FOSSILGUY.COM

Please note, the Mine is CLOSED to collecting - This is an older trip report from 2007. Please don't call the mine or museum asking to fossil hunt in the mine. You can still fossil hunt at the mine tailings in front of the museum. Go to the Aurora page for more information.

Aurora Fossil Trip Report from back in 2007
A Wide Variety of Fossils

The annual fossil hunting fall trip to the PCS mine in Aurora was upon us! September 29th was our date to collect. So, on the night of the 28th we started the drive. We arrived around 5:30 a.m. and got a few hours of sleep in the parking lot (Yippee!). Awaking from our restful nights sleep, we rolled out of the car and into the bus. This season was supposed to be good. There is a HUGE new area with lots of Yorktown and Pungo sediments exposed. Plus they are mining closer to the river, closer to where people collected in the “good old days.”

Getting into the actual pit was kind of like playing on a jungle gym. The trip leaders said we would have to climb down a steep hill of loose sand. To avoid sinking, we would walk on a rope. To get back out, we were to walk on the rope and climb up with an additional rope. Images of clowns at a circus doing back flips and Chilean acrobats swinging from ropes danced through my mind as the fossil collectors, one by one, awkwardly shuffled down the rope.

Once in, it was like Christmas for a 5 year old. One could walk for over an hour in one direction and hunt on hills void of collectors. The only problem was the new area was not well eroded, so the fossil shark teeth hid really well in the sediments. I know I must have walked by a bunch of nice fossils! Even so, Amy and I came out of the mine with a bounty. Many people found large fossil megalodon teeth. Amy and I only found a few small ones, but tons of other interesting fossils were found. It was a great day at Aurora for the entire collecting group!

The next day Amy and I hit Green's Mill Run for a few hours to look for a great white tooth before heading home. We didn't find any complete Great Whites, however we managed to find a worn Mosasaur tooth and an odd, pathological Squalicorax tooth.

Thanks PCS for allowing us to collect! We all greatly appreciate it!

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Below are the fossil found from the mine in Aurora, NC

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Recommended Books for North Carolina Fossil Collecting:

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Shark Tooth Hunting on the Carolina Coast

by Ashley Oliphant, 2015

This is a great field guide for locating and identifying fossil shark teeth on the beaches of North and South Carolina. It is filled with clear photographs and easy to read descriptions.
There's not too many books about North Carolina Sharks teeth. This one is pretty good!

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Fossil Shark Teeth of the World

A great book for identifying all those teeth. This book is laid out "as simple as possible." It's ease of use and small size makes it great to carry during collecting trips. This book shows teeth from around the globe, but all the North Carolina teeth can be found in it.

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Seal/Dolphin ~ Phoca/Stenella: A Skeletal Comparison of Two Marine Mammals

by John R. Timmerman, 1997

This is a very good book if you want to attempt to identify the numerous bone fragments encountered at this site.
This book can be purchased through the North Carolina Fossil Club - When at their website, click on the publications tab.

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Recommended Link

ELASMO.COM

The best site on the web for fossil shark teeth! It's dedicated to Aurora and many other sites!

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Get Your Very Own Megalodon Tooth:

These are Authentic Megalodon teeth sold by Fossil Era , a reputable fossil dealer (that I personally know) who turned his fossil passion into a business. His Megalodon teeth come in all sizes and prices, from small and inexpensive to large muesum quality teeth. Each tooth has a detailed descriptions and images that include its collecting location and formation. If you are looking for a megalodon tooth, browse through these selections!