Directions: Mitchell’s map and directions to the site are misleading. The turn off Cadiz Rd is just before the 2nd curve where the road turns right to cross the railroad. You go left off Cadiz Rd for maybe a half mile, then turn right at a road indicated by a BLM marker. Follow this road as far as your rig will allow, then park. From the parking area below the deposits, follow the trail left across the face, then around and up into the higher shale deposits on the left face about half way up the mountain. This is a steep hike. Also, this area is a great place to camp while exploring the Marble Mountains and the area around Amboy and old Rt 66, if you can sleep through the freight trains passing nearby at all hours of the night.
Date: February 2010
Notes: We were lucky to meet up with a professional fossil hunter at the site who had already removed the overburden at several promising shale deposits. He allowed us to work one while he worked another. After 5 hours of hard work, we brought down several nearly complete trilobite fossils of at least 2 species, some top and bottom split pairs. One specimen included a Cambrian worm-like creature.
Trail up to shale beds, Cadiz beyond
Trilobite fossil from Marble Mts
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for the clarification on the map and hike, Jerry. My son and I were going to try this location last July … until our truck broke down off Kelbaker Rd just north of Amboy … we spent a relaxing weekend at the hotel instead, waiting for the truck to be fixed. We’ll try again later but am glad for the additional information!
We tried to find this site last weekend but could not locate it. The dirt road off the Cadiz road was easy to find, but leads to a turnaround at the top of a small hill. A walking trail leads on from there, but disappears in a field of large crystalline granite bedrock and huge conglomerate boulders. There was nothing clearly leading “to the left” and we did not reach shale. Clearly we were in the wrong spot, but it was just not clear what “left across the face then around and up” refer to. We would love to try again.
Sorry dentate. My directions could be better. There is a right turn indicated by a brown BLM marker. This turn is maybe half way from Cadiz road to the turnaround & camping area in the granite bedrock area. Take that right turn for a half mile or so & then the directions will make more sense. I have updated my directions in the original post.
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