better nearest the river; not sure why though? Fingers crossed for this year, but not holding my breath. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fallingfossils Posted January 1, 2014 Share Posted January 1, 2014 It sure would be nice to get in there, especially for those of us who have never had the opportunity. My thoughts exactly. I almost got the chance right before it closed, but couldn't go. I really regret that I didn't get to and hope I get another chance. Positive thoughts... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted January 1, 2014 Share Posted January 1, 2014 You know; they didn't even make an announcement about the fall collecting season. Just saying ............................................ Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowsharks Posted January 2, 2014 Author Share Posted January 2, 2014 You know; they didn't even make an announcement about the fall collecting season. Just saying ............................................ Wow, I didn't even notice that. I got so used to the fact that it's been closed that I didn't even notice that there wasn't a "new" announcement posted for this past Fall 2013. I wonder why? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AeroMike Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 I would just like to go in and collect one time at least. I am glad I was able to collect in LaFarge a few times. " This comment brought to you by the semi-famous AeroMike" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowsharks Posted August 28, 2014 Author Share Posted August 28, 2014 So, I stumbled upon TerraServer and obtained an updated snapshot of the mining operations at Lee Creek. I added approximate "Year" labels to the areas that I'm guessing they were digging/mining in over the last few years since the mine has been closed to collecting. Looks like they've made significant progress since the last images I posted last year in Dec2013. That must mean we're real close to being able to get back in for collecting...right? Does anyone have any updates on the future of collecting at Lee Creek? I hear all sorts of rumblings from folks at club meetings, but haven't heard anything official in quite some time. Daryl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 That's the kind of door that, once shut, doesn't re-open. "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcoSr Posted August 29, 2014 Share Posted August 29, 2014 Does anyone have any updates on the future of collecting at Lee Creek? Daryl. Daryl From what I understand the yearly white hat mine safety training has stopped. To me that means no more collecting. Marco Sr. "Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day." My family fossil website Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros My Extant Shark Jaw Collection Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nandomas Posted August 29, 2014 Share Posted August 29, 2014 Daryl From what I understand the yearly white hat mine safety training has stopped. To me that means no more collecting. Marco Sr. ... so sad Erosion... will be my epitaph! http://www.paleonature.org/ https://fossilnews.org/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowsharks Posted August 30, 2014 Author Share Posted August 30, 2014 We also noticed that Jim stopped getting/posting yearly and/or seasonal updates regarding each upcoming collecting season. Well, if it ever reopens that would sure be great. If not, we'll all continue our collecting endeavors elsewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunt4teeth Posted August 30, 2014 Share Posted August 30, 2014 Maybe we can all chip in money and buy some land in the Yorktown/Pungo formation. We would not even need to rent a front loader to remove the overburden. We could just invite the Florida FF members who are digging up the Peace and have them remove it in a day Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scylla Posted August 30, 2014 Share Posted August 30, 2014 Never did get to collect there. Hopefully when they are done mining it can be turned into a fossil/nature park like Penn-Dixie? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilselachian Posted August 30, 2014 Share Posted August 30, 2014 Sad that one of the world's premier fossil collecting sites may well be closed forever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcoSr Posted August 30, 2014 Share Posted August 30, 2014 Never did get to collect there. Hopefully when they are done mining it can be turned into a fossil/nature park like Penn-Dixie? They are reclaiming the mining area as they mine. The fossils are/will be reburied. It could be a nature park. Marco Sr. "Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day." My family fossil website Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros My Extant Shark Jaw Collection Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowsharks Posted September 3, 2014 Author Share Posted September 3, 2014 They are reclaiming the mining area as they mine. The fossils are/will be reburied. It could be a nature park. Marco Sr. Marco, I noticed that from the pics - they seem to be back-filling with reclamation fairly soon after completing the mining. I don't know if they are doing it faster than in previous years or not. To be honest, although I collected there since 1996, I don't really recall too many occasions when Becky had to warn us about staying away from the impending reclamation creeping slowly towards us. Maybe it was there all along and I was just too focused and excited to get colllecting and nt worry too much about my surroundings...I didn't look up very often Daryl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcoSr Posted September 3, 2014 Share Posted September 3, 2014 Marco, I noticed that from the pics - they seem to be back-filling with reclamation fairly soon after completing the mining. I don't know if they are doing it faster than in previous years or not. To be honest, although I collected there since 1996, I don't really recall too many occasions when Becky had to warn us about staying away from the impending reclamation creeping slowly towards us. Maybe it was there all along and I was just too focused and excited to get colllecting and nt worry too much about my surroundings...I didn't look up very often Daryl. Daryl Years ago, I remember you could walk forever in the mine before you got near a reclamation area. When they were trying to renew their permits five or six years back, they seemed to speed up the reclamation process and you could see it in the distance. The last year collecting I remember reclamation right near the collecting area with only 7 or 8 collecting hills. Marco Sr. "Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day." My family fossil website Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros My Extant Shark Jaw Collection Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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