Near Toledo On The Ohio Border Is A Former Rock Quarry That's Now A Family-Friendly Park Filled With Fossils

Bring a bucket and some treasure-hunting spirit to Ohio's Fossil Park, where you can pick fossils out of the ground yourself. Located in the city of Sylvania, Fossil Park holds traces of a lost world right beneath your feet. The park is world-renowned for its Devonian Era specimens, including clam-like brachiopods, coral, crinoids, and other invertebrates that lived 375 million years ago, when Ohio was entirely underwater. It makes for a unique and educational weekend activity, where you temporarily step into the role of an amateur palaeontologist.

Fossil Park's history begins not with palaeontology, but with quarrying. The first limestone quarry was established here in the 1850s, and it wasn't until the 1990s that fossil enthusiasts and scientists gained interest in the property, according to Mindat.org. The quarry's owner, in partnership with the city of Sylvania and the local park system, turned part of the site into a fossil-hunting park, which opened in 2001. Today, Fossil Park preserves the remains of ancient lifeforms that once inhabited the shallow sea that covered what is now Ohio. The park's best feature is the accessible fossil beds — instead of simply viewing fossils from behind glass, you get to dig for them yourself and take them home.

Fossil Park has about 5 acres to explore and it's free to visit. It's worth noting that visitors aren't allowed to bring digging tools like hammers, chisels, and shovels. The shale rock bed that the fossils are embedded in is soft enough to break apart with your hands. This also makes it a good destination to take young ones, since kids can participate without any special equipment or expertise. You likely won't have to hunt all day to find a keepsake, as many past visitors have noted that the fossils are fairly easy to spot. "In 20 minutes my family found at least 20 new interesting treasures to take home and learn about," one visitor wrote on Google. There are also some informative panels at the park to learn about your finds.

Fossil Park is a mere 5-minute drive from downtown Sylvania, a Toledo suburb with family-friendly vibes, and less than a mile south of the Michigan border. A short path leads from the large parking area to the quarry. Fossil hunting is permitted from mid-April to the end of October, but you can visit at any time of year to access the Quarry Ridge Bike Trail. The trail is 5 miles in total and connects several parks along the way. Devoted cyclists can also check out the nearly 100-mile North Coast Inland Trail in northern Ohio. From central Toledo, it's around a 20-minute drive to Fossil Park — if you're visiting Toledo for a while, you can visit some of Ohio's best beaches for swimming within reach of the city.