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Anyone been to Marble Mountains recently?


Sagebrush Steve

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Anyone been to the Marble Mountains in Southern California recently to search for trilobites?  I know how to get to the dirt access road out of Cadiz but I was wondering about the condition of the road to the site, and also whether anyone has had much luck there in the recent past.  I might head out there sometime in April if conditions are good.

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I'd probably be a little more concerned if BLM allows collecting at that site anymore. I haven't been there since 2004, and a lot of regulations have been enacted. Many of the good spots in CA and NV are deemed "Trilobite Wilderness Areas" with collecting prohibited.

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I heard that south of the highway has been designated as national monument and is off limits, but north is still open for collecting.

But I have not been there.

Darwin said: " Man sprang from monkeys."

Will Rogers said: " Some of them didn't spring far enough."

 

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7 minutes ago, fossilcrazy said:

I'd probably be a little more concerned if BLM allows collecting at that site anymore. I haven't been there since 2004, and a lot of regulations have been enacted. Many of the good spots in CA and NV are deemed "Trilobite Wilderness Areas" with collecting prohibited.

 

 

The only time I've collected trilobites was about 20 years ago somewhere not too far from Pioche, NV.  it was called something like "River Run."  I heard it was posted as off-limits around 2002.  I wasn't finding much and then I just sat and took a break.  Right next to me was a nice little Olenellus on a thin chip of shale.  lucky.

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20 minutes ago, siteseer said:

 

 

The only time I've collected trilobites was about 20 years ago somewhere not too far from Pioche, NV.  it was called something like "River Run."  I heard it was posted as off-limits around 2002.  I wasn't finding much and then I just sat and took a break.  Right next to me was a nice little Olenellus on a thin chip of shale.  lucky.

Yes, I was there or a place nearby just last September.  It is called the Oak Springs Trilobite Site, and collecting is permitted.  I found a number of Olenellus cephalon but no full trilobites.

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45 minutes ago, fossilcrazy said:

I'd probably be a little more concerned if BLM allows collecting at that site anymore. I haven't been there since 2004, and a lot of regulations have been enacted. Many of the good spots in CA and NV are deemed "Trilobite Wilderness Areas" with collecting prohibited.

I’ve got a request in to BLM to confirm, but here’s a snip from their website.  I would say that if I got in trouble my defense would be that their own website calls it a trilobite collecting area.  :)  This one is south of Route 66.

5ab446c087fa4_2018-03-2217-06-33.thumb.jpg.e1da01381228b76b0c3ad38853cd9150.jpg

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I was there about 6 years ago and the washes were still not too bad for my 2 wheel drive truck. Though you need to avoid low clearance vehicles and any time right after a rain. Or during a horizontal rainstorm ? That too ..

 

 

Take plenty of water and it will cost you 500$ for a tow. Mentioning that for a friend. Haha.

 

The trilos are literally scattered everywhere. Can't miss them when you find them. Unless I am mistaken collecting is indeed permitted there still ...

 

I had a great little site map/trip report with images. I'll see if I can dig it up Monday night.

 

Cheers,

Brett

 

PS. I used to haunt this location back in the day. The hike to the site is not bad from the 'parking area'.

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3 hours ago, Sagebrush Steve said:

I’ve got a request in to BLM to confirm, but here’s a snip from their website.  I would say that if I got in trouble my defense would be that their own website calls it a trilobite collecting area.  :)  This one is south of Route 66.

5ab446c087fa4_2018-03-2217-06-33.thumb.jpg.e1da01381228b76b0c3ad38853cd9150.jpg

And if you look closely you can see that shooting is permitted, so I will be able to protect my diggings from poachers. :P

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16 hours ago, Brett Breakin' Rocks said:

 

The trilos are literally scattered everywhere. Can't miss them when you find them. Unless I am mistaken collecting is indeed permitted there still ...

 

I had a great little site map/trip report with images. I'll see if I can dig it up Monday night.

 

Cheers,

Brett

 

PS. I used to haunt this location back in the day. The hike to the site is not bad from the 'parking area'.

That sounds like a really cool place. Wish I lived closer. I’ve never found a trilobite. They’re hard to come by in Texas.

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1 hour ago, KimTexan said:

That sounds like a really cool place. Wish I lived closer. I’ve never found a trilobite. They’re hard to come by in Texas.

I’m sure it will be hard work to find and extract them here.  If you’ve never found a trilobite before, start with U-Dig Trilobite Quarry out of Delta, Utah.  It costs a little to dig there but you will get plenty of specimens.

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Finding the cephalons are easy to find, it's the whole ones that are illusive there.

I was there in the late '80's and got head parts hand over fist, but didn't find any with body parts below that.

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OK, I got a reply from Kyle Sullivan, the Mojave Trails National Monument Manager for the BLM.  Here's what he says, let's not all go out there at once.  Oh, and as usual, you're not allowed to do research or donate them to a museum:headscratch::

 

Hi Steve,

 

Thank you for reaching out to us. Yes, casual invertebrate fossil collection is still allowed in the Marble Mountains. Please be aware of limitations that exist for Wilderness areas - no motorized or mechanized vehicles or equipment. I've attached a flyer with more information about trilobite collecting. Please let us know if you have any additional questions. 

 

Thank you,

Kyle

 

MARBLE MOUNTAINS TRILOBITE FOSSIL COLLECTION.pdf

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  • 3 weeks later...

Steve,

I recently went here with my son, and am heading out there again Saturday. The road going up towards the quarry is deceptively smooth for the first quarter mile, then its very hairy for a low profile vehicle. We got our Corolla, somehow, to the trailhead and let gravity get us back down but we'll be hiking this time. There is a sizable area off to the left/West that is private land complete with signs warning of cameras. Despite that, Boy Scouts were picking, cracking, and hauling a few buckets worth of fossils. It's a relatively easy climb to the non-private areas. Definitely worth the trip!

IMG_5517.JPG

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1 hour ago, 1andonlyFinn said:

I recently went here with my son, and am heading out there again Saturday.

Welcome to TFF!

Wonderful scenery and cute kid.

Can We see what You found?

And please take pictures of Your next trip, and share them here on TFF.  (We like that kind of stuff.)

 

Good luck on the hunt!

Tony

Darwin said: " Man sprang from monkeys."

Will Rogers said: " Some of them didn't spring far enough."

 

My Fossil collection - My Mineral collection

My favorite thread on TFF.

 

 

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The place is crawling with bugs, but nearly all of them are in pieces. Some of the chunks shown here were literally picked up off of the ground like that. Hoping to get something nicer this time around.

 

image1trip.png

image2trip.png

image3trip.png

image4trip.png

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Yep, that's what you will find the majority of. Lots and lots of molted cephalons.

Your picture is just as I remember it 30 years ago. 

Better get out there while you can, before that burning orb in the sky becomes too intense and no amount of shade seems enough. Drink loads and stay hydrated.

 

 

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51 minutes ago, 1andonlyFinn said:

The place is crawling with bugs, but nearly all of them are in pieces.

Nice pieces, love the colors.

Thanks for showing them.

Darwin said: " Man sprang from monkeys."

Will Rogers said: " Some of them didn't spring far enough."

 

My Fossil collection - My Mineral collection

My favorite thread on TFF.

 

 

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So, this past weekend wasn't a great haul, but there is an odd marking on one of the pieces that I'm 99% sure is a stain...but...

IMG_5965.JPG

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Thanks to everyone who provided current information about this site.  There is a lot of misinformation online, especially statements that collecting is forbidden.  It's good to know that this is not the case, and let's all be sure to avoid abusing the site (for example, no auctioning your extras on ebay!) so it stays open.

 

Don

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1 hour ago, 1andonlyFinn said:

So, this past weekend wasn't a great haul, but there is an odd marking on one of the pieces that I'm 99% sure is a stain...but...

 

 

Any chance of a better picture here? 

I see something, but it's too blurry to make out.

Maybe take a picture in daylight from directly above the item. 

Regards,

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32 minutes ago, FossilDAWG said:

let's all be sure to avoid abusing the site (for example, no auctioning your extras on ebay!) so it stays open.

 

Don

I dont think I have ever seen trilos from this locale on eBay. I used to have a few samples back in the day, but they have long since gone MIA from many moves.

 

 

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On 4/18/2018 at 1:40 PM, 1andonlyFinn said:

So, this past weekend wasn't a great haul, but there is an odd marking on one of the pieces that I'm 99% sure is a stain...but...

IMG_5965.JPG

 

On 4/18/2018 at 2:45 PM, Fossildude19 said:

 

Any chance of a better picture here? 

I see something, but it's too blurry to make out.

Maybe take a picture in daylight from directly above the item. 

Regards,

+1 for a better picture.  Right now it looks like a cross between a stegosaurus and Bob the dinosaur. :wacko:

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46 minutes ago, FossilDAWG said:

let's all be sure to avoid abusing the site (for example, no auctioning your extras on ebay!) so it stays open.

 

Don

Don has an important point. All fossils collected off BLM and National Forest Service land cannot be sold by the original collector. Posting these fossils on the internet for sale creates a permanent record and if seen by the right/wrong person may cause the Government to further restrict fossil collecting everywhere. Giving away fossils is satisfying and creates a lot of good will.

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Ok I tried a better shot of the overall slab and the area zoomed in, I'm really limited by the phone. 

IMG_5967.JPG

 

IMG_5968.PNG

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I didn't say I had seen them on ebay.  I said, let's never see them offered for sale there (or anywhere).

 

Don

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