Ramo Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Well, I didn't get out of Connecticut until about 9am, so I didn't make it to the town of St. Clair until about 1:30. My first stop was at the Lowes (or was it Home Depot) next to Walmart to buy a wagon. Some assembly required. Luckily I found a 1/2 wrench and pair of pliars in my truck and after about 15 minutes in the parking lot I had it assembled and ready to go. I followed the directions I got throught town, and found the parking area. I started walking down the trail through the woods with my little green wagon, the sound of gunfire in the background. Finally the woods opened up, and there on my left was the quarry. The amount of fossils just laying on the ground is amazing. I just walked around and pick up tons of nice little pieces. Then I found a hole that had been started, and was able to pry out a couple of big slabs. I'll get better photos of these big slabs after I get home. The weather was perfect, about 60 with a nice breeze. I had to take off my jacket shortly after getting into the quarry. I ended up using my jacket, and another jack someone had left behind to wrap some of my bigger pieces in for the ride out. After only a little over an hour, I figured I better start heading out. It was then that I realized that my little green wagon was HEAVY! It doesn't take that many rocks to weigh a lot! I finally made it back to the road, and transfered all my rocks into my truck. When I went to pick up my wagon, the front handle broke! How I made it all that way over all those rocks, and it broke at the truck I'll never know. I didn't take many pictures, but here are a few. These are definately some display pieces in my book. For one species to mourn the death of another is a new thing under the sun. -Aldo Leopold Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramo Posted March 23, 2011 Author Share Posted March 23, 2011 Oh I almost forgot. The next Fossil Forum member who visits this site has a little suprise waiting for them. All you have to do is walk down the trail towards the quarry. Go about 80 steps from the half-telephone pole down the trail. Look to your left. You will see a tree with a weird growth on it about 7 yards off the trail. Behind this tree, next to the trunk, burried under the moss, is a treasure. It is in a zip-lock bag inside a plastic cup. If you find it, you can post it here, and I'll ID what you have. Ramo For one species to mourn the death of another is a new thing under the sun. -Aldo Leopold Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xonenine Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Oh I almost forgot. The next Fossil Forum member who visits this site has a little suprise waiting for them. All you have to do is walk down the trail towards the quarry. Go about 80 steps from the half-telephone pole down the trail. Look to your left. You will see a tree with a weird growth on it about 7 yards off the trail. Behind this tree, next to the trunk, burried under the moss, is a treasure. It is in a zip-lock bag inside a plastic cup. If you find it, you can post it here, and I'll ID what you have. Ramo what a cool thing to do! Very nice!!!!!! "Your serpent of Egypt is bred now of your mud by the operation of your sun; so is your crocodile." Lepidus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redbrick Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Bowkill, I'm glad you had a good hunt. The pit's great, isn't it? Thanks for sharing! Andy (redbrick) "All living things do one of two things. They either grow, or they die. When they stop growing, they immediately start dying. The mind is also a living thing." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oh-Man Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Ramo - cool stuff!!! Coming back down to TX any time soon? What is geology? "Rocks for Jocks!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpc Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Nice report, nice wagon, nice fossils, but do tell... are they all ferns? Triassic? Any fish at this quarry? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Nice, Ramo. Thanks for the pictures of the area. All of the pics I have seen from there are pointing at the ground, not that I blame them. I have a few pieces from there from a friend, but it is till on my list of places to go. Can't wait to see what you left behind. Too cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Dactyll Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Bowkill.... Very nice fossils and a great report, Nice to see the area....they dont make trucks like they used to!... Its the quality of the steel you know... I'm on my 4th suspension spring on the car, although it has done some weight..... Is this an old stripmine for coal? Cheers Steve... And Welcome if your a New Member... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 You must have bought the biggest wagon without a motor that they had! Looks like you'll get your use out of it, though, after welding it up. Also, I hope it comes to pass that you are remembered as the founder of a wildly popular sport: "PaleoCaching"! What a cool idea "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Ramo, Glad you had a good time. Pretty neat place, hunh? Great report, and pictures - Thanks for sharing them with us! Regards, Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 __________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scmense Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 What a nice place, looks downright exciting. Can't wait to see what you all found. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Bob Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Nice report, nice wagon, nice fossils, but do tell... are they all ferns? Triassic? Any fish at this quarry? I don't think it is all ferns but it is almost all plants, Pennsylvanian Period about 300 mya and no fish that I have ever heard of ever came out of there, although Dave(Shamalama) has found a insect wing before, but I believe that is incredibly rare. Also according to Dave it was a strip mine at some point. "It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it." Upton Sinclair Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramo Posted March 24, 2011 Author Share Posted March 24, 2011 Funny you should ask about coming to Texas Oh-man. My wife is a substitute teacher and is on spring-break this week, if I had not had to go to work, we were planning on having the mother-in-law come watch the kids and we were going to head to Texas for some fossil hunting. I'll let you know if we reschedule our trip. For one species to mourn the death of another is a new thing under the sun. -Aldo Leopold Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GlennS Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Nice ! What a good idea with the hidden treasure, hope that catches on. Would make collecting that much more fun for people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siteseer Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 There used to be a dealer who took a load of plates to Tucson. Years ago, one sharp-eyed German dealer saw something unusual on a plate and bought it. I happened to be in his room when he showed it to a friend. It was a print that looked a lot like a type of onycophoran, common name "velvet worm." One of the Burgess Shale animals was classified as one (or at least a possible relative). Today, they live in tropical jungles (Amazon region). I don't think it is all ferns but it is almost all plants, Pennsylvanian Period about 300 mya and no fish that I have ever heard of ever came out of there, although Dave(Shamalama) has found a insect wing before, but I believe that is incredibly rare. Also according to Dave it was a strip mine at some point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Bob Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 I am not surprised to hear that Jess. If you don't know what to look for (as 99% of the people there don't, myself included) it would be very easy to overlook something like an insect wing, or velvet worm, or really any kind of insect for that matter. I think if some experts were to spend some real time there, they would indeed find more insects then we do now. However, with that said, I still believe they would be and are rare to find there. "It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it." Upton Sinclair Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Members mhibberd Posted April 11, 2011 New Members Share Posted April 11, 2011 Oh I almost forgot. The next Fossil Forum member who visits this site has a little suprise waiting for them. All you have to do is walk down the trail towards the quarry. Go about 80 steps from the half-telephone pole down the trail. Look to your left. You will see a tree with a weird growth on it about 7 yards off the trail. Behind this tree, next to the trunk, burried under the moss, is a treasure. It is in a zip-lock bag inside a plastic cup. If you find it, you can post it here, and I'll ID what you have. Ramo On April 10,2011 with help from Cathy Young Director of Mid-Atlantic Fossil and Nature Adventures, Girl Scout Troop 4473 (scored) with 80 large stride steps "Bingo" the girls were thrilled, the find set the stage for our Saint Clair Fossil Trip----Thank You from all the Girl Scouts of Troop 4473 Oxford,Pa..We will be watching to see your ID! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 On April 10,2011 with help from Cathy Young Director of Mid-Atlantic Fossil and Nature Adventures, Girl Scout Troop 4473 (scored) with 80 large stride steps "Bingo" the girls were thrilled, the find set the stage for our Saint Clair Fossil Trip----Thank You from all the Girl Scouts of Troop 4473 Oxford,Pa..We will be watching to see your ID! Outstanding! This is soooo cool! "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramo Posted April 11, 2011 Author Share Posted April 11, 2011 I couldn't be happier that it was found by a Girl Scout Troop! Sorry I didn't leave more, I expected it to be found by one or two people, not an entire troop! I'm not exactly sure what I left, but there were some Codell Sandstone shark teeth, some Niobrara Chalk fish vertebrae, and some other fish stuff. If you want to send me some photos in a PM, or just post them on a thread, I'll do my best to ID them. (You can also go to www.oceansofkansas.com and probably id them from there) Ramo For one species to mourn the death of another is a new thing under the sun. -Aldo Leopold Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Members Chesapecten Posted April 11, 2011 New Members Share Posted April 11, 2011 Bowkill - it was VERY cool. I hadn't looked at Fossil Forum since last November, I believe. I checked last weekend,and was so excited when I saw your post! What a fabulous beginning for a St. Clair trip with a Girl Scout Troop! I gave the instructions to one of the girls - to lead the scavenger hunt. At first they couldn't find it (I suppose 80 steps for an adult are a bit longer than a petite girl scout). But, as we walked a bit further, someone DID notice a tree with an unusual growth. You should have see all of them scraping through the moss to find it! We were ALL so excited to find it, and that it was actually STILL there! I was able to ID what they were - shark tooth, shark vert, crushed fish vert, tuna tail - but I was't sure where they were from. Please tell us, and thanks again! You really made the day of 13 girl scouts and their parents! (Plus me!). Thank you VERY much! Cathy Young Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 Very cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barefootgirl Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 How cool of you to leave a surprise behind! It looks like you got some great finds and now I'm thinking I need one of those carts! In formal logic, a contradiction is the signal of defeat: but in the evolution of real knowledge, it marks the first step in progress toward victory. Alfred North Whithead 'Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It's already tomorrow in Australia!' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squali Posted April 12, 2011 Share Posted April 12, 2011 Very cool bowkill. Before my GPS was consumed by a dog I would leave a goblin shark in geocaches that we would find.:lol: It's hard to remember why you drained the swamp when your surrounded by alligators. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn71 Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 (edited) On April 10,2011 with help from Cathy Young Director of Mid-Atlantic Fossil and Nature Adventures, Girl Scout Troop 4473 (scored) with 80 large stride steps "Bingo" the girls were thrilled, the find set the stage for our Saint Clair Fossil Trip----Thank You from all the Girl Scouts of Troop 4473 Oxford,Pa..We will be watching to see your ID! I met you there that day, I was the guy with the electric scooter. You asked if I was on here...reminded me to retrieve my password and log back in it's been awhile Here's a video I took...I taped my camera to my hat for the ride in hehe There's a part 2 but I made it private because it shows where my shovel and pry bar are stashed Edited May 3, 2011 by Shawn71 www.EarthFragments.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geocacher Posted May 8, 2011 Share Posted May 8, 2011 Great adventure and finds. I so do like the "PaleoCaching" comment. I think this new word will make it into my vocabulary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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