Flag Ponds Nature Park: Fossil Hunting in Calvert County, Maryland
- Minerals reported
- 2
- Elevation
- 130 ft
- Best months
- Year-round
Flag Ponds Nature Park fronts the same Miocene Calvert Formation as nearby Calvert Cliffs, and its Chesapeake Bay beach gathers fossil shark teeth, ray plates, and shell fragments washed down from the cliffs to the north. The teeth here tend to be smaller and water-worn but are common and easy to find by sifting the surf line. Calvert County lists fossil hunting as a featured activity at the park. Reported finds include shark tooth, fossil. Below: coordinates, access notes, nearby spots, and trip-planning links.
Plan your visit
Generally open to casual rockhounding
- County
- Calvert County
- State
- Maryland
- Nearest road
- Flag Ponds Parkway
- Postcode
- 20657
- Coordinates
- 38.44150, -76.45500
Coordinates are approximate. Confirm the exact ground in the RockHoundR app, where land overlays show which agency manages the area.
Land & collecting status
Generally open to casual rockhounding
Most public-tagged spots sit on BLM, U.S. Forest Service, or other federal land where reasonable hand collecting of common rocks and minerals is allowed. Confirm posted rules and active mining claims before you dig.
Access note: Public county park with a per-vehicle entrance fee, roughly $5 in the off season and higher for non-county visitors in summer. Collecting loose fossils on the beach is allowed and encouraged, and there are no cliffs to climb here. Confirm current fees on the Calvert County parks page before visiting.
Public-land rules vary by agency, season, and field office. The RockHoundR app pulls live BLM, USFS, NPS, and tribal overlays so you can see exactly which agency manages the ground at this spot.
Best time to visit Flag Ponds Nature Park
Comfortable months (45 to 90°F highs)
Conditions here are workable year-round, with typical highs from 45°F in winter to 87°F in summer.
Climate normals: NOAA 1991-2020 monthlies, SOLOMONS station (8 mi away).
Geology at Flag Ponds Nature Park
This spot sits on Chesapeake Group; St. Marys Formation, mapped as clay and sand that formed roughly 23 to 5 million years ago. Reworked sediments like these can carry fossils eroded from older beds upstream, typically as rolled bone fragments, teeth, and shell material.
- Mapped unit
- Chesapeake Group; St. Marys Formation
- Age
- 23–5 Ma (Miocene)
- Rock types
- clay and sand
- Elevation
- 130 ft
Geologic mapping via Macrostrat and the underlying state geological survey maps (CC BY 4.0). Bedrock at the surface can vary within a mapped unit.
Today's weather
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Get the appSources & verification
Spot details combine the public RockHoundR location dataset, normalized mineral labels, agency land-status checks in the app, and community submissions. Coordinates are approximate until verified in the field.
- Maryland Geological Survey
- Maryland DNR state park rules
- Calvert Marine Museum fossil guidance
- Community submissions reviewed against published agency rules
Found at Flag Ponds Nature Park
Each name opens all spots that produce that material; the encyclopedia link opens the full ID and field guide.
Nearby rockhounding spots
Other rockhounding spots within driving distance of Flag Ponds Nature Park.
- Chesapeake BayCalvert County, Maryland · 0 mi awayFossil
- Matoaka Beach CabinsCalvert County, Maryland · 2 mi awayFossil, Shark Tooth
- Calvert Cliffs State ParkCalvert County, Maryland · 3 mi awayFossil, Shark Tooth
- Prince George’s CountyPrince George's County, Maryland · 25 mi awayPetrified Wood
- Douglas PointCharles County, Maryland · 43 mi awayShark Tooth, Fossil
- Purse State ParkCharles County, Maryland · 43 mi awayShark Tooth, Fossil
- Sullivan CoveAnne Arundel County, Maryland · 44 mi awayAmber
- Mallows Bay ParkCharles County, Maryland · 44 mi awayShark Tooth, Fossil, Quartz
Across the state line from Flag Ponds Nature Park
Flag Ponds Nature Park is close enough to the Maryland border that the next-closest rockhounding spots are in a neighboring state. Worth knowing if you are already on the road.
- ArlingtonArlington County, Virginia · 45 mi awayBlue Quartz
- QuanticoStafford County, Virginia · 47 mi awayPetrified Wood, Opalized Wood
- ArlingtonArlington County, Virginia · 47 mi awayJasper
- LaurelSussex County, Delaware · 48 mi awayIron Ore
- Stafford CountyStafford County, Virginia · 52 mi awayVivianite
- MinnievillePrince William County, Virginia · 53 mi awayAmethyst, Quartz
Flag Ponds Nature Park FAQ
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More rockhounding in Maryland
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