The Montour Preserve Fossil Pit

 

The Montour Preserve Fossil Pit

 160 Sportsmans Rd, Danville, PA 17821

Montour Preserve is a large park with a variety of trails, a lake for kayaking, a small museum, and, a fossil pit.

The fossil pit consists of approximately one acre of exposed Mahantango Formation shale.  Formed some 395 million years ago during the Devonian Period when much of Pennsylvania was covered by a warm, shallow sea, these shales are particularly rich in fossils.  

The most commonly found fossils at this site are Pelecypods (oyster, mussel and clam-type species), Cephalopods, Brachiopods (lamp shells), Byrozoans (moss-like animals), Crinoids, Gastropods (snail-like creatures), Corals and Trilobites. 

 There is a parking area right at the fossil pit, and public restrooms in the parking areas closer to the lake.

From the parking lot to the actual fossil pit is a very short walk.  

The fossil pit is open from dawn to dark year-round.  Admission is free and visitors may keep any fossils they find. 

I've been visiting the fossil pit for decades - most often on school field trips.  Until this trip, April 2025, I had never really found much.  On this trip, with my 5 year old grandson, we found quite a few small fossils, and a few larger ones.

Some of our larger finds

Take a hammer, and possibly a small brush.

Things To Know:

- Cell phone service can be spotty here

- There are no restaurants or stores in the immediate area.

- Turbotville and Danville are the nearest towns, Danville has a lot more options for restaurants, but Turbotville is a little closer and does have a gas station & two restaurants.

- No Dogs are allowed at Montour Preserve.

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