Yachats 3rd Annual Agate Festival

We look forward to seeing all of you Saturday and Sunday, January 18 - 19 at the Yachats Commons.  K. Myers, author of the pocket guide Agates of the Oregon Coast will be doing identification of rocks found along the Pacific coastline.  Sunday, the Oregon Fossil Guy will join us for Fossil identification.

Back to back Agate events on the Central Oregon Coast

DiTorrice and Myers after Lincoln City event

Yesterday's Lincoln City Visitor and Convention Bureau's  Agate and Fossil trip was moved indoors to the Lincoln City Cultural Center out of concern for the safety for all attending beachcombers.  This was a standing room only event and put on by two long time members of the Oregon Coast Agate Club, Guy DiTorrice known as the Oregon Fossil Guy, and K. Myers, author of Agates of the Oregon Coast a pocket guide.  

If you missed this event DiTorrice (Sunday only for fossil ID) and Myers will also be assisting with identification of local agates during the 3rd annual Agate Festival in Yachats, next Saturday and Sunday, January 18th and 19th from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Yachats Commons. The event is free.

Featured speaker this year is William Orr, emeritus professor of geology at the University of Oregon and director of the Condon collection at the Museum of Natural and Cultural History at the University. Orr will speak at the Commons Saturday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. and his topic will be “How geologists use fossils.”

Fossil Fest, Saturday, February 9, 2013 At the Hatfield Marine Science Center

"Acorn" Barnacle

"This is a barnacle fossil.  Bring it to Fossil Fest if you will. I'd like to look at it. Living goose-neck barnacles have triangular plates that are loosely articulated and they disperse when the animals die. This is what is referred to as a "acorn" barnacle where the little plates are quite thick and well cemented together so they tend to stay in one piece after death. The radially arranged septa like plates inside the body are also typical." Bill Orr, author of Oregon Fossils.

Nick of Florence Oregon was nice enough to share this great fossil with all of us during the Yachats Agate Festival.  It is a very impressive specimen and is in incredible condition.  Thank you again Nick for sharing this with us.

13th annual Fossil Fest, Saturday, February 9, 2013 | at the Hatfield Marine Science Center Visitor Center, South Beach in Newport, OR.   Want to identify that unique beach find? Get an up-close look at some exciting fossils and the scientists who work with them.  Bring in your own fossils or other beach finds for identification by Oregon's preeminent paleontologist, Dr. William Orr and members of the North American Research Group to talk and or identify your finds.  Enjoy activities from 10 am to 4 pm, including a fossil swap and a 1:30 pm talk by Dr. Orr on "The Fossil Record of the Earliest Life on Earth".

Editors note:  Thank you both for sharing this with all of us.

Agate as big as Mick Jagger lips

Stella, of Yachats found this agate while beachcombing at Nye Beach!

Man finds 48-pound agate

Photo Buck Henderson by Larry Coonrod

We have been waiting to see this agate, it is now featured in the Newport News Times. Buck Henderson is pictured with some of the agates he’s collected near Yachats. He found the large rough agate on the right in December. It weighs 48 pounds. The stone on the left is a 15-pound black agate. Both will be on display at the Yachats Agate Festival Jan. 21-22.

Editorial notes: Posted: Friday, Jan 13th, 2012 BY: Larry Coonrod For the complete article see the Newport News Times 01-13-2012 issue.