Gettin' a little Withlacoochee

The Peace River is a fossil mecca 

but during the rainy months of summer, 

if I want to keep hunting for ancient treasures, I have to branch out into other fossiling realms. 

This summer, Tom and I have made a couple of fossil coral trips to the Withlacoochee.

I like to seek out fossils that are relatively easy to collect because I, like most people, have limits on my time and finances. Florida and Georgia fossil coral, associated with upper Oligocene to lower Miocene shallow marine limestones, fits the bill and the Withlacoochee River provides great access to this interesting material. Surprisingly, there doesn’t seem to be any other fossil material in this area but that allows us to focus on the coral hunt.

Yeah, I know...gators.

There's been some disturbing news lately regarding alligators.

I really really really hope I never have a tragic encounter with one.

Really, the mask and snorkel isn't necessary but it was a nice way to stay cool while I picked up chunks of coral.  

Of course, there are other ways to stay cool...

I did enjoy seeing the fossil coral under water...

...and I was startled to have a bowfin swim past me.  I didn't know what it was until I described it to Tom and he told me.

Looked a little prehistoric!

It's a dirty hobby.

One of my friends said it looked like I had a leech on my face in this photo, and that was entirely possible, but luckily, this was only mud.  

Heavy gloves are a must...

unless you like the feel of abrading your fingers with a cheese grater.

We've found that our biometrically enhanced devices can't recognize our fingerprints 

for several days after a visit to the river.

This area has been hunted heavily for years and while the huge botryoidal coral heads are long gone, the river is still full of smaller botryoidal and druzy geodes that were broken off of the larger specimens and left behind.

It takes some work and a little bit of muscle because the promising coral chunks need to be broken open to see what’s inside. A sturdy rock hammer does the trick. Once in awhile, you’ll be lucky enough to lift a piece of coral out of the river and see water drain out of the hollow geode interior. We always manage to head home with a few new pieces for our collection.

Even on less productive visits, as my friend and fellow fossil freak, Pam, says,

"It's nice to be out on the river."