Sandy Mile Letterbox clues
#1 of the Fossil Series
Western, Maryland
Placed by Squirrel September 16, 2000
Easy, Dogs welcome, no bathrooms
twograysquirrels@aol.com

Begin your trip at Sidling Hill on Interstate-68 near Hancock, Maryland. They
have a very nice information center that explains a lot of the rock
formations and terms that you will encounter in this series.

There are 2 rock types exposed at this site, the Oriskany Sandstone and the
Heilderberg limestone. These sands are used for making glass. The Heilderberg
group is the lower most strata of the Devonian system in this area. Both
groups are fooiliferous.

When you have seen and read everything proceed west on I-68 and exit at the
first available exit. Turn left over bridge and re-enter I-68 East. Exit at
Woodmont Road, bear right and then make a left on Route 144. Drive a short
distance and trun left onto Sandy Mile Road. Quarry is about 1 mile down on
the right just before a bridge.

Park your car along the side of the road and take the trail past the Oriskany
Sandstone. Follow the trail a little way down a slight incline back into the
woods. It opens to a large clearing where a limestone quarry is. Look around
at the base of that quarry and in those stones for fossils. I found a few
small ones. When you have finished collecting go back the way you came and
look for a tire to the left of the trail. You should find another fossil in
there. When you get back to your car and the road go to the left a little bit
and look in the sandstone there and you should find some large shell fossils
in there. Good hunting.





McCoy's Ferry Fossils
#2 of the Fossil Series
Western Maryland
Placed by Squirrel September 16, 2000
Easy, Dogs welcome, no bathrooms
twograysquirrels@aol.com