Fossil Collecting Sites at Calvert Cliffs

One of the most frequent questions asked of the Maryland Geological Survey is: "Where can I collect fossils along Calvert Cliffs?" Because almost all of the land along the Calvert County shoreline of Chesapeake Bay is privately owned, public access is severely restricted.

Calvert Cliffs extend south from the area of Chesapeake Beach in northern Calvert County to Drum Point at the southern end of the county. Three geologic formations of Miocene age (approximately 6 to 20 million years old) are exposed in Calvert Cliffs. The layers of sediment are inclined slightly to the south, so that progressively younger beds are exposed from north to south along the cliffs. The oldest is the Calvert Formation on the northern end, progressing to the younger Choptank Formation and finally the youngest St. Marys Formation in the southern part.

The following three locations offer public access and allow fossil collecting, and then only from the beach and any blocks that have fallen from the cliffs. Collecting is not allowed from the cliffs themselves, not only to protect the cliffs but because of the very real hazard of cliff collapse. (Several people have been killed over the years for that very reason.) Collecting is best at low tide and after storms. These locations are listed from north to south.

SITE 1: ~~CHESAPEAKE BEACH: BAYFRONT PARK (also known as Brownies Beach).~~ **Please Note: At the current time, this site is CLOSED to non-residents. Resident verification required and any violators will be fined for trespassing.

SITE 2: MATOAKA COTTAGES. About 6.6 miles south of the town of Prince Frederick and 8 miles north of Calvert Cliffs State Park is the small community of St. Leonard. Watch for the road sign for St. Leonard. St. Leonard is not visible from Routes 2 and 4, but is on Maryland route 765 (the old routes 2 and 4). Enter St. Leonard and get onto Calvert Beach Road for 0.9 mile. Then turn left onto a dirt road and follow the signs to Matoaka Cottages. Although this is private property, the owners allow access to the beach and cliff area for $10/person (kids under 5 free). Day use fee is cash only. Matoaka is usually open for fossil hunters year round (8am - sunset) but contact the site before your visit as this may vary. Pets are not permitted. Visit the website for Matoaka Cottages if you need more information. Here too, digging in the cliffs is not permitted. There is limited capacity: During periods of high visitation, when the beach's capacity is reached, the beach will be closed and traffic will be turned away from the entrance. When that occurs, no additional vehicles / visitors will be allowed to enter, including those with members of their party who may already be at the beach. If you are not traveling in the same vehicle with others in your party, we suggest that you all arrive at the same time. When the beach is closed due to being full to capacity, individuals with cabin / camping reservations will be admitted, as parking is reserved for those purposes. Based on recent experience and visitation trends, and depending on good weather, the beach will likely fill to capacity and close on Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day holiday weekends, and other weekends during the course of the summer.

SITE 3: CALVERT CLIFFS STATE PARK. The entrance to the Park is clearly marked along Maryland routes 2 and 4 about 8 miles south of St. Leonard or 4 miles north of Solomons, which is at the southern tip of Calvert County. There is a hike along a service road of about 1.8 miles from the parking lot to the Chesapeake Bay. A section of Calvert Cliffs lies immediately north of the end of the trail, but cliff collapses forced the Department of Natural Resources to close the beach along the cliffs in the 1980s as a safety measure. As a result, collecting is restricted to a small beach area in the area where the service road ends. Best collecting is usually after a storm, because the supply of shells and other fossils is replenished. Low tide is the best time to look for fossils along the beach because more beach is exposed. The Park is normally open from March to mid-November. We recommend you check that the Park is open by calling Calvert Cliffs State Park (phone 443-975-4360). The mailing address is Calvert Cliffs State Park c/o Merkle Wildlife NRMA, 11704 Fenno Road, Upper Marlboro, MD 20772.

OTHER POINTS OF INTEREST: We also recommend the Calvert Marine Museum at Solomons, and Flag Ponds Nature Park (Calvert County Park with limited hours).

Other resources: the Guide to Fossil Teeth of the Maryland Miocene;
See our publications office for the interactive BULLETIN 20: Miocene Fossils of Maryland on CD-ROM;
More online fossil resources can be found on our Educational Resources page.
Also, look at the Fossil Guy's Calvert Cliffs Fossil Page