PaleoDude24 Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 (edited) About a month and a half ago I was taking a trip with my school band to go to a contest in Illinois. Of course, leave it to me to be staring out the window drooling over roadcuts while everybody else was conversing normally on the bus. I really was about ready to jump out of the bus when I saw a HUGE limestone quarry open up. Fast forward a month and a half. The other day I was taking a ride with my family to go to the Mazon Creek area to fossil hunt. Of course following the same route I'm drooling over these roadcuts again and BOOM! we pass by the same quarry. I did my research and came up with Thornton Quarry in Thornton, IL. Its Silurian Limestone and honestly, I WANT IN ON IT!!! Anyway, my question is, how would I go about asking about access to the quarry on a day where there aren't any operations going on? I know there are tours that go periodically through the quarry and that's always an option, but I would really just like to get out there and hunt without some tour guide telling me what to do. How would I be able to get permission to go into the quarry and at least take some pictures of the fossils if nothing else? Edited June 21, 2012 by PaleoDude24 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCFossils Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 To the best of my knowledge, the only way to get access to the quarry is with an organized group. They will not let individuals in. Groups are only allowed to collect in very limited areas and you have to keep a good distance away from the quarry walls. You can check the Field Museum website and also contact the quarry to see if they have any upcoming trips. It has been over twenty years since I collected the quarry but I do remember finding a few nice fossils. The sheer size of the quarry is also amazing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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