fossil safari at warfield fossil quarries

We had really enjoyed finding Trilobite fossils in UT, so when I saw Fossil Safari during my research online for another family road trip, I knew we had to visit. Our excursion happened to fall on the morning after a big stormy downpour the day before. The service road to the site was rough dirt and gravel to begin with, but after a good soaking--we were lucky to make it to the fossil quarry. We drove a mid-sized SUV, in 4 WD. We were sinking into the deep mud, and fish-tailing often, with fingers crossed the whole way. Fortunately, this site is not nearly as far off the main road.When we arrived there were already a couple of families starting their hunt. The operator hadn't expected to see anyone that day, saying that there was a notice online indicating that the drive should not be attempted after rain. Oh well...let the hunt begin.They demonstrated how to split the rock, and the area to work. Then set us loose with the chisel and pick hammer that they supplied. My son's face lit up as he peeked inside the layers of one of his first attempted splits to find a beautiful, complete 40-60 million year old fish fossil, with both sides preserved. And I refused to leave until I did the same. (Which I did!)Because the rock was wet, it was not possible to split the layers as thinly. (Too crumbly.) You can see additional fossils within the rock layers, if you would can attempt to split it further upon returning home. (But you run the risk of ruining the ones you already have.)We did spend slightly over an hour searching, and went home with many fossils. You are allowed to take everything you find, unless it is a very rare specimen. They did not review our findings, nor did they track our stay down to the hour. (They say most people find enough to be happy within 1-2 hours.)You should bring your own water, food, sunglasses, sunscreen, hat and gloves. It is also suggested that you bring some boxes and packing material to protect your fossils for the trip home. They do have some gloves and other supplies available for purchase on site. They do not supply a bucket for collecting finds as you work. As you move around to find the best spot, it's very easy to lose track of the 'keepers' that you've already found. There is an outhouse for use if needed.They told us that it is VERY important to retain our receipt. If stopped by law enforcement, they can confiscate all of your fossils, unless you can prove that they were acquired on private land.We would like to have visited the Fossil Butte National Monument, but were short on time. This was recommended before visiting the quarry.While they were helpful at the quarry, I did not interact with the men much. Their demo and information seemed minimal. Although my husband told me that they had a lot of stories to tell later on.

We went fossil hunting here on August 28, 2014 after going to the another fossil place in Kemmerer, Wy, earlier that day. We enjoyed that experience so much we decided to try Fossil Safari too. The road there was difficult because of rainy weather but it was worth it. We found many perfect fossils in the two hours before they closed. I would definitely go back and do this again. George, was so helpful and took time to explain how to extract the fossils. He also gave us information on how to preserve the fossils once we got home. George told us that the owner really wanted people to find fossils and enjoy themselves. The fossils we found here were even better than the ones we had found earlier.Splitting rocks and looking for fossils was a lot like opening Christmas presents, you never knew what you would find inside.

I love rockhounding, and my club in Riverton, WY, arranged a trip to Fossil Safari. I'd seen several members' fossils they had found, and was really interested in adding a couple to my collection.WOW! Was I wrong! I got dozens of fossil fish from just one day! First, it is a bit of a drive to get out to the quarry over decent two-track roads. People in campers, cars and trucks had no problem. Just take it slow.There were folks from all over the world there the day our club visited. If you want to primitive camp, you can just pull off at the top of the hill above the quarry. We pulled in a pop-up camper on Friday night (I would recommend getting there in the daylight) and stayed two nights. There are a couple of outhouses at the quarry. The manager and some of the workers live on site in campers during the summer. It was VERY dry, so don't plan on having a campfire.Second, the view is amazing from the top of the ridge! This is an ancient 900-acre lake, and from the top of the hill you can imagine the valleys filled with water and prehistoric critters.Third, there are two quarries very close to each other. We only dug at Fossil Safari, and I can only speak to that experience, which was amazing!The "dig" isn't inexpensive, but you get all the tools and instructions and assistance you could want. Kids found fossils. Adults found fossils. All ages found fossils. Everyone found fossils! Many fossils!The quarry owners will either let you work on the "wall" of the quarry, or they will use heavy equipment to bring slabs of the limestone rock to the quarry floor where you can work on making little rocks out of big rocks! You are working with a rock hammer and chisel to "peel" off the layers of limestone to expose the fish. Here are tips:* It is a bit of a drive out to the quarry.* You can get a hotel in town (Kemmerer) and travel to the quarry.* You will get dusty and dirty.* Bring gloves.* Bring water and food. There is some shade on the porch and a picnic table.* This is a primitive, but beautiful, setting!* You can bring fold-up chairs, but they aren't necessary.* Ask for help. The staff there is exceptionally helpful and can generally help you find fossils if you are not having any luck at first. Once you figure out what to do, you will find fossils.If you find something you don't know what it is, stop and ask.* Understand that you can't keep everything you find...you receive a card that tells you which fish you can keep. Anything unusual belongs to the quarry. I found a 22" across female stingray fossil while digging on the wall. She was in pieces, and the quarry was excited to excavate her and take her back to their "lab" to piece her together.* They will saw out your fish so you aren't carrying a huge slab of heavy rock in your car. They can even cut down your slab to make it small enough to carry in your airline luggage. But beware, you'll probably find more than you will want to carry on an airplane.We (my two "Wyoming" daughters and I) enjoyed it so much the full day that we stayed a second night and spent a half-day and did more digging.

We actually came here last July and have not been able to stop talking about how much fun we had. You must print the map to find this place. Facilities are very rough, there is no running water, just an outhouse. Bring sun screen, water, lunch, work gloves and a cushion. They give you all the tools you need but the gloves and cushion just makes it more comfortable. The staff is very helpful and will name the fossils you find. My husband still laughs about how excited my son & I was that as soon as we were shown what to do we went straight to a pile of rocks and started chipping away. He made us stop and put on sunscreen. We found so many great specimens and were able to keep EVERYTHING. They even taught us to make a mix of glue and water to protect the fossil. We spent 4 hours there and came home with great fossils and great memories. Well worth the trip out here!! They told us to stop at Fossil Butte National Monument to learn more about fossils. The Rangers there were very informative. Fossil Butte and Fossil Quarries are a great combination.

We visited SF on July 11, 2014. The site is exactly as described and pictured on their website. We were not disappointed. We enjoyed the ride across the hills and valleys that took us to the quarry and we really felt that we were away from civilization. When we arrived, check-in was easy and the staff went out of their way to get us set up and started on fossil finding. Given that we only had one hour to spend, we still found great specimens to take home with us. My wife and three kids (16, 13 and 10 years old) will be back someday (too bad it is 2000+ miles from home in FL). We highly recommend it if you are in the area. Even if you have to drive a few hours to get there, it is worth it.

I have been here twice (2012 and 2013) and will certainly return again this year. On my first visit I went both to Warfield's and to Ulrich's. Warfield's was by far the best deal of the two. Ulrich's only allowed us to stay for about an hour. If you make it to Kemmerer for this unique experience, you will want to do the 4 hr. visit at Warfield's. For those who don't know fossils, this is the only location in the US where you can collect vertebrate fossils (things with backbones) outside of private property. There was a wide diversity of ages and people in the quarry on both visits and everyone was having a lot of fun. Success (finding fish fossils) is guaranteed, and you should be able to find many whole specimens. They will supply the hammer and special chisels you will need. Take a good hat, water and snacks! Also make sure to bring boxes and plenty of newspaper to wrap each fossil. Allowing the fossils to rattle against each other on the drive home would destroy them. I used bubble wrap which also worked well. I saw port a potties. However, I think everyone gets so excited splitting rocks that no one remembers to stop and drink water, and thus few probably ever use the port a potties. I drove in both times with my 2 WD Camry, but you have to drive slowly on the last mile. Kemmerer may be out of the way (2.25 hrs. from Salt lake City), but is a once in a lifetime kind of experience!

What a great experience! We absolutely loved digging for the fish fossils! George and his friend were awesome. They showed us how to dig and gave us pointers on how/where to look. We drove a rental car and even though it's a BLM road we had no issues. Follow the map on the website and you will have no problems finding the site (just turn your GPS off) bring gloves, plenty of water, sunscreen and sturdy shoes. Tools are provided. Bring a box and wrapping material to pack all of your fossils!

Warfield Fossil Quarry is great fun...for the whole family. What an amazing feeling, breaking open a slab of sandstone and uncovering a 50-million year old fossil fish...that you can then take home with you! Awesome. We can't wait to go back again. The employees are very helpful & show you how to use the equipment, identify what you've found, and even cut the stone with a circular saw to take home. We found enough fossils to keep...and even gave some as Christmas gifts. We had a few fossil slabs which we left thicker & continued the fun at home by splitting them again...to find a few more. We used outdoor UV sealer/polyurethane to seal the fossils for display in our garden.The website has great directions to the quarry...the road is a little steep and rough at times but our van made it just fine. The restrooms are rough too (a wooden outhouse over a hole in the ground) but that just adds to the adventure! Bring a hat, lunch & lots of water & become a paleontologist for a day--you won't be sorry! We're completely hooked!

I researched the fossil quarries of Kemmerer. Most needed booking beforehand and then directions to the quarry were revealed. Warfield was the only one with "drop in'" visitors and the most economical price wise. At many of the tourist information centers and hotels Warfield Quarry ( also known as Fossil Safari ) had information and maps giving detailed directions to the quarry, the last five miles or so is on gravel roads.My party was, grandma, grandad, mum, dad and two toddlers. They were happy not to charge for gran as she was not going to collect fossils. The toddlers were also free of charge. They gathered bits from the scraps on the quarry floor, a safe distance from the quarry face. We were not sure how long we would stay so organized for a two hours dig, with the option to extend.We were met by a very friendly manager, given our tools, shown how to use them and where to collect. Splitting the rock is quite easy and in some places can be split into sheets less than 1/4 inch thick.It was only a matter of minutes before we had our first finds. Our only disappointment was that another collector, within a few feet of us, found a perfect fish about twelve inches long.After two hours our pile was quite large. As we were flying home we had to limit our collection to only the best fossils. We were helped to trim off excess rock to lighten our load.When we looked in rock and fossil shops the value of our fossils was probably three or four times the cost of the dig price.There are no facilities at the quarry so take drinks and snacks. Digging and splitting the rocks is very dusty so wear old clothing.Overall I would recommend enjoying a few hours collecting at Warfield Quarries.

Just got back to NYC from a trip that included a few hours at the Warfield Fossil Quarry. With my wife and seven year old son we dug and broke rock for a few hours searching for fossils and had a blast! All you need is a small rock hammer and a thin chiseI (provided by Fossil Quarries) and you're on your way to finding some cool stuff. After a short learning curve, and some pointers and advice from the manager-on-site George, we were digging for fossils like pros. We dug around for two hours and found plenty of fossils and great memories to take home. George was super friendly and helpful taking the time to answer all our questions and to help identify the specimens we were finding. I can't say enough about how great he was with my son, Thanks George! The fact that you can take home a few fossils is the icing on the cake, for me the learning experience alone is worth the trip. Wish we could have spent the whole day there but time was a factor for us. If you can make it out to Fossil Safari I highly recommend it. Keep in mind it's not easy to get to. You must drive a gravel road several miles off the highway and then take another gravel road a few miles in to the quarry. I wouldn't say you needed a 4WD vehicle to get there but it's a going to be a slow bumpy ride if you don't have one. Also, besides a port-o-potty there are no facilities there, bring snacks and water and wear a long sleeve shirt and pants (digging is a dusty job) and a hat to protect from the sun.

This quarry is out of the way, (which most things are in Wyoming!) in a town called Kemmerer, GPS couldnt find it but with directions in hand we gave it a go. After 5 miles down a dirt track we finally hit upon the Quarry, good job we had a 4x4 as the going was tough, not sure a standard car would be able to hack it. However, on arriving we were greeted and duly tooled with hammer and chisel. Let the fun begin.... after brief instructions we were let out on our own, my youngest is 7 and he needed to help, so I didnt sign up, it was fun and he soon got the hang of it after hitting his hand a couple of times with the hammer!, eventually my husband, daughter and son starting finding Fish fossils in their rocks. Exciting stuff, the employees were knowledgable and informed us of the fish we had found, (luckily for us nothing too rare, so we could bring home). A great hour was spent and a reasonable price ($30 adult, $15 child - upto 12). Had some fun at the airport too with our hand luggage! :)

What a cool experience! A little off the beaten path you can head into this quarry to find your own fish fossils. The price is more than good for what you will walk away with. The employees are great ad super helpful. I went with my dad but I was 4 months pregnant and had a sprained ankle. I was still able to do lots and the employees kept bringing me new rocks to break- they were so kind and helpful! They also let us use their table saw to cut down our fossils to reasonable sizes for travel! Wonderful wonderful wonderful