Our great Kemmerer friends made arrangements for us to experience a real fossil quarry. "Paleontologist Pete", who owns the quarry was so good to us. He taught us all the rules of the quarry as one must be very careful not to damage anything that could potentially hold a fossil. And we were on top of a very steep butte and didn't want anyone to get hurt. He also helped us learn how to be patient and careful when chizeling a rock to reveal the treasure inside. He was able to identify and name the fish that were fossilized. It is a very, very, dusty dirty process, but actually quite addicting. It is such a thrill to break open a rock and be the first human to ever see what is inside. I did find part of an Arowan fish. It is a rare find. Unfortunately it was missing the head. Pete kept it in hopes of finding a head one day and gluing the pieces together. Otherwise,we mostly found small fish fossils. Allen found one with 3 fish side by side, like little sardines. However, everyone left the quarry with a treasure of their own finding. Some of them we will frame or display in other ways. This is definiteley an experience we would recommend to anyone! I understand a 92 year old man found a complete sting ray fossil a few weeks ago. They are currently uncovering 2 crocodile fossils at this quarry. I found a very strange looking fossil that Pete explained was a fish that had actually exploded prior to being covered by dirt. The gasses from decomposing can cause a dead fish to explode and leaves a very interesting fossil! If you are ever in Southwest Wyoming, it would be worth your time to visit Fossil Butte and look into a little rock cracking for yourself!
That is so amazing! I used to live in Kemmerer when I was younger and I had no idea that this place exists! We may have to stop by sometime on our way through! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDelete