Newbe looking for kid-friendly fossil hunting sites near Boston

[EllaS]

Hi all

 

I'm an old-time fossil fan new to the US. I've had my share of luck hunting fossils in Israel (ammonites, shells etc), and am now based in Boston with kids who have a good eye and need to learn to search. 

Can anyone recommend a good, legal fossil hunting site in the area (up to ~2 hour ride)? I'd be most keen for trilobites, since there are none to be found in Israel, but would welcome anything that's kid-friendly (i.e. strolling/sifting rather than shale digging).

 

Thanks!

Ella

 

 

[Fossildude19]

Welcome to the Forum.  

 

Unfortunately, there is really nothing within a 2 hour drive of Boston meeting any of those requirements.   

For trilobites, you would probably have to go to Vermont or New York - probably 4 hour drive, at least. 

Sifting for shark teeth in NJ would also be a 4 hour trip from Boston. 

You could find fern fossils in Rhode Island, at the Cory's Lane site in Portsmouth, RI. 

It's a beach site, but it needs to be low tide to access the fossils. Also, for really young kids it would probably not be great. Slippery rocks, and sharp shale.

And the better fossils need to be dug out from the exposures. You can find stuff just by walking around, but the quality is pretty poor.

 

Combine all of that with New England Fall weather, and you may just have to stick to doing museum trips, as fossil hunting at this time of year can be a real challenge, even for adults. 

 

Don't give up hope, but you might try to plan a spring or summer trip for next year.  

 

To get you through the fall and winter you might make some trips to museums. 

 

A trip to Dinosaur State Park in Rocky Hill, CT would probably be less than 2 hours. 

A bit further south would be the Peabody Museum of Natural History in New Haven, CT. Just over 2 hours. 

 

In Holyoke MA, about 1.5 hours away, there are Dinosaur footprints along the Connecticut River.

In Amherst MA, at Amherst College, there is the Beneski Museum. It would be about a 2 hour ride from Boston. 

[Pagurus]

Welcome from central Massachusetts. I agree with everything Tim (Fossildude19) said. If you haven't already been there, the Harvard Museum of Natural History in Cambridge is an interesting place to visit. My 4-year old grandson enjoyed it a few months ago. 

 

Mike

 

[EllaS]

Thank you both for the fast and informative responses!

It seems like we'll indeed need to postpone the kids' first hunt, then. 

We'll check out the museums for now.

Thanks again!

 

Ella

[jpc]

Welcome from a native of Lexington.  There have been trilobites found in Braintree, but I believe they were found well underground during construction of, maybe, the T.  No surface trilobites in the area.  The VT trilobites are way up north, past Burlington, closer to 5 hours away from Boston.