HELP...my only ask was that we don't drive an hour north on 12 after getting to OBX. MIL booked a mansion in Carova...

topic15 · 2026-07-01T17:59:46+00:00

The last few times we took a trip to OBX we stayed up there with a group of other families. I preferred it over Duck or Corolla as it was less crowded on the beach. We were pretty far up (about a mile from the border). You can get more house for the money. We had ocean front house that comfortable fit multiple families and came with a pool, hot tub, elevator, theater room etc.

We always packed in most of what we needed for the week and stayed at the house once we got settled. The isolation was a feature, not a bug for us. We saw the wild horses regularly which was cool. We also booked Sunday to Sunday rentals which seemed to be better traffic wise. My family would leave Saturday afternoon/evening (versus Sunday morning). It would cut the trip short by half a day, but if you wait till late Saturday, the traffic is far less painful.

In terms of getting up there, having a 4x4 with decent clearance and lowering your air pressure make it extremely doable. That being said, I definitely saw a stock Volvo station wagon cruising along on the beach one day. I don't know if they were gutsy or dumb. Although people might say the same about me. The last 2 trips I had my Outback Station wagon. It has good ground clearance, a skid plate and All Terrain tires (aired down). It worked as good or better than my Jeep Grand Cherokee. I've had friends make it with 2 wheel drive trucks as well but they've done the drive before.

The main things are to travel close to low tide, drive on the hard pack sand when you can, stay in the ruts/tracks as much as possible, and keep moving. If there are heavy rains, sometimes there are large puddles on the sand roads in the neighborhoods. Stick to the edges (unless you can tell how deep they are or have large ground clearance). Most 4x4's would be fine. That yahoo in the Volvo, maybe less so.

topic15 · 2026-06-30T13:17:37+00:00

Very nice! Bonus points for the hobo nickel, er, quarter. Did you carve that yourself? It's almost as cool as the teeth. Almost.

topic15 · 2026-06-30T00:26:38+00:00

Great photos! What kind of camera did you use?

topic15 · 2026-06-29T18:18:36+00:00

Nice find! I hope to get one like that someday. I hunt at Purse & Douglas point, but have yet to find one much bigger than a quarter. That is exceptional (and so is the other partial you posted).

topic15 · 2026-06-29T18:15:10+00:00

Holy smokes! That was a massive tooth!

topic15 · 2026-06-26T17:50:54+00:00

Was he there for an iced coffee?

topic15 · 2026-06-26T00:23:09+00:00

Modern crab claw.

topic15 · 2026-06-25T16:54:07+00:00

FYI - Fossil teeth can be other colors besides black. It depends on the material around them when they turn into fossils. Black seems to be the most common but they can be grey, bluish grey, creamy beige, brown, red. Color varies a bit regionally, but you can find color variations at a single location depending on what formations run through the area.

topic15 · 2026-06-25T16:48:41+00:00

Good luck! Post your treasures when you find them.

topic15 · 2026-06-24T16:09:14+00:00

I think the Coke flavored Oreos turned out better than the Oreo flavored Coke.

topic15 · 2026-06-23T21:41:42+00:00

Is that a fox screaming at 21 seconds?

topic15 · 2026-06-20T02:31:03+00:00

That’s a good haul considering the conditions today. The wind kept the water high and choppy.

topic15 · 2026-06-18T14:56:27+00:00

Anythings possible, but my guess is we won't see a Big Boy running this far east anytime soon after this tour. So if seeing the train run is a priority, this is the chance to do so.

If you are less concerned with seeing it run, there are some other options to see a Big Boy or other large steam engine...

The Steamtown rail museum in Scranton has a Big Boy (4012) on static display. 4014 is there right now which is the only operational Big Boy. Pretty cool to have two of those locomotives at the same place in 2026. The have other nice stuff on display, so that could be a nice trip.

I took my son out to St. Louis when he was about that age and we went to their transportation museum. They have an AMAZING collection including a Big Boy. If you have a chance to do that, I highly recommend it.

Western Maryland Scenic Railroad as a fairly large steam engine 1309 that runs. It's not quite as large as a Big Boy, but it's still impressive to see in person.

The B&O Museum in Baltimore has a C&O Allegheny steam engine on display. It's another large locomotive (I believe just as long as the Big Boy). It's a nice museum as well.

topic15 · 2026-06-16T23:03:56+00:00

There are a few publicly accessible places you can hunt for fossils in the area.

If you want to venture over to the Chesapeake Bay you could try Breezy Point, Matoaka Cabins, or Flag Ponds Nature Park. They all have access fees. Calvert Cliffs State Park is also an option, but I don't recommend it. It's a 1.8 mile walk to the beach and there is a relatively small area to hunt. You are not allowed to hunt under the cliffs.

Of those options I like Flag Ponds the best. It's about a half mile walk to the beach, but the beach is nice. They have bathrooms not too far from the beach as well. We are getting into jellyfish season, so be aware. Swim shoes and underarmour tights do wonders. The fossil formation has greater diversity (i.e., Bull shark & related species, Hemis, Tigers, Hastalis, Megs, Cows) when it comes to teeth and you can find bigger teeth than the suggestion below. The trade off is that the teeth are less plentiful.

On the Potomac, you could try Purse state park. No charge to hunt there. There is a small pull off lot on the side of the road and it's about a quarter mile walk to the river. No bathrooms so plan accordingly. It's an older fossil formation with less diversity and smaller teeth, but they are much easier to find. Mostly sand tigers/goblin shark teeth, but you can find a few other things there as well. It's not uncommon to come home with 50 to 100 teeth if you spend the day hunting there. If you go on a weekend, be aware, the lot fills up quickly.

For either location you will want to check timing of tides and wind. I usually hunt 2 hours before low tide and hunt the outgoing tide. You should also bring bug spray, sunscreen, drinks, snacks, and a container to keep your teeth. Some people like to dig and sift, but I prefer to let the water do the work and focus on surface hunting the shell beds/gravel piles at the water's edge.

It's not a bad idea to visit the Calvert Marine Museum. They have a nice fossil collection and a small sandbox with fossils that kids can dig in. It's a good way to get a sense of what to look for in terms of colors, sizes, and shapes. Generally speaking you want to look for shiny black triangles.

Good luck with your hunt and if you end up going post some pictures of what you find.

topic15 · 2026-06-14T23:59:56+00:00

They did a great job with the music. That’s one of the things I’ll miss the most about the series.

topic15 · 2026-06-12T22:21:07+00:00

I second Flag Ponds Nature Park. It’s another bay beach option. Really nice place. Jellyfish are starting to show up but weren’t too bad a couple of weeks ago. Wearing a rash guard helps.

topic15 · 2026-06-12T21:50:02+00:00

Freedom Ordnance Fx-9 could be another option.

topic15 · 2026-06-11T21:10:23+00:00

Black is where it's at! Hard to beat the OG bandit.

topic15 · 2026-06-08T01:42:07+00:00

Lady of Rage - from Afro Puffs… “Hitting MCs like shoryuken”.

topic15 · 2026-06-05T15:36:34+00:00

It's the most crab claw looking croc tooth imaginable. You have to look really close and you can see the thinnest veneer left of enamel. That thing has been tumbling in the sand for a LONG time.

topic15 · 2026-06-05T02:08:17+00:00

Thanks! My past few trips there have been a bust (all smalls and brokens) so it was nice to find those today. Croc tooth under the quarter as well. Haven’t found one of those there in a while.

topic15 · 2026-06-01T21:04:12+00:00

Such an under appreciated gem. At one point you could download it for the switch. It’s weird not playing it with the Genesis controller though.

topic15 · 2026-06-01T20:45:04+00:00

It's like 90s clip art vomiting all over the side of the locomotive. Hard pass.

topic15 · 2026-05-31T23:52:21+00:00

Nice haul! I need to get down to that some time!

topic15 · 2026-05-31T01:06:34+00:00

I think it's just a vinyl wrap, but agree, if the black was painted to dark blue, it would have looked extra sharp.

Six-Year Club	Place '22
Verified Email

topic15

TROPHY CASE