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Shamalama

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@FossilDudeCO  Oh, HA! I finally got how that AT thing works. I was typing the name first and then putting an AT symbol in front of it. You gotta type the AT symbol first and then the script will pick up the name you are typing. Live and learn every day.

 

Anyrate, to answer question you asked, No I did not swing by this trip. I have been there before and it's pretty cool.  Too many places to go see when I'm out west. I spent a week or so in the field this trip and it's just not enough time to go do everything I want to. I need to win the lotto and then I would have plenty of time to do whatever I wanted. :) 

-Dave

__________________________________________________

Geologists on the whole are inconsistent drivers. When a roadcut presents itself, they tend to lurch and weave. To them, the roadcut is a portal, a fragment of a regional story, a proscenium arch that leads their imaginations into the earth and through the surrounding terrain. - John McPhee

If I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPhee

Check out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/

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Hi Dave. Was out of town and just got to see this GREAT REPORT!!!! Looks like you had a spectacular time and while the photos can't do the scenery justice they certainly come close. It all reminds me of the numerous trips I took out west including the one back in August, and the nine years I lived there and travelled around in my twenties and early thirties- many amazing memories. Too bad I wasn't into collecting back then. You and others have shown me I missed some excellent stuff. I'm most impressed with your finds from Douglas Pass. You got some real beauts there. Big congratulations and thanks for posting this.

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On 10/26/2016 at 11:58 PM, ynot said:

:dinothumb:

Thanks for sharing!!

Tony

 

No Problem Tony. Thanks for reading!

 

 

5.jpg

-Dave

__________________________________________________

Geologists on the whole are inconsistent drivers. When a roadcut presents itself, they tend to lurch and weave. To them, the roadcut is a portal, a fragment of a regional story, a proscenium arch that leads their imaginations into the earth and through the surrounding terrain. - John McPhee

If I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPhee

Check out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/

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14 hours ago, Jeffrey P said:

Hi Dave. Was out of town and just got to see this GREAT REPORT!!!! Looks like you had a spectacular time and while the photos can't do the scenery justice they certainly come close. It all reminds me of the numerous trips I took out west including the one back in August, and the nine years I lived there and travelled around in my twenties and early thirties- many amazing memories. Too bad I wasn't into collecting back then. You and others have shown me I missed some excellent stuff. I'm most impressed with your finds from Douglas Pass. You got some real beauts there. Big congratulations and thanks for posting this.

 

Thanks Jeff. You really should spend some time out there if you get the opportunity. Beautiful scenery and lots of places to prospect. You just have to be careful about property rights and wildlife.

46.JPG

-Dave

__________________________________________________

Geologists on the whole are inconsistent drivers. When a roadcut presents itself, they tend to lurch and weave. To them, the roadcut is a portal, a fragment of a regional story, a proscenium arch that leads their imaginations into the earth and through the surrounding terrain. - John McPhee

If I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPhee

Check out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/

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I don't know if this has been mentioned yet but your gorgeous "palm wood branch" is actually a petrified petiole of the fern Acrostichum. I, personally, think that's MUCH cooler than Palmoxylon!

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Amazing trip!  The insect preservation is astounding!  I love the robber flies and weevil!  Very cool....

"Men became scientific because they expected Law in Nature, and they expected Law in Nature because they believed in a Legislator." - C.S. Lewis

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On 10/24/2016 at 5:29 AM, Shamalama said:

The next day I hit the Warfield fish quarry in Kemmerer and found a number of good fossils. Total haul was 12-15 whole fish, most of which were Knightia or Diplomystus but I did get two decent Mioplosus. One is a franken fish (broken into four pieces) and the other is still mostly buried in matrix. No other big finds this year. The rock was somewhat "wet" and was not splitting too well. Most of what I found was from the "scab" layers. Still I was quite happy with what I found and especially so as everything made it home in one piece through the mail.

 

IMG_6804.JPG

 

An "Explodo-fish" and one of my favorite finds. The fish body disintegrated some before it was fully buried.

IMG_6745.JPG

 

This is a plate with the 3/32" ash layer on it that has multiple fish preserved, all Knigtia sp.  I am working on exposing as much as I can and started with the two near the bottom first.

IMG_6741.JPGIMG_6742.JPG

 

Hi Shamalama,

 

I agree it's an Amphiplaga.  I found one too on a trip through Wyoming back in the early 90's.  I didn't find any Mioplosus though.

 

I like the disarticulated fish as well.  It's a great example of how lucky it is to have a site where so many complete fish are found.  If they don't get buried fast enough, they start getting eaten away one way or another.  I have a trilobite nobody wanted because it was preserved with its cephalon separated from the body and at an angle.  Maybe within hours later the cephalon would have drifted away another few inches and not been found on the same plate.

 

I hope more people can make a similar trip across the states.  Many visit Vegas and the Grand Canyon but there are so many spots around Utan, Wyoming, Colorado, and connecting states that are worth checking out.  There are fewer rock shops than there used to be so I'm glad you were able to make some purchases.

 

It's so quiet out in some places except for birds and the wind.  The things you can find are surprising.  One of my friends pointed out a volcanic bomb in the weeds.  You don't think about there ever being volcanoes in Wyoming unless you're a geologist.  It was great to hear about those.

 

Jess

 

 

 

 

 

 

Quote

 

Cont'd...

 

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Yeah, the night sky is like nothing you'd see at night in a large city.  It's almost like a haze of stars.  If lay there for several minutes, you will see a meteor (or at least say, "Was that a meteor?"

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I was once told the Blue Forest wood was Middle Eocene (a few million years younger than the Green River fish sites) but I don't have an article on it so you're probably right.

 

Thanks for great report and photos.

 

Jess

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On 10/28/2016 at 4:24 PM, Carl said:

I don't know if this has been mentioned yet but your gorgeous "palm wood branch" is actually a petrified petiole of the fern Acrostichum. I, personally, think that's MUCH cooler than Palmoxylon!

 

Thanks for the info @Carl. I did a search of the interwebbing and found this picture of a cross section through an extant member of that genus that looks very similar to the specimen I found and to the piece I purchased.

 

DSCN1499.JPG

 

It comes from the Plant Systematics.org website

-Dave

__________________________________________________

Geologists on the whole are inconsistent drivers. When a roadcut presents itself, they tend to lurch and weave. To them, the roadcut is a portal, a fragment of a regional story, a proscenium arch that leads their imaginations into the earth and through the surrounding terrain. - John McPhee

If I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPhee

Check out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/

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On 10/28/2016 at 9:46 PM, dre464 said:

Amazing trip!  The insect preservation is astounding!  I love the robber flies and weevil!  Very cool....

 

Thank you @dre464. The site is awesome to visit and seemingly endless discoveries await. 

 

IMG_20150903_161857570.jpg

-Dave

__________________________________________________

Geologists on the whole are inconsistent drivers. When a roadcut presents itself, they tend to lurch and weave. To them, the roadcut is a portal, a fragment of a regional story, a proscenium arch that leads their imaginations into the earth and through the surrounding terrain. - John McPhee

If I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPhee

Check out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/

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6 hours ago, siteseer said:

I was once told the Blue Forest wood was Middle Eocene (a few million years younger than the Green River fish sites) but I don't have an article on it so you're probably right.

 

Thanks for great report and photos.

 

Jess

 

6 hours ago, siteseer said:

Yeah, the night sky is like nothing you'd see at night in a large city.  It's almost like a haze of stars.  If lay there for several minutes, you will see a meteor (or at least say, "Was that a meteor?"

 

6 hours ago, siteseer said:

 

Hi Shamalama,

 

I agree it's an Amphiplaga.  I found one too on a trip through Wyoming back in the early 90's.  I didn't find any Mioplosus though.

 

I like the disarticulated fish as well.  It's a great example of how lucky it is to have a site where so many complete fish are found.  If they don't get buried fast enough, they start getting eaten away one way or another.  I have a trilobite nobody wanted because it was preserved with its cephalon separated from the body and at an angle.  Maybe within hours later the cephalon would have drifted away another few inches and not been found on the same plate.

 

I hope more people can make a similar trip across the states.  Many visit Vegas and the Grand Canyon but there are so many spots around Utan, Wyoming, Colorado, and connecting states that are worth checking out.  There are fewer rock shops than there used to be so I'm glad you were able to make some purchases.

 

It's so quiet out in some places except for birds and the wind.  The things you can find are surprising.  One of my friends pointed out a volcanic bomb in the weeds.  You don't think about there ever being volcanoes in Wyoming unless you're a geologist.  It was great to hear about those.

 

Jess

 

 

 

Thanks for the comments Jess. You are likely correct on the age of the Blue Forest wood, but what is a few million years between fossils? Oh wait... that is a lot of years. :trilosurprise:

103.JPG

 

-Dave

__________________________________________________

Geologists on the whole are inconsistent drivers. When a roadcut presents itself, they tend to lurch and weave. To them, the roadcut is a portal, a fragment of a regional story, a proscenium arch that leads their imaginations into the earth and through the surrounding terrain. - John McPhee

If I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPhee

Check out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hey Dave, I enjoyed seeing photos from your trip. I miss being out there--been decades....Looks like you came away with some interesting finds and the plant material looks wonderful as well. Congrats. Regards, Chris 

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thanks @Plantguy. I'm itching to get out there again but will have to wait until spring or early summer. 

-Dave

__________________________________________________

Geologists on the whole are inconsistent drivers. When a roadcut presents itself, they tend to lurch and weave. To them, the roadcut is a portal, a fragment of a regional story, a proscenium arch that leads their imaginations into the earth and through the surrounding terrain. - John McPhee

If I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPhee

Check out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/

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Wonderful trip report! I have a new fossil spot for the bucket list. 

 

Do you get to keep everything you find from Douglass Pass? I can't believe I've never heard of this place! 

~Charlie~

"There are those that look at things the way they are, and ask why.....i dream of things that never were, and ask why not?" ~RFK
->Get your Mosasaur print
->How to spot a fake Trilobite
->How to identify a CONCRETION from a DINOSAUR EGG

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3 hours ago, fossilized6s said:

Wonderful trip report! I have a new fossil spot for the bucket list. 

 

Do you get to keep everything you find from Douglass Pass? I can't believe I've never heard of this place! 

I can't believe it either.  It is one of the best fossil insect sites in the usa.  And it is public land so you can keep all the leaves and invertebrates you find.  It is hard work, though.  

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10 hours ago, fossilized6s said:

Wonderful trip report! I have a new fossil spot for the bucket list. 

 

Do you get to keep everything you find from Douglass Pass? I can't believe I've never heard of this place! 

 

Like @jpc said, you can keep all that you find, unless it's a vertebrate, because it's on public land. If you get lucky you will find really good stuff but often you have to break apart a ton of rock and it is hard rock that doesn't always split well.

-Dave

__________________________________________________

Geologists on the whole are inconsistent drivers. When a roadcut presents itself, they tend to lurch and weave. To them, the roadcut is a portal, a fragment of a regional story, a proscenium arch that leads their imaginations into the earth and through the surrounding terrain. - John McPhee

If I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPhee

Check out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/

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Thanks for taking us along on your adventures.  You've been to so many sites that are still on my "bucket list", especially Douglass Pass!  :drool:

 

Don 

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21 hours ago, FossilDAWG said:

Thanks for taking us along on your adventures.  You've been to so many sites that are still on my "bucket list", especially Douglass Pass!  :drool:

 

Don 

Well, we just need to get you out west then!

-Dave

__________________________________________________

Geologists on the whole are inconsistent drivers. When a roadcut presents itself, they tend to lurch and weave. To them, the roadcut is a portal, a fragment of a regional story, a proscenium arch that leads their imaginations into the earth and through the surrounding terrain. - John McPhee

If I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPhee

Check out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/

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Just in a word : excellent ! :)

" We are not separate and independent entities, but like links in a chain, and we could not by any means be what we are without those who went before us and showed us the way. "

Thomas Mann

My Library

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Excellent trip report! Visited a few placed I've been and introduced me to many that were (till now) off my radar. Great posts like this can be like a shopping list for my future travels. Thanks for taking us along on this epic trip. Like Charlie, Douglass Pass is now on my bucket list.

 

 

Cheers.

 

-Ken

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This was a really great trip report! Awesome pics! Thanks for sharing!

Dipleurawhisperer5.jpg

I like Trilo-butts and I cannot lie.

 

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Just found this report now.. Wonderful. I was impressed by the robber fly but that's not the only thing.

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