Calvert Cliffs State Park

Calvert Cliffs State Park protects roughly 1,460 acres of forest and Chesapeake Bay shoreline near Lusby in Calvert County, Maryland. The park is managed by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and is one of the most visited fossil localities on the East Coast, drawing families, school groups and serious collectors who come for Miocene marine fossils eroded from the famous Calvert Cliffs bluffs.

The geology is straightforward and rewarding. Between roughly 10 and 20 million years ago, during the Miocene Epoch, a warm shallow sea covered this region. Sediments accumulated into the Calvert, Choptank and St. Marys formations, preserving the remains of sharks, rays, whales, dolphins, sea turtles, crocodiles and countless invertebrates. Today those layers form tall clay bluffs along the bay, and wave action plus natural erosion releases fossils onto the beach below.

Fossil collecting is permitted, but only in a specific zone. Visitors hike the 1.8 mile Red Trail through hardwood forest to an open beach where sieves and shovels may be used in beach sand. The cliff base itself is closed to the public because the bluffs are unstable and rockfalls are common. Removing fossils from the cliffs or talus slopes is illegal. What you find on the open beach sand, within park rules, you may keep.

Plan a half day minimum for the hike and beach time.

Bring cash for the gate, water, sun protection, and fossil hunting gear: a sieve or screen, a small shovel or sand scoop, and bags or containers for finds. A kneeling pad helps for hours of screening.

Hike the Red Trail 1.8 miles to the beach. Work the sand at low tide after storms when fresh material washes in. Shark teeth, Chesapecten scallops, Ecphora gastropods and oyster shells are the classic finds.

Timing: year round, sunrise to sunset. Facilities: visitor contact station, playground, picnic shelters, fishing pier, restrooms.

Combine the trip with other Maryland collecting areas on the Western Shore, and call 443-975-4360 to confirm trail conditions after heavy rain.

The Calvert Cliffs have drawn fossil hunters since the nineteenth century, when Victorian naturalists first described the rich Miocene fauna preserved in the bluffs. The cliffs were designated a National Natural Landmark in recognition of their scientific importance. The park itself opened to the public in the 1960s as Maryland expanded its state park system along the Chesapeake. Today it serves both as a recreation area and as an outdoor classroom where visitors can hold a 15 million year old shark tooth in their hand, which is a rare experience on the heavily developed Atlantic coast.

The cliff base closure protects both visitors and the fossil record embedded in unstable bluffs. Stay on the designated open beach and never dig into slopes or talus. Screen sand rather than excavating pits that collapse at high tide. Fill any holes before leaving. Take modest personal amounts and leave the beach clean. Report anyone collecting from closed cliff areas to park staff or Natural Resources Police.