Fossil Park — Attraction in Ohio

I remember when I was a kid and went to fossil park expecting to dig through the earth myself finding fossils. Much to my dissapointment I was told to dig through a pile of quarried rock and dirt, pre dug out of the ground. That was it? Are you serious? So I began to walk. I walked down this path going south that looked like a muddied utility road leading nowhere. It led me to a hillside. I climbed over it. It then felt like I entered Jurassic Park. Lying before me was a vast gulch filled with blue water, apparently an older quarry, surrounded by rocky hills of old excavation deep from below the earth. So THIS is where they were hiding the adventure! I went scrambling along the hills (gasp, oh no, danger! I've never seen a mountain before!) And found fossilized shells intact, trilobites, little lumps of silvery and copper looking metals, loads of fossilized coral and even this cool find which looked like fossilized dino-skin which i think I still have even to this day.

Flash to 2021. Now there is a big giant fence around this. Apparently people have died at least on one occasion ive heard. The quarry has some steep cliffs on two sides. Some people have dumped cars in it like in many bodies of water just about everywhere you go. Maybe some think its just too dangerous to allow any manner of exploration at all, or perhaps its not part of the park in actuallity. Those same people may need to get up and go see the Rockies. Those would be far more dangerous to explore, wouldn't they? With very limited sites-to-see around this part of Ohio you would think one that is like an outdoor geology museum and lake combined would be worth showing the world but I guess not. Maybe its a bit risky. Maybe even more risky than driving down I-23 in its full under-construction glory, which some of you had surely taken to get here! Rant aside this is a beautiful place and I have great memories here.

If you really want to see this part of the park go to the farmers field which is behind a strip of forest to the west of the parking area (if you parked in fossil park). Go south along this farmers field until you reach a fence. You can see the old quarry from here near where the fence meets at a corner, or further down if you wish to get a closer look. I don't know if your "allowed" to be in this area or not so this isn't a guide just a hypothetical observation and don't go anywhere you're not allowed to go in and don't fall in, got...

Visited the park about a year or so ago, and it was absolutely amazing. Revisited again , and it was a less than an enjoyable experience. There were no tools allowed(we had them at our last visit) so fossils were not as easy to find other than those visible to the naked eye. Small children had difficulty getting anywhere without tools so they quickly became bored and played in the mud(wear old shoes and clothes) As on our previous visit there’s was a very informative man. On approach, he was laying on the ground on his back! I thought his blood sugar was low or he was having a cardiac event. We only know these things because he informed us of them on our last visit after noticing my 8yr old grandchild’s scar from several open heart surgeries (she’s very sensitive about the scars). We realized he was ok because he never stopped talking during our whole visit! It’s great that you have such an informed attendant but perhaps he needs to “read the pit(room)” It became annoying at times . Like we know you are smart buddy but maybe let people come to you with questions and practice the pause? It’s great that you have such a knowledgeable volunteer (honestly he knows so much) , they’re hard to come by these days. However, it and the lack of ability to actually “dig” made our experience not worth the time invested. Note: The children involved were 5,7 and 9 so perhaps it’s best for older children or having more adults to help with the extraction process was our...

This was a great day! We easily spent five hours and could’ve done more! We will be back! Mr. Marok was there as a volunteer and he was an absolute TREASURE and pleasure! We learned so much, I really wish I had better retention or had taken notes. I kept a lot in mind but I know that knowledge like he has is a lifetime effort. We found a wealth of great specimens for educational purposes, nothing that’s a grade A spectacular quality but we are also total noobs. We found: crinoids, brachiopods (several varieties) TONS of horn coral, and these little clams (brachiopods) referred to as “walnuts”. No trilobites however, they are there and people DO find them. Next time we will bring more effective tools. No metal tools allowed and if you can’t physically carry it out you can’t take it. Otherwise…fair game! What an awesome place! What a GIFT to the visitors :) There’s a nice and clean bathroom facility, parking is awesome, the bike path is well kept. It’s an absolute joy and we can’t wait to return. Again, I really want to extend thanks and gratitude to Thomas Marok for all his wisdom and generosity in sharing what he’s learned 🙏🏻 This was one of the best times we’ve had in a while and to think,...