Great Western Adventure Part 7

[Jeffrey P]

I returned home two weeks ago from a two week long fossil hunting excursion out west. Like my trip two years ago, I drove all the way from my home in southeastern New York out to northcentral Wyoming with many stops along the way. The first day was on and off rain from here to Toledo, Ohio where I stopped. Next day drove through northern Indiana and passed through Chicago, finally stopping at my cousin's in Madison, Wisconsin. Late morning, the next day, I met up with Mike (Minnbuckeye) in Fennimore, Wisconsin and he took me to two sites of the Upper Ordovician Platteville Formation where we spent the afternoon collecting. Here is a photo of one of the sites with Mike and finds that we both made. Mike was generous and gave me a number of specimens. As you can see there are a few nice hash browns, I mean hash plates, trilobite parts, brachiopods, nautiloids, including the unusual Gonioceras occidentale (the fossil and counterpart), plus the gastropod, Sinuites, and the ostracod, Eoleperditia fabulites. 

Edited September 5 by Jeffrey P

[Jeffrey P]

Camped overnight at Wyalusing State Park perched on bluffs overlooking the confluence of the Wisconsin River and the Mississippi. A rainstorm that looked threatening in the late afternoon, finally arrived after I had eaten dinner, cleaned up, and showered and was comfortable in my tent ready to sleep. The tent, a brand new Eureka, kept me perfectly dry. The next morning I drove into Iowa and met Mike at a convenience store in Clermont we went to a roadcut outside of town exposing the Maquoketa Formation where we dug into a layer that produces only parts of the trilobite, Isotelus and very rarely, a complete one. Mike found the damaged complete one which he generously gave to me. After a few hours there, we visited another Maquoketa site, a farm with dogs, cats, and chickens wandering about and a fossil rich eroding slope that yielded whole brachiopods (Dalmanella macrior, Sowerbyella sericae, and Herbetella sinuata, etc.) and some nautiloids too including a possible specimen of Gorbyoceras.

 

Edited September 5 by Jeffrey P

[Jeffrey P]

Camped a second night at Wyalusing. Nice weather this time. On my last day collecting with Mike we visited three sites in and near Decorah, Iowa. The first was a dug out area with eroding slopes exposing the Decorah Shale which was rich in brachiopods, Praspora bryozoans, rugose corals, and some nautloids too. After that we visited a roadcut exposing the Galena Group. We dug into a layer that was especially rich in gastropods (Fusispira noblis, Liospira obtusa, Hormatoma major, Lophospira sp., and Eccyliopterus owenanus, etc.) Mike also found the cephalon of a Thaleops trilobite which he gave me. Our last stop was a private quarry which also exposes the Galena, Stewartville Formation, where we collected a number of Maclurites, the large gastropod, some nautiloids, and Fisherites whose taxonomy has yet to be determined. . 

[Jeffrey P]

I spent the next two nights at Whispering Pines, TFF member Bev's resident/guest compound in Spring Valley, Minnesota which is both colorful and whimsical with many amusing antique objects and fossils on display as well as rabbits, cats, dogs, and ducks. After three days of intense hunting it was a very relaxing experience. I spent a day leisurely exploring the surrounding countryside. Bev took me to a Fisherite site where there were dozens of specimens exposed in drainage ditch. She found one large, complete one which gave me and now stands by my front door.  Here are Bev and Mike, old fossil friends. 

[Jeffrey P]

The next day was a very long drive through Minnesota and South Dakota and finally arriving in Lusk, Wyoming in early evening. The next morning was pleasant weather, and I visited two Pierre Shale (Upper Cretaceous marine) sites which I had visited two years ago. The first site was on BLM land and this was actually my third time there having also visited it the prior two years. I didn't do as well as last year's when I found about a dozen Scaphites ammonites there, but still found four, plus bivalves, especially Inoceramus. I was also searching for baculites that were still in the concretions. Those found loose tend to be badly weathered. I had a little luck with that. Later in the afternoon I visited the second site (also BLM land) which was a broad gently sloping field where busted concretions could be found amongst the grass and cactuses. I did well here as I did two years ago when I visited last, finding ammonites, baculites, and bivalves. 

[Jeffrey P]

The next morning, I met up with jpc, Will, and his friend, Conner who came from Tacoma, Washington, and Missoula, Montana. Conner would have to leave after the second day, but we spent the next three days exploring and collecting in the badlands of the White River Group (Eocene/Oligocene) on two private ranches. The first day we visited the same ranch we visited last year and I visited the year before as well. It is Brule Formation (Oligocene). We all did very well. Jpc found a tortoise and the skull of an insectivore. I found jaws of a squirrel, deer, camel, and the partial tusk of the large predator hog, Archaeotherium, plus a partial tortoise, three shell pieces I was able to fit together and a couple of coprolites.  The next two days were spent on a different ranch which exposed both the Eocene Chadron Formation and the Oligocene Brule. Here I found a large number of bone fragments, the terrestrial gastropod Helix leidyi, another deer jaw which was in a cache of small bones including fish bones, a rhinoceros jaw piece, and titanotheres bone fragments. Jpc found a couple oreodont skulls one of which he gifted to me and I prepped, and a disarticulated crocodile skull and tiny lizard jaw, both of which are extremely rare in the White River. Will found a couple of complete rhinoceros jaws and titanotheres teeth. Jpc and I unearthed and jacketed a partial titanotheres femur which he gifted me and I've been prepping. The last day ended with an hour or two spent collecting in the Upper Cretaceous Frontier Formation which was rich in ammonites and bivalves. I was able to extract four complete ones. All three of us found nice specimens. 

[Jeffrey P]

and more finds|

[Kohler Palaeontology]

Very nice finds so far!!   I love the vertebrate stuff, can't wait to see what is next!!

 

Kind Regards,

Kohler Palaeontology

[Jeffrey P]

Following those three days of intensive White River hunting, I departed for Worland, in the north central Bighorn Basin of Wyoming. On the way though I stopped in Casper to visit the Tate Museum again which I visited two years ago. I love their fossil collection and this time I took a few pictures. The trip up to Worland, took me through some excellent scenery, distant mountain ranges, a canyon, some red rock, irrigated farmland. The next day I was back at Big Cedar Ridge, a BLM site where the Upper Cretaceous terrestrial Meeteese Formation is exposed and a tropical rainforest was suddenly buried under a mudflow of volcanic ash. I did extremely well there two years ago, and brought home some excellent fossil leaves, but this time I completely struck out. In two days I dug through the volcanic overburden in a number of places and where the fossiliferous shale layers were was replaced with damp clay. The layers that were beneath the clay only bore small fragments of plants (twigs, roots, partial pinnules, and stems), nothing I thought worth keeping. It was a huge disappointment, but for me par with the course. Not every day collecting can be fantastic and I had already had a number of amazing days collecting on this trip. Anyway, the scenery was awesome, being out in the badlands was awesome, and any day fossil hunting is worth the experience even if you find nothing. 

[Jeffrey P]

It was three uneventful days of solid driving to return to New York, mostly following the same path I took getting out there. The big highlight though was crossing the Big Horn Mountains. So, I'm back now, a different world. Been busy cleaning up and photographing my new specimens which I still have to finish IDing, labeling and storing, a major project. 

 

One story I'd like to relate- when I was still in Lusk, the last night it was just Will and me in a local pizza restaurant after jpc departed. We'd finished our meals and were hanging out chatting. Will was planning on leaving that night and driving to Kemmerer to collect at one of the fish quarries. As we talked a local lady came by our table with a pan full of brownies and offered us an edge or the middle, not bothering to ask us if we wanted some. We took her up on her brownie offer. A few minutes later she returned with a large cannister of homemade ice cream and asked us if we wanted one scoop or two. It occurred to me in a big way that this would never happen in New York. 

 

Lastly, I want to thank jpc, Mike (Minnbuckeye, and Bev for their help, gifts, and companionship on this adventure. My very best wishes to all of you. To the rest of TFF have a good one and hope you enjoyed this. 

[Ludwigia]

What a great road trip! Glad to see you're still getting out and about quite a bit. Thanks for sharing.

[minnbuckeye]

It was a pleasure hunting with you! Your vehicle could not have had great gas milage on the way home, loaded with all of the fossils collected on this trip. In hindsight with the lack of fossils at Worland, I am glad I did not venture west, as that would have been my purpose of going. Plus, being "old", I needed to rest up after our three day excursion.

 

Mike

[Fossildude19]

Congratulations on a great trip, fantastic finds, and a safe return home, Jeff!

 

Thanks for the spectacular report!

 

[Carl]

9 hours ago, Jeffrey P said:

I spent the next two nights at Whispering Pines, TFF member Bev's resident/guest compound in Spring Valley, Minnesota which is both colorful and whimsical with many amusing antique objects and fossils on display as well as rabbits, cats, dogs, and ducks. After three days of intense hunting it was a very relaxing experience. I spent a day leisurely exploring the surrounding countryside. Bev took me to a Fisherite site where there were dozens of specimens exposed in drainage ditch. She found one large, complete one which gave me and now stands by my front door.  Here are Bev and Mike, old fossil friends. 

Bev is a gem!

[Denis Arcand]

Spectacular report indeed! Beautiful fossils and photos 

[AK hiker]

I enjoyed your post, THANK YOU! Particularly the ammonites my favorite fossils.

[Jaybot]

Looks like you had a blast!!!  Thank you so much for sharing, I bet you are having a lot of fun prepping that white river stuff.

 

The Tate museum is pretty good for its size.  Of course, I don't know a whole lot about dinosaurs, as I spend a lot of time hunting for megafauna- so the Colo mammoth is my favorite display there .  To my knowledge, it's the second largest on display, with the first being the Columbian mammoth at the Nebraska Cornhusker's museum.   Another great specimen at the tate that I noticed you didn't have a pic of is their soft shelled turtle found nearby Casper.  What a find!  

 

Side note, I don't envy your drive back from WY to NY... yikes

[Jeffrey P]

On 9/5/2024 at 1:15 AM, Kohler Palaeontology said:

Very nice finds so far!!   I love the vertebrate stuff, can't wait to see what is next!!

 

Kind Regards,

Kohler Palaeontology

Thanks for your positive comments. 

[Jeffrey P]

On 9/5/2024 at 3:49 AM, Ludwigia said:

What a great road trip! Glad to see you're still getting out and about quite a bit. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks Roger. I can't forget that my first fossil collecting expedition outside of New York State was to Germany. Maybe another trip there is in the future. Would love to see you again. 

[Jeffrey P]

On 9/5/2024 at 8:10 AM, minnbuckeye said:

It was a pleasure hunting with you! Your vehicle could not have had great gas milage on the way home, loaded with all of the fossils collected on this trip. In hindsight with the lack of fossils at Worland, I am glad I did not venture west, as that would have been my purpose of going. Plus, being "old", I needed to rest up after our three day excursion.

 

Mike

Thanks Mike for your great company, knowledge of fossils and sites, and the gifts you provided. You certainly helped make this a great trip, but glad you didn't accompany me to Big Cedar Ridge. That would have been so disappointing. 

Edited 23 hours ago by Jeffrey P

[jpc]

Great report, Jeff.  Twas fun collecting with you guys.  And nice to read about the rest of your trip, even though Big Cedar Ridge was a bust.  I love the brownies and ice cream story.  Lusk is like that.  Jeff did report that he found fish parts in the White River... along with the alligator skull I found, this is incredibly rare.  The place where he collected fish parts is at the same layer as the alligator skull about 30 feet away.  I think it may have been an alligator hole back in the late Eocene/ early Oligocene.  The small area was also full of broken mammal bones and as Jeff mentioned at least one nice lizard jaw.        

 

PS... we (Tate Museum) claim that our mammoth is indeed bigger than the one in Lincoln.   Lincoln has a femur that is bigger than ours, but it is an isolated bone.