Happy Hollow Fossiliferous EarthCache
Happy Hollow Fossiliferous
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The Pirates are celebrating Richmond’s Bicentennial by placing this Earthcache in the city to show geocachers some amazing fossil rocks.
The Whitewater River has cut the Whitewater Gorge in an ancient limestone and shale layer named the Whitewater Formation. Most of the recognizable fossils in the Whitewater Formation are from skeletons of animals that lived about 435 million years ago on the bottom of a warm shallow sea that covered the area.
Fossiliferous limestone of the Ordovician Period is 425 Million years old in the Whitewater Gorge, and is one of only two places in the United States where this type of limestone is exposed at the surface. The abundant fossils in the rocks of the Gorge have attracted Paleontologists and amateur collectors to the area for over one hundred years.
Look for the best and cleanest specimens in rubble piles near the bottoms of slopes along road and creeks where nature and time have gently washed them from the hard rock. Excellent, delicate specimens can be found firmly attached to small collectible slabs in these rubble piles. This formation is along a public road so fossil hunters must be careful of automobile traffic. Fossils may be collected from rubble piles ONLY.
To claim this cache please answer the following questions.
1. Name 3 common fossils that can be found in this rock formation.
2. Finish this sentence: The Ordovician period is the _______ of the six (seven in North America) periods of the Paleozoic era.
3. Optional - Post a picture of you with your GPS standing in front of the Whitewater Formation.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
[BEWARE OF TRAFFIC]
Treasures
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