HoppeHunting Posted November 20, 2018 Share Posted November 20, 2018 Hello all, I am delighted to inform you that I am not dead, although my horrendously lengthy absence from this forum may have suggested otherwise. I am fully aware that I had already committed to being more active after taking a short hiatus a little while back, but I simply fell out of the habit of logging in and posting on this site, mostly due to my extremely busy senior year schedule. I have truly missed posting and sharing my experiences with you all, and I could not be more glad to return. Although I may have been inactive on this forum, I was certainly NOT inactive whatsoever in terms of fossil hunting. I have been on several trips since I last posted. In fact, I've probably nearly doubled my collection. At the beginning of the summer, I decided to purchase a Pelican Mustang 100x Kayak in order to reach remote areas of the Calvert Cliffs that are so frequently cited as remarkably productive. I affectionately named the kayak the H.M.S. Serra, after my favorite prehistoric shark species, Hemipristis serra. Over the course of the summer, I took her out on the Bay many times in search of large shark tooth fossils. I may have failed to find a Meg, but I found some incredible fossils that I gladly added to my ever-growing collection. Below you can find pictures of some of my finds from my various kayak trips to the Calvert Cliffs over the summer, as well as a picture of my beloved Serra. Some of my best finds from all these trips include large Hemis, a perfect 2-inch hastalis (pictured in my hand), lots of cow shark teeth, a crocodile scute, a large Lemon straight out of the matrix, and my first ever Ecphora! I truly had a very productive summer! I couldn't be much happier with all of my finds (unless of course I found a Meg...) and I can't wait to continue hunting in the coming months. The H.M.S. Serra likely won't be out on the water until it gets warm again, but there's still plenty of hunting to do at local sites on foot. In fact, I've already been on a few trips since putting her away for the colder months. I will make trip reports for those soon, and you won't want to miss them! Thanks for reading, and I hope you'll enjoy my future posts! Hoppe hunting! ~David 4 Link to post Share on other sites
Darktooth Posted November 20, 2018 Share Posted November 20, 2018 First, Welcome back! Secondly, you have done well young man! Lots of good stuff you have found. Congratulations! Link to post Share on other sites
FossilsAnonymous Posted November 20, 2018 Share Posted November 20, 2018 Serra are my favorite species as well. I noticed you found some threshers similar to mine in pic 2 and a sharpnose in pic 1? Nice 2 inch hastalis. Is that a patha hemi in pic four in the rows of upper hemis? Just asking, have you found a barracuda tooth recently? I found a nice one a few weeks ago. Speaking of finding, I'm out to the cliffs tomorrow and more during these winter months. Hopefully I'll find something nice! Link to post Share on other sites
WhodamanHD Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Glad to see you back! Nice summer haul! Link to post Share on other sites
Littlefoot Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Hello and welcome back! I always love looking at finds in the Maryland-Virginia area, so thank you so much for posting! And pardon all my drool over your fantastic finds! The kayak was a good investment, indeed! Happy hunting this winter! Link to post Share on other sites
Jeffrey P Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Glad to see you taking advantage of that new kayak. Congratulations. Swell finds there. I especially love the cow shark and hemi teeth in the top photo and that mako in the last photo. A real nice collection! Thanks for sharing. Link to post Share on other sites
caldigger Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 David, what is this folded up thing behind your seat? A sifting screen? Link to post Share on other sites
SailingAlongToo Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Link to post Share on other sites
Tidgy's Dad Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Nice to see you posting again! Some wonderful finds. Link to post Share on other sites
Archie Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Awesome collection and vessel! Link to post Share on other sites
Adam86cucv Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 2 hours ago, caldigger said: David, what is this folded up thing behind your seat? A sifting screen? Looks like a shark tooth sifter. Link to post Share on other sites
DeepTimeIsotopes Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Great finds, I've always wanted to try fossil hunting by boat. Link to post Share on other sites
caldigger Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 51 minutes ago, Adam86cucv said: Looks like a shark tooth sifter. Im just trying to get the jist of it. Is it a folding unit or? Not understanding the shape otherwise. Link to post Share on other sites
Gizmo Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 16 minutes ago, caldigger said: Im just trying to get the jist of it. Is it a folding unit or? Not understanding the shape otherwise. It's this. - https://sharktoothsifter.com 1 Link to post Share on other sites
HoppeHunting Posted November 21, 2018 Author Share Posted November 21, 2018 4 hours ago, FossilsAnonymous said: Is that a patha hemi in pic four in the rows of upper hemis? Just asking, have you found a barracuda tooth recently? I'm not sure if any of the hemis I've found are pathological, but I could see how some of them might be. Could you point out exactly which tooth you are referring to? And I don't believe I've ever actually found a barracuda tooth, but if I did I must not have known what it was. I'd love to find one some day though. Barracudas are awesome! Link to post Share on other sites
HoppeHunting Posted November 21, 2018 Author Share Posted November 21, 2018 3 hours ago, caldigger said: David, what is this folded up thing behind your seat? A sifting screen? @Gizmo is correct. It's a shark tooth sifter that is all one piece. The apparent bending is simply how the sifter is structured; it does not fold. You can see in the picture how I secure the sifter on my kayak. I actually just ordered a brand new sand flea rake that I will use as sifter for myself and will likely let my dad use the one pictured from now on. Link to post Share on other sites
caldigger Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 OK, I viewed the website. It is like a metal detector sand scoop. Got it now! Thanks. I just wasn't seeing it in that context on the kayak. Link to post Share on other sites
ynot Posted November 26, 2018 Share Posted November 26, 2018 Welcome back! Nice finds too. Link to post Share on other sites
Ludwigia Posted November 26, 2018 Share Posted November 26, 2018 Happy paddling! Link to post Share on other sites
racerzeke Posted November 27, 2018 Share Posted November 27, 2018 Glad to see you're back! I definitely followed a majority of your posts and it got more into the hobby and I even ventured out a few times with my 'yak. Happy winter hunting! Link to post Share on other sites
Fossil-Hound Posted November 28, 2018 Share Posted November 28, 2018 @HoppeHunting very nice finds. That's a gorgeous Mako with great color. Very nice size. Also like the Hemi's and cow shark teeth. Keep it up! FYI @Kurt Komoda 1 Link to post Share on other sites
jcbshark Posted November 28, 2018 Share Posted November 28, 2018 Beautiful finds,, congrats. Love the Cow shark teeth! Link to post Share on other sites
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