It was a bright and beautiful early Sunday morning that Bob decided to take Jane Trilobite hunting.

            Trilobites are one of the first animals with eyes and exoskeletons.  They are marine crustaceans who look like horseshoe crabs.

            The fossil site is located in the Mojave Desert at the base of a mountain range called the Marble Mountains.

             The site is just northeast of the town of Cadiz, which is east of Barstow, and about 170 miles from our house.

            It was in a 60 foot thick Latham Shale formation where the Trilobites were found.  (Just below the dark band in the above image.)

In this picture Bob is splitting shale looking for specimens.

In the 101 degree heat this became a major task in short order.
 
 

        Jane was much more successful examining loose shale on the ground for remains, as most of the specimens we collected came from her keen eye.  (I was doing my job dehydrating up there.)

            A number of specimens were collected, and a wonderful time was had by all.

        Be sure to ask Jane or Bob about the side trip to the Bagdad Cafe in downtown Newberry Springs.    Yes, this is the cafe that was made famous by the movie of the same name.   (A cult classic.)

            Not only did the movie make the Bagdad Cafe famous, but so did Huell Houser, of California's Gold television show.  In a road trip series, he did a show about Newberry Springs, Ca. and had a grand old time at the Bagdad Cafe.  One of the people he talked to at the cafe was "The General".  During his conversation Huell came to find out The General was not only the general of the army, but the general of ALL Armies of the world.  A very interesting interview for Huell.

            Much to our surprise, who did we happen to meet at the Bagdad Cafe?  None other than The General himself.   It was a most interesting lunch as Bob also learned about The General's many accomplishments.
 
 

Collecting Fossils in California
    This is the site that provided me with all the information necessary to locate, discover, and collect the fossils shown on this page.  By the way, this was my first attempt at fossil collecting ever, thus showing the effectiveness of that webpage.

Movie Review: Bagdad Cafe, -Craig Good
    "BAGDAD CAFE is a must-see for devotees of the off-beat. " -Craig Good

Huell Houser, Show on Newberry Springs, #107
     This is where we meet "The General" for the first time.

            We passed, but did not visit the Amboy Crater, that will have to be seen on another trip to the desert.

            Want to join in on the adventure?
                                                                        Smile,
                                                                            Bob & Jane

Additional Trilobite images http://cedu-diver.com/trilob2.htm

Home page  http://cedu-diver.com/CCO2.htm