Group Hike & Fossil Hunting - Calvert Cliffs, Maryland

Calvert Cliffs State Park in Calvert County, Maryland, is a popular destination for fossil hunting, hiking, and enjoying the scenic Chesapeake Bay shoreline. The park features a sandy beach where fossils of prehistoric creatures like sharks, whales, and seabirds are found, and 13 miles of hiking trails through diverse ecosystems. The park is named after the dramatic cliffs that stretch along the coastline, formed over 10 to 20 million years ago during the Middle Miocene period.

The Hike: We will be doing the 1.8 mile in and back. It's a flat walk over dirt trail and a beautiful boardwalk. However, since there are 13 miles of hiking, feel free to go your own route.

Prehistoric Fossil Hunting - can be done at the open beach area at the end of the red trail, approximately 1.8 miles from the parking lot. Over 600 species of fossils from the Miocene era (10 to 20 million years ago) have been identified in the Calvert Cliffs, many of which can be found at Calvert Cliffs State Park. Chesapectens (an extinct genus of scallop), Ecphora (a group of extinct predatory marine gastropod mollusks), Miocene era oyster shells, prehistoric shark teeth, skate teeth are common finds as well as remnants of creatures which inhabited the area millions of years ago (prehistoric whales). Sieves and shovels can be used to sift the sand for fossils if you want to bring anything for that.

I need everyone to sign a waiver before you embark on this journey with us.

Let's meet at the entrance of the park at 10am. Note that there is a $7 vehicle charge per vehicle without MD plates. MD residents pay $5. Carpooling is best to get parking. I will be driving from Arlington and can take up to two other passengers.

Here's more information about the cool fossils you can find at Calvert Cliffs: https://www.fossilguy.com/sites/calvert/calv_col.htm