Anybody diving for Megs this winter??

[Lee Taylor]

I don't know much about the Edisto River. I only dove it that one day. I do know there are some backwater Megalodon teeth being found.

The best way to find things, anywhere, is to dive virgin sites, or search out virgin land sites. All the dive charters typically go to the same old picked over sites over and over. I don't know of any dive charters running the Edisto. I have heard of people diving it and I have heard of walk-ins.

The bottom line is that once you start venturing out into virgin territory you will certainly find a treasure trove of fossils and artifacts in this part of the country.

What I would like to do is hook up with one of my dive pals and have him run the river to new sites. When he finds a new site he likes I will drop into the water and drop to the bottom to have a look see. I have done this enough that I know what to look for. I will then bail out and return to the boat with the information. If its good, mark it for later. Then move to the next new site. This is much faster, reliable, and easier than using an underwater TV. I think I will run this past a couple of dive boat owners I know. There ARE bone-yards in the rivers. I dropped on one one Saturday. There were fossilized bones and teeth all over the place. I remember it well. Like a fool I did not mark the location. Hard lesson learned.

 

[Lee Taylor]

I have an acquaintance in Venice Florida that is a prolific fossil collector. She has one of the best collections I have ever seen. Check out this photo of a dinosaur leg. I took this photo in her house.

click to enlarge

 

[Lee Taylor]

Sharky,

The video above, item number 15, was likely taken up river. I can tell from the amount of light and the color of the water that the depth is about 10 to 15 feet. I have heard there are some Edisto walk-ins. I suspect this is one of them. OR its just an arbitrary up river site someone puttered up to in their river boat.

I call it up river because I live close to the beach

 

[Lee Taylor]

Check out this T-Rex. It is not a replica. It is the real deal. Most dinosaur skeletons on display are replicas.

"Sue" is the nickname given to FMNH PR 2081, which is the largest, most extensive and best preserved Tyrannosaurus rex specimen ever found.[2] It was discovered in the summer of 1990 by Sue Hendrickson, a paleontologist, and was named after her. After ownership disputes were settled, the fossil was auctioned in October 1997 for US $8.36 million, the highest amount ever paid for a dinosaur fossil,[3] and is now a permanent feature at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, Illinois.[4]

 

[Zodiacdiverdave]

I don't know how that Sue Hendickson could ever part with such a cute little dino like that.
I know my wife would just love to have that in our living room. LOL
ZDD

 

[Lee Taylor]

Here is the interesting story behind the finding, seizing, and selling of the old bones.

Sue (the T-Rex) was found on private property owned by an American Indian. Hendickson had the landowner's permission to dig and remove the skeleton, and paid the landowner $5,000 for Sue. The property was in trust by the US Government and since the land technically belonged to the government, Sue was seized by the U.S. Justice Department in 1992. The dinosaur was returned to the Indian landowner in 1995. The landowner contracted with Sotheby's auction house to sell Sue. Sue was sold for $8.36 million.

______________________________

What is the moral of the story?

 

[Zodiacdiverdave]

Ya gotta love those feds.
We have a wreck up here that a couple of my friends found in the 60's. They made a deal with the province that would give them 90% of the find. They spent a season recovering thousands of coins only to have the federal government boys step in a sieze it all. The province and the salvers got zip. the coins went to Ottawa and that was the last any one has seen of them.
Different country but the moral of the story is the same.
ZDD

 

[Aristakat]

WOW Lee that is something else, Life is crazy !!!!

 

[iamsharky]

There ARE bone-yards in the rivers. I dropped on one one Saturday. There were fossilized bones and teeth all over the place. I remember it well. Like a fool I did not mark the location. Hard lesson learned.

I remember finding a bone-yard that was virgin. The area was 30-40 feet deep and size wise was really large a guestimate of 10 or so family size swimming pools large. (in dark water, hard to cover...) Teeth and bones were everywhere. I covered it pretty well and remember there was an actual mound of rocks and bones that was probaly the size of a queen size mattress and 3 ft high. I found shark teeth, mastadon teeth, a tapir jaw and other kinds of fossils. What was surprising was the diversity of fossils in one small area. I should have dug the whole mound up but at that time in my early diving was content picking up surface specimens.

The mound is no longer there. Don't know if it got blown away or someone dug it out.

That dinosaur leg is inspiring. I do not pick up bones very often. I am sure I have passed up several sloth legs etc.... Of course when they are not put together, they are hard to recognize. I would like to put some leg sections together sometime, so i need to study those bones. I have the Neophytes Fossil Guide book which has pictures of completed leg sections....

 

[Lee Taylor]

Hello Jamie!

How ya been? Do you have enough food and firewood to get through this winter? Are you planning to run charters offshore Venice this next season? Do you know when the Venice Fossil Fair is planned for? What date? Ever see Debra these days?