Anglin Falls is an place that I visit often with my boyfriend.
Here you will hear songbirds, the scatter of leaves as squirrels
run about the forest floor, and the occasional “swoosh”
of an owl flying across the gorge. I hope those who come to visit
the falls find it an enjoyable experience.
The forest was dedicated in 1996, as the John B. Stephenson
Memorial Forest State Nature Preserve. Located in a 124-acre wooded
gorge with a rich spring floral display, the preserve honors John
B. Stephenson, the former president of Berea College who enjoyed
the area's beauty and solitude and worked hard to preserve the
forest surrounding Anglin Falls. Long open to the public, the
preserve will remain a significant source for education,
interpretation and inspiration for the people of Kentucky and the
students and faculty of Berea College. 
My boyfriend brought me to this spot to show me the odd shaped
rocks he found in the creek. The rocks first appeared as erractics,
but where covered with an brownish rust like film of mud. Upon
closer inspection, we discovered fossils where inside the rocks.
The rocks are mixed in with the grey shale mud that looks like
clay. The rocks contained crinoids and mussel shells.
A little research revealed that the rocks are called Siderite
Nodules. Siderite is a common mineral associated with geodes,
nodules, and ironstone banding. Siderite is very common in the coal
fields, where it occurs as a reddish-brown mineral in shale layers,
nodules, concretions, and fossil burrows. Commonly, a siderite
nodule will have a nucleus of another mineral such as pyrite,
sphalerite, or chert. Siderite also occurs in geodes with dolomite
and calcite. Siderite becomes magnetic on heating, and alters
readily to limonite and goethite. 
Siderite and associated iron minerals form curved bands common
in sandstones in Anglin Falls. These bands are called Liesegang
bands.
In the Anglin Falls Creek, siderite nodules that look similar to
siderite nodules found in the coal fields of Kentucky. Do you know
what is found in siderite nodules?
Siderite nodules from Anglin Falls Creek are locally famous for
the fossils they sometimes contain. Fossils of crinoids and mussel
shells are most common. Sometimes fossils of soft-bodied organisms,
like the millipede, and fern leaves are found, however you will
mostly find brachiopod and clam fossils in the siderite
nodules.
Siderite nodules like those in which Anglin Falls Creek Fossils
are found form when a iron, calcite and clay were all available
during a bad day in the Pennsylvanian. A bunch of plants and
animals died together and were buried by a fine silt. The positive
nature of the dead material attracted the negatively charged clay
particles; the iron and the calcite provided the cement. Waving a
UV light over Anglin Falls concretions could reveal soft structure
details due to extra calcite in these areas. 
Concretions are formed by the deposition of distinct minerals,
different from the surrounding rock, very firmly cemented around a
nucleus. They are generally lens shaped, although some have
irregular, complex forms. The most common cementing materials are
calcite, siderite, and silica. Parts of plants and animals may
serve as nuclei, and well-preserved fossils may be found in
concretions. In Kentucky, large concretions of siderite and
calcite, which used to be called ironstones, are found in shales
associated with coal beds. Nodules are another type of irregularly
shaped minerals that occur in sedimentary rocks. The most common
minerals that occur in nodules are siderite, gypsum, calcite,
quartz, and barite/celestite. Siderite nodules, concretions, and
liesegang (iron-stained) banding are a very common type of
mineralization found in eastern and western Kentucky
sandstones.
Directions - Rockcastle County. From Exit 76 on I-75, go east
3.5 miles on KY 21 to the center of Berea. Turn right at the light
(staying on KY 21), past the Boone Tavern, and travel another 5
miles. Turn right (south) on to US 421 and travel 2.6 miles. Turn
right on Burnt Ridge Road and travel .2 miles, then left on Himanns
Fork Road and travel 3.4 miles.
Look for a red brick house on the right (box 530); approximately
one-tenth of a mile past the house make a sharp left turn down a
steep hill on to Anglin Falls Road. Travel .9 miles on Anglin Falls
Road to a sign that says "Anglin Falls" next to a mailbox marked
"542 R2". Turn left and travel .2 miles to the parking area/trail
head.
To get a smiley for your discovery, please answer the questions
and post a picture of you and your group at the EarthCache site
holding a Siderite Nodule (creek in background). Please include a
smiling face!
What is the average size of the nodules?
Are the nodules smooth or rough when touched?
Source of educational information for this EarthCache comes from
the Kentucky Geological Survey, University of Kentucky.