I have found a lot of shells embedded in a sandstone type material while working up in the hills around Depoe Bay and Lincoln Beach in Lincoln County. This is by far the coolest one so far, I think. Would this be considered a fossil? The sandstone is fairly hard but definitely not as hard as rock. The shells are pretty fragile. Is there a way to get an approximate age on something like this?
What lovely finds! Fossiliferous Sandstone is a rock type filled with marine fossils. The Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries website has an interactive geology map. Marli Miller's "Roadside Geology of Oregon" talks specifically about the area along Hwy101 between Newport and Lincoln City.
The marine fossils are probably of Miocene age (23 Million years to 5 million years). The "rock" comparison may be referring to the Wanapum Basalt promontories capping the edge of the coastline. Basalt is very hard compared to sandstone. Good observation.
"Geology of Oregon" by Bill and Elizabeth Orr is another good resource. You should be able to find them both in your local library. Additional questions for specific fossil identification could be answered by the geologists on staff at both Oregon State University and the University of Oregon. Thank you for sharing your finds!
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