Saturday, 29 June 2013.
In preparation for our Summer camp, that includes a trip to the Burgess Shale, we got a bit of training on being a Paleontologist.
Tyrrell museum offers the Dig experience to help you know more about the field and the interesting discovery work these professionals do.
We asked if Horseshoe canyon was still the same experience and they indicated you could still climb down into the canyon and hike around. They told us of an even steeper canyon, the Horse Thief Canyon. This one is just a little further past the museum. We saw the sign for it as we were leaving. So some day we'll have to plan a hike into that canyon as well.
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Karl Burndorfer, David Procter - Scout Leaders |
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Ethan Conrad. RJ Laigo, Michael Laigo, Issac Gagnon, Kelly Zaugg, Seth Ek, Tayson Saravia - Scouts |
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Hector Saravia, - Parents |
Field training start. |
Some of the bones are already exposed. |
OK, so how do we tell a fossil from a rock? |
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Here's an Abertasorus tooth |
Notice the serrated edge |
Finger tip bone of a herbivore |
For tools you get an Awl, and a dental pick for removing material around
the fossil. Paint brush and tooth brush for sweeping and cleaning the work
area and a bucket to collect the plaster etc.
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So what do you think you got there? |
Don't poke that thing too near the bone. |
Try the dental pick |
Maybe I should become a dentist? |
Keep poking and scratching, it's slowly coming more visible. |
This is hard stuff to pick off. |
A misting service is available at no extra cost. |
Yea, all over me, that's good. Much cooler now. |
Yes, me too please. |
Check it out, I think it's a skull bone. |
Just a bit more... |
I'll pry a bit here, Pop!. Look a huge piece just came off. |
Slowly more fossils are getting exposed. |
The staff really are good to you out here. Just behind the ears a bit,
thanks. |
Oh, it's really for wetting the fossils |
Check out this chunk! |
Got some major plaster off here. |
So this looks like some rib bones here. |
This I think is the pelvis bone. |
Oh, here's a nice piece coming off, just let me pry it a bit more... |
Think they'll be mad if we tell them the bone came with it? |
No, Good. Here's the piece of bone. |
We still got a fair bit of work here before we can figure out what this
is. |
Another big chuck off. |
Looks kind of like a vertebrate |
maybe it's an arm. |
I think it could be parts of a large foot. |
Not bad for a days work out in the scorching hot sun. |
Definitely a big creature. |
Check out these mountains dear. |
We'll bring a picnic and have the whole family out. |
Then then they gave us a nice post card so we could sent it to our family & friends and share the experience. |