Northern Sharks Posted October 29, 2009 Share Posted October 29, 2009 For anyone brave enough to come to Canada in the middle of November, there will be a trip to Hungry Hollow/Arkona planned for Nov.14. Seriously, the weather may be quite nice, light jacket only, or it may snow -who knows. The site is Devonian and full of fossils -trilobites, brachs, crinoids, bryozoans, horn corals, ammonites plus many others. It is about 1 hour west of London in southern Ontario and exact directions can be sent to all interested members. This will probably be the last hunt of the year up here in the north, so let's make it a good one There's no limit to what you can accomplish when you're supposed to be doing something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Boorman Posted November 4, 2009 Share Posted November 4, 2009 I would love to go but I have a meeting scheduled already for that day Good luck if you go. It was already quite cool when I was there a few weeks back. Ken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobC Posted November 4, 2009 Share Posted November 4, 2009 Wish I could go. I grew up in upstate NY and miss the pike fishing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shamalama Posted November 5, 2009 Share Posted November 5, 2009 Argh! Would love to go, but no vacation time left! Hope you can set one up next year. -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 McPheeIf I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPheeCheck out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossil Raccoon Posted November 5, 2009 Share Posted November 5, 2009 Great idea! If nothing unexpected happens I will be there. So far even weather forecast looks great for that day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Sharks Posted November 9, 2009 Author Share Posted November 9, 2009 Less than a week to go, and room for more collectors. Long range forecast looks good, around 10 deg. C or 50 deg F for you yanks. There's no limit to what you can accomplish when you're supposed to be doing something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossil Raccoon Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 If someone in the GTA or along the way needs a ride to the hunt, let me know. I can pick you up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
west99 Posted November 10, 2009 Share Posted November 10, 2009 This is something I would be very interested in. Is it okay to bring my 7 year old son? He's becoming quite the rock-hound. Please send directions/times/etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
west99 Posted November 10, 2009 Share Posted November 10, 2009 As well as directions/time, could somebody direct me as to what tools are recommended, and where to get them in Southwestern Ontario (Hamilton, St. Catherines, Niagara Falls, etc.). I'm also doing a business trip to Richmond, Virginia, and Oklahoma City, in the next couple of days, if anybody knows of places to acquire tools in those areas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Sharks Posted November 10, 2009 Author Share Posted November 10, 2009 The most extravagant tool you will need would be a rock/mason's hammer, available at Home Depot, or probably any hardware store. A straight screwdriver, pocket knife and garden trowel should round out your tool kit. Anything fancier than that, I have in my truck at all times, as does Crinus I'm sure. The Arkona Shale is basically just like clay when wet or freshly exposed. A tip I got from a local hunter is to bring Saran-Wrap to keep the moisture in until you get home so it doesn't crumble. Most of the fossils are loose on top of the ground, so collecting is very easy, and kid friendly. Bring your son, he'll have a great time. I'll send you directions tonite. There's no limit to what you can accomplish when you're supposed to be doing something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glacialerratic Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 The Arkona Shale is basically just like clay when wet or freshly exposed. A tip I got from a local hunter is to bring Saran-Wrap to keep the moisture in until you get home so it doesn't crumble. Most of the fossils are loose on top of the ground, so collecting is very easy, and kid friendly. Hi Northern Sharks, it looks like I'm in! I was considering bringing some screen boxes (hardware wire on a 24"x18" frame), coarse, medium, and fine to sift or wash the soft shale through.(I'm crazy enough - when it comes to fossils - to fetch 5 gal. of water from the river) But, if the fossils are fragile, would this be a bad idea? I don't want to bring them if they're going to be useless. Thanks! MiTiM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crinus Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 I would not bring them. There will be enough fossils on the surface that you will not have to screen. Trying to wash the Arkona shale is not easy. It is very sticky. Washing it off at home requires hot water and brush. Most of the fossils that we will be collecting will be in the Hungry Hollow member of the Widder formation. It is litterally 4 feet of solid fossil. As the day progresses you will get picky or you will leave with more stuff than you know what to do with. Again, you may want to visit the Michigan Basin site since Arkona, Ontario is part of the Michigan Basin. THere a 100's of fossils from Arkona pictured on the site from Arkona. crinus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bear Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 In my humble experience, your eyes, some patience, and your desire to find something neat are all of the tools necessary for a very successful day at that site. That Widder formation is literally the remains of a coral reef with all of the accouterments of same and it is indeed several feet thick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glacialerratic Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 Thanks for your input on the tools. crinus, I did check out a collection of MI. Basin fossils, through the Univ. WI., I'm assuming this is the site you are referring to. MI. Basin Fossils What an amazing resource! I noticed that there are 3 formations in the Arkona area: Arkona, Hungry Hollow, and Widder. Are all 3 of these in/near the quarry? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Sharks Posted November 11, 2009 Author Share Posted November 11, 2009 I know the Arkona Shale formation and the Hungry Hollow member of the Widder formation are both there and we'll be in them. Any other parts of the Widder, I'm not sure of There's no limit to what you can accomplish when you're supposed to be doing something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crinus Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 (edited) Thanks for your input on the tools. crinus, I did check out a collection of MI. Basin fossils, through the Univ. WI., I'm assuming this is the site you are referring to. MI. Basin Fossils What an amazing resource! I noticed that there are 3 formations in the Arkona area: Arkona, Hungry Hollow, and Widder. Are all 3 of these in/near the quarry? Thanks! Yes, it got moved to the University of Wisconsin site because Dr. Peters moved there. He finds it easier to make requested changes to the site if it is on his local server. It still belongs to the U of M. Quarry??? Well not really. There are a couple of clay pits but nothing like a quarry. The pits are mainly Arkona Formation (no longer called the Arkona Shale because of the nature of the rock). The pits sit along the Au Sable River and we will spend time collecting along the river. Exposed along the river is the Widder formation. In the Widder formation there is about 4 feet of Hungry Hollow Member (until recently was called the Hungry Hollow Formation). The exposures along the river are large and lot of fossils can be found along the bluff. Exposures are on both sides of the river. If you don't care about getting wet you can cross the river easily. Staying dry will require you to drive to the pit on the south side of the river and walking along the river bank to reach the exposures. There will be lots of fossils. crinus Edited November 11, 2009 by crinus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Sharks Posted November 12, 2009 Author Share Posted November 12, 2009 2 more sleeps :jig: We'll plan on meeting at the pit entrance around 9am. So far, looks like above average temperatures and only a 30% chance of precip, can't ask for much better considering how late in the season it is. Remember to bring snacks and drinks, a bucket or something for your finds, and CAMERAS. People may just want to see how we do it up North (get your minds out of the gutter) See you there There's no limit to what you can accomplish when you're supposed to be doing something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bear Posted November 13, 2009 Share Posted November 13, 2009 Have fun, and don't be too aggressive with the rock at the base of the overhangs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Boorman Posted November 14, 2009 Share Posted November 14, 2009 Good luck today - I wish I didn't have the aquarium club meeting to attend Ken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest solius symbiosus Posted November 14, 2009 Share Posted November 14, 2009 Wish I could be there. If you guys ever get permission to hunt that Bobcaygeon quarry again, I will crawl on my knees if need be... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bear Posted November 15, 2009 Share Posted November 15, 2009 Well guys, how did the trip go? Anybody find anything interesting? Inquiring minds want to know! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Sharks Posted November 15, 2009 Author Share Posted November 15, 2009 I arrived around 8:30 to find MichiganTim already there. While we waited, we poked around in the Widder Formation exposed along the laneway in to the pit. Crinus, the guru, arrived at 9:30 and realizing it would just be the 3 of us, we went into the main (North) pit. We looked around there for a while, no huge finds, but with a lot of ground to cover and earlier darkness, we decided to move on to the high banks. Once there, Crinus explained the geology, which I was never to sure of. By this time, it was also getting quite warm. We had a beautiful day, about 6 degrees above normal. We were all quite comfortable in just shirt sleeves, not bad for the middle of November. At these banks, in a fall pile, Crinus found a couple of blastoids including one very rare one (his second in 30 yrs I believe). Around 12:30-1, we went over to the South pit, my first time there. We found several button corals, I found more new brachs and a couple of small pryritized Tornoceras, and Tim found a nice piece of coral which should look great cleaned up. We then trekked along the river to the banks on that side and Tim must have found a 4-leaf clover along the way. We came to a spot where a section of the Widder had fallen earlier in the year. Several rocks had pieces of Greenops trilobites on them, so we started splitting. I ended up with a nice cephalon, but Tim found a complete (probably) prone one. Not too long after that, he happily points out that we all walked past a very nice large Tornoceras goniatite/ammonite, which he noticed rechecking a spot. All in all a great day. My take was several new brachs, a nice Mucrospirifer in matrix with "wing tips", a gastropod in matrix, the small Tornoceras', several button corals, Greenops head and a valuable lesson in how and where to hunt at Hungry Hollow. Here are some pics (I'll add another post with some finds) 1) Crinus (white jacket) and Tim poking around at the North pit 2) Trekking to the high banks 3) The opposite bank, where we ended our day 4) North side bank showing the different formations. Picture isn't the greatest, but there are 2 "shelves" of thick limestone. From the bottom shelf up is Widder Fm. and below is Arkona. The Hungry Hollow member is the area between the shelves, as well as the lower shelf itself and is about 4-5 feet thick. 1 There's no limit to what you can accomplish when you're supposed to be doing something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Sharks Posted November 15, 2009 Author Share Posted November 15, 2009 5) The South pit 6) Crinus getting up close and personal with the Hungry Hollow member 7) A close up of the HH member. It is absolutely loaded with fossils 8) Crinus' blastoids. I believe Eleutherocrinus (rare) on the left and Heteroschisma on the right, but feel free to correct me 1 There's no limit to what you can accomplish when you're supposed to be doing something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Sharks Posted November 15, 2009 Author Share Posted November 15, 2009 9) Tim's coral. I forget the species, but a real nice piece 10) Tim's Greenops. You can see one genal spine and 1 eye, plus the complete thorax and pygydium. It went home with Crinus to be prepped, should be a beauty 11) Tim's Tornoceras uniangulare (film cannister cap in these 2 pics for scale) 12) My matrix Mucrospirifer, then my batteries died Enjoy all 1 There's no limit to what you can accomplish when you're supposed to be doing something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glacialerratic Posted November 15, 2009 Share Posted November 15, 2009 This trip was the bomb! having the opportunity to hunt with someone like Crinus was a real treat, and I highly recommend taking advantage of trips where senior members are involved. Northern Sharks, who has been to Arkona before, really helped me to focus in on the good stuff, too. (thanks for posting your photos) My hats off to both of you! I'm going to take some photos of my stuff soon, but will need to get the film developed (35mm). Can't wait to get back there again! MiTiM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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