The festival, with free admission and parking, will highlight the legacy of “the ancient ocean just under our feet” and the North Carolina state fossil, the Megalodon Shark tooth.

Over 70 vendors will be on site providing a wide variety of food items, fossils, jewelry, rocks and minerals, natural history collectibles, and crafts. Weekend activities include Dinosaur shows, live music, fossil displays, mining equipment displays, Teen Science Café, and STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics) exhibits and hands-on activities. Attendees can also enjoy activities for children, fossil digging, a Silent Auction, a Brew Zone, a Jurassic Classic Bike Ride, and a 5K Fossil Run. The sure-to-sell-out official N.C. Fossil Festival t-shirt featuring newly created artwork will be on sale to benefit the nonprofit Aurora Fossil Museum.

To view the festival schedule of events and activities, please see www.ncfossilfest.com

The Aurora Fossil Museum exhibits and Gift Shop will be open during the festival. Proceeds from the North Carolina Fossil Festival support the nonprofit museum’s mission to provide educational and scientific outreach throughout North Carolina.