North Sulphur River Trip - Tooth, Artifact, Others

[rcranch]

Finally made it back to the North Sulphur River after the big rains.  Made some interesting finds, very similar to my last trip and posting on the forum.  Again the quantity was down but the quality was good with what I did find.   There was still a good flow of water in the main part of the river and the side creeks were full.  Took a bath in the cold water (unintentional), these darn rubber boots on the wet shale is like walking on ice.  Has anyone found a better solution to that problem?  Anyway, found a bone that appears to be fossilized but may be modern cow or horse.  The biggest vertebrae is about 3 inches tall and found a really worn shark vert.  Hope to make it back after the rains today.  

 

 

[Innocentx]

Nice finds! Especially like the tooth and artifact.

[Uncle Siphuncle]

Great stuff.  My solution is to walk on submerged gravel rather than submerged shale, whenever possible.  No broken bones yet, mosasaur or human.

[Darktooth]

Great finds! Love the tooth and arrowhead!

[JarrodB]

Nice Gary point and tooth. 

[KimTexan]

Nice finds. Can’t tell if that is a fish or shark vert from that shot.

The way I tell if something is Pleistocene or modern is usually by weight. If it is mineralized it is usually heavier unless it is at the point of falling apart. That bone seems a bit unusual for how large the center opening is. Maybe the center eroded away. What is the estimated diameter or width of it?

 

I carry a walking stick with me. Not that it helps much with falling, but it has helped some. I too try to stick to dry ground or gravel, but at times it can’t be helped. Then I kind of almost shuffle. I’ve been out there maybe 15 times or so in the past 12 months and only fell once. Sliding down hills is different than falling right?  The one time I fell I left my stick on the gravel bar while extracting something from the shale in the water so it wouldn’t float away.

 

When the water is cloudy the stick helps me know what not to trip over.

 

My stick is also my mud tester. The mud can be very tricky. A few steps your find and the the next step you sink 10 inches or more. If I stop going down I test a few spots ahead to see if there is a way to move foreword otherwise I pull out and move back. Worst I’ve sunk out there was one leg to my knee. I think @JarrodB said he sunk further than that once and used his trusty stick to help get him out.

[facehugger]

Great stuff!!! Awesome arrowhead, verts and tooth. I'm hoping to be there Friday and Saturday. Leave some for me! 

 

I also use a walking stick. It helps to make sure the stick is firmly planted before taking your next step. The gravel shoals are much better for grip. The grey river shale is just a trap. Collected a few bruises from that stuff. I also like to carry multiple footwear options in my pack, or at least the trunk of the car. Waterproof boots for low water days, and shoes for when I'm hiking far or the water is too deep for boots. Always extra socks. 

[DPS Ammonite]

2 hours ago, rcranch said:

Took a bath in the cold water (unintentional), these darn rubber boots on the wet shale is like walking on ice.  Has anyone found a better solution to that problem?  

Get a pair of fishing boots with lug soles that you can attach metal screws to that give you extra traction. The boots which act sort of like studded snow tires are designed to get totally wet without falling apart. Wear with thick wool socks that can get wet and stay warm. Look for them at Cabelas or Bass Pro.

[Foshunter]

Nice finds Tom, i can"t say the trip out of the creek was a cake walk but i survived only by Divine intervention. If any portion of my body could hurt, it does.Thanks again, maybe we will run into each other again.

[PaleoRon]

That point is really nice.

[rcranch]

Thanks everyone for the comments and the good advice regarding walking on ice at the NSR.  For those who have not been there, it can be 100 degrees but you are still walking on ice when the bottom of some of the creek and river beds are wet.  I have a stick but it needs improving and I will be experimenting with some options.  Tommy had a ski pole which works pretty good, I have a broken off fishing pole of fiberglass.  I probably need to check into those boots that were mentioned also.  As some of us know, the area is usually more dry than wet, so fortunately, this problem is not always a big concern.  Access points to some of my favorite areas have deteriorated over the last few years, and that is getting to be a bigger problem.  Thanks and happy hunting.

[rcranch]

1 hour ago, Foshunter said:

Nice finds Tom, i can"t say the trip out of the creek was a cake walk but i survived only by Divine intervention. If any portion of my body could hurt, it does.Thanks again, maybe we will run into each other again.

Your welcome, and I was able to learn much from your years of experience on the NSR.  

[rcranch]

3 hours ago, KimTexan said:

 

The way I tell if something is Pleistocene or modern is usually by weight. If it is mineralized it is usually heavier unless it is at the point of falling apart. That bone seems a bit unusual for how large the center opening is. Maybe the center eroded away. What is the estimated diameter or width of it?

 

I see a lot of bone material like this, that appears to be modern but when I picked this one up, it did seem a little heavier for the size of the specimen.  It is about 1 1/4 inches in diameter and 7 inches long.  I did put a flame to it just now and I am afraid it is modern, but old, because it turned black and did have an odor.  I am still learning and appreciate the help, thanks.  

[PaleoNoel]

Awesome Mosasaur tooth!

[KimTexan]

1 hour ago, rcranch said:

I see a lot of bone material like this, that appears to be modern but when I picked this one up, it did seem a little heavier for the size of the specimen.  It is about 1 1/4 inches in diameter and 7 inches long.  I did put a flame to it just now and I am afraid it is modern, but old, because it turned black and did have an odor.  I am still learning and appreciate the help, thanks.  

Some parts of bones can be mineralized and some not. For example a clam I found Saturday the front was fossilized, the back hinge area was not. Same can happen with bone. Some are mineralized and some parts may not be. Some may only partially be mineralized. I don’t know the details on that stuff. I just know it happens, but also modern stuff can mineralize under certain conditions. Also I’ve seen modern bones be black, but not mineralized. So you can’t go by color.

@Uncle Siphuncle or @Foshunter would know more than I though.

[DPS Ammonite]

2 hours ago, rcranch said:

  I have a stick but it needs improving and I will be experimenting with some options.  Tommy had a ski pole which works pretty good, I have a broken off fishing pole of fiberglass. 

Use a pool cue, with a few inches of the small end cut off, to use as a walking stick, water depth and mud depth probe.

[John S.]

Nice loot. I was there sat am. Tough day in the water but found a few things. I wear old tennis shoes with nice traction. I found that it gives me great footing but also comfortable and cool for the long walks. Also use a 1 or 2 iron golf club for a walking stick. Firm and strong but also lightweight and comfortable to carry. 

[Foshunter]

1 hour ago, John S. said:

Nice loot. I was there sat am. Tough day in the water but found a few things. I wear old tennis shoes with nice traction. I found that it gives me great footing but also comfortable and cool for the long walks. Also use a 1 or 2 iron golf club for a walking stick. Firm and strong but also lightweight and comfortable to carry. 

Nice point, uncommon type for the NSR

[JarrodB]

2 hours ago, Foshunter said:

Nice point, uncommon type for the NSR

I haven't seen one like it. 

[JarrodB]

I think the worn vert is a fish vert. 

[rcranch]

4 hours ago, John S. said:

Nice loot. I was there sat am. Tough day in the water but found a few things. I wear old tennis shoes with nice traction. I found that it gives me great footing but also comfortable and cool for the long walks. Also use a 1 or 2 iron golf club for a walking stick. Firm and strong but also lightweight and comfortable to carry. 

That mud looks familiar?  Great looking point, the variety of what you find at NSR, artifacts and fossils, makes it fun.  Probably a good pair of tennis shoes and an extra set of clothes in the truck is the best alternative.  Here is a picture of the best artifacts that I have ever found on the NSR.  This was beginners luck because it was just a few months after I started going out there.  Unfortunately, it was before I started taking photos of them still in the ground.  Thanks

[rcranch]

1 hour ago, JarrodB said:

I think the worn vert is a fish vert. 

Thanks JarrodB, I believe KimTexan thought the same thing.  I am still new at identification all of the verts.  Here are a couple of better pics.

 

 

[JarrodB]

1 hour ago, rcranch said:

That mud looks familiar?  Great looking point, the variety of what you find at NSR, artifacts and fossils, makes it fun.  Probably a good pair of tennis shoes and an extra set of clothes in the truck is the best alternative.  Here is a picture of the best artifacts that I have ever found on the NSR.  This was beginners luck because it was just a few months after I started going out there.  Unfortunately, it was before I started taking photos of them still in the ground.  Thanks

Wow very nice. 

[rcranch]

Thanks, I have been breaking my neck to duplicate this but probably never will.  

[rcranch]

Went back out to the NSR today after a little rain this week.  Not much in the fossil department but did find this!  Interesting it was in a track of either a deer or someone's walking stick??