My Courteney Adventures:
90 million year old fossil discovery - by James Solomons

In the field to the city, my Courteney boots have proven versatility in any environment. I bought my first pair on my 16th birthday and have wore them ever since. They even survived 5 years through college. 

Summer 2006, I was hiking in a dry creek bed looking for artifacts and fossils when I found what many paleontologists call “a find of a lifetime”. I first noticed a spine like coil encased in clay lying in the dry creek bottom. I dug up a section and marked the spot because I had a 3 mile hike back to my vehicle before sunset. Later, I examined the fossil and realized I had found ribs and part of a vertebra. The following morning I returned to the spot and the first section of rock I flipped over revealed a row of nettle sharp teeth. Realizing I had found the skull, I carefully dug up the rest of the specimen and wrapped it up and carried it back to the University of Alabama where I was currently a student.

I put it in a closet then forgot about it and actually used the biggest piece as a door stop. This door stop turned out to be a complete skull of a 90 million year old unknown species of fish from the cretaceous era. The gill plates on the skull are completely preserved.

A paleontologist from the University visited the spot the following day and said this find was “one in a million” and that he had been waiting a lifetime for a find like this. He pieced the fish together and just before he began to clean it, he died from a long battle with cancer. His wife called me and said his final days were spent excited and talking about the fossil I found. The University Of Alabama Museum Of Natural History called shortly after and asked if they could display it, to which I agreed.  It's now displayed there at the Tuscaloosa campus. 

For the last two years and after many attempts no paleontologists have been able to identify this fish. It is said that it could be a link between the salmon and tarpon but the fossil needs to be cleaned so it can be further studied. The name “Ichthyodectes” is what the fossil was first thought to be, but that was later proven to just be a guess.  Currently, this fish is listed as an undescribed species.  Meanwhile many museums have contacted me about donating it but I want to know what it is before doing something like that. 

Discovering a 90 million year old new fish species is one of the many adventures my Courteney boots has carried me on. There is no other boot tough enough for an adventure.

73 million year old petrified crab (Dakoticancrdaego) - by James Solomons

While fossil hunting in central Alabama, I found one of the few and best petrified crabs known dating to 73 million years ago.  The area which this specimen was found is one of only two places in the world where it can be found.  This is the largest and contains the best features known today.  Numerous museums have been in contact, and I soon plan to loan my find.

My Courteney boots have been on so many adventures I always tell my friends - one day I'll display them like a trophy, that’s if they ever wear out.

More Adventures