Aurora, NC Fossil Trip
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.
Spring Fossil Hunting Trip from March of 2007
Fossil Collectors getting ready to start off the spring 2007 season
This is the current collecting area for the spring 2007 season. It's a fairly large area that starts at the ramp to the left, which leads to a bridge. It extends to approximately 4 or 5 ridges past the bridge. The collecting area may expand as the pit widens.
Our first fossil trip of the year started off with a bang. We went to Antarctica in search of various undescribed dinosaur
species with a Russian research team. Oops... I mean we went to Aurora for the spring 2007 season.
The plan was to leave a day early at 1:00 am to try our luck at Green�s Mill Run. After accidentally sleeping in, Amy
and I departed our commonwealth promptly at 5:30 am hitting rush hour in various cities. The fossil bus arrived at
Green�s Mill Run 10 hours later. All excited, we leaped from the car into our waders. We then leaped into the stream
and quickly leaped out, as the water level was VERY high. That morning, there were severe storms. I assumed the storms
would help the fossil scene at the stream. Instead, it just submerged it. We spent a few hours leapfrogging about, not
finding much. Finally, deciding we are not leapfrogs; we left the stream to head to our B&B winery for some R&R.
The next day was our Aurora trip. About 40 some eager beavers joined us for the opening of the spring season. The
collecting area looked great. Guides spoke of ample Yorktown and ample collecting space. They were right! Off we
went into the mine. After searching for a few hours and only finding broken makos, I started to get disillusioned.
Finally, Amy found a beautiful 2 7/8" megalodon shark tooth. She showed it to me, and I quickly yelled, "Find a bigger one!" Luckily I
said that, because she took those words to heart. About an hour later, she shouted something across one of the ridges at
me. The wind carried her faint words... "I found a bigger one!" She had found a reworked 4 5/8" megalodon. The serrations were
missing, but it still looked great! The day ended with me being megless, but hey, Amy found two. I wasn�t complaining.
This had been a VERY good day at Aurora. By days end, many people had megs, including a beautiful 6+" megalodon.
Thank you PCS for allowing us to collect!
Below are the fossil found adn additional images from the 2007 mine in Aurora, NC
As one can see, too much rain may be a bad thing this season.
The area has very good topography. The ridges are steep, thus maximizing the search area.
Amy on the top of a ridge.
There are also countless drainage ditches to search.
Here are our finds for the day. Among them are 2 nice megalodon shark teeth and a partial squalodon incisor. All of the large C. plicatilis have root damage.
Here is the 4 5/8 inch (slant height) megalodon shark tooth when found.
Here is the 2 7/8 inch (slant height) megalodon shark tooth when found.
Thus ends our spring trip to Aurora, NC
Recommended Books for North Carolina Fossil Collecting:
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!
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.
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.
Recommended Link
ELASMO.COM
The best site on the web for fossil shark teeth! It's dedicated to Aurora and many other sites!
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!
