COLLECTING MARINE FOSSILS
DALTON, GEORGIA
July 14, 2009

by Ray Hill

I had been to this area a couple of times before. I knew that some really nice fossil specimens could be collected from the road-cut banks here. This is another good North Georgia fossil collecting site. On the day that my rock buddy, Ramona Beshear, and I visited this site we only stayed for just a little over an hour. We were on our way to another collecting site on further north but wanted to stop by this location for a short time. Ramona and I both found a few nice fossil specimens during our short stop.

We left Atlanta in the morning and drove north on I-75 up to the Dalton, GA exit. I think there are three Dalton exits. We exited I-75 at exit 333 (Going north) This is State Hwy 52, also called Walnut Avenue. Going north, we exited and turned left back over the bridge. Just a short distance from I-75, just a hair over a half mile, on the left is the Northwest GA Trade & Convention Center. Go on up the steep, crooked road for another mile. From the I-75 bridge it is 1.6 miles to a large bank near the top of Dug Gap Mountain. We stopped here and spent just a little over an hour collecting.

In these photos you can see the large bank where we collected

In these photos you can see the large bank where we collected. This large bank will be on your right as you are going up the hill. The ditches on both sides of the road here is good collecting areas also. Ramona walked up and down the ditch on the left side of the road for nearly a hundred yards and found a few nice fossil specimens. I was interested in taking photos and checking the large bank out. After I had taken what photos I wanted I climbed the bank, which wasn’t easy to do, especially for an old hound like me, but I made it and picked up a couple of nice specimens. Then, not intending to, I slid back down the hill on my back-side, all the way to the bottom. Ramona had a good laugh at my expense.

The whole top surface of this rock is covered with tiny scallop shell imprints	Chunk of mudstone that has all of the outer edges coated with this iron ore

In the photo on the left, the whole top surface of this rock is covered with tiny scallop shell imprints, there must be at least a hundred imprints on it. Notice the outer edge of this specimen. It has a thick layer of iron ore from where the sediment at one time cracked when it dried up and this iron deposit seeped into the cracks. In the second photo it shows a chunk of mudstone that has all of the outer edges coated with this iron ore. Interesting.

In this photo, which is an area up on the large bank, it shows the mudstone which once cracked and the iron filled the cracks

Notice that this material is up on the side of the bank, at almost a vertical angle. At one time it was horizontal, at the bottom of the sea. Hard to imagine isn’t it!

From where the Convention Center is located, near the bottom of the hill, all the way up to where this large bank is located on the right, is good fossil collecting area. A person could easily spend all day here looking in the road cut, from the Convention Center to the top of the mountain.

If you decide to visit this site be sure and have someone with you just in case you slide down the bank like I did. I didn’t get hurt, a true wonder, but very easily could have. This is why it is advisable to have someone with you.

Also, when collecting here, take your time and look at both sides of the rocks. If you just go along, looking at the top of the rocks laying around, you’re going to miss a lot of nice specimens. Turn each piece over to check the underside.

Happy rock hunting.

Ray Hill
Great South Gems & Minerals, Inc.
www.greatsouth.net
888-933-GEMS

Note: Only rock clubs have permission to print this article but must give credit to the author, Ray Hill, and Great South Gems & Minerals, Inc. For everyone else, please email us for permission.

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