Today’s plan was developed with the day’s forecast in mind: ridiculously hot and sunny (but a dry heat, right?).
We started in the morning at a locality we hadn’t been to before and spent two hours finding nothing (in the way of fossils), until we stumbled upon this lovely fossil horse.
We found little jaws with teeth and a tiny ankle bone which provide the evidence that this is, in fact, a 45 or so million year old relative of horses.
By the time lunch was finished, it was uncomfortably hot, so we sensibly hopped in our cars and drove – a/c blasting – higher into the section to look for soils and turtle fossils in rocks that have not reliably yielded such materials before.
The air conditioning was welcomed and made the heat of the afternoon tolerable. And it was important, as the massive heat caused my phone to overheat. Thankfully, it’s back to its normal self.
Tonight at camp it will be cataloging specimens and cleaning out my car to make space for two special visitors tomorrow. I’m excited!
Penny Higgins - Storyteller • Artist • Scientist 