Florissant Fossil Beds

So as you all may be aware last weekend the family and I went to Denver to celebrate Emma's birthday. We had an absolute blast and enjoyed the vacation very much. Most of our activities were not what we would typically call hiking, but still were long days on our feet. We went to the Denver Zoo which was supremely exciting as all the babies were out on display and very playful and fun to watch. Saturday we went to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science which was also great fun and exhausting as well. Anyways that's not what this blog is about so shall we get on with it then?

Last Saturday the 13th of November we went to Florissant Fossil Beds National Park near Colorado Springs, Colorado. It was a long drive to get there from Denver about two and a half hours, if your not a local I would suggest having a GPS or printed out directions as until you are on the back roads and nearly to the park there are no directional signs. We got to the parking lot of the visitor center about 4:30 and got out of the car to get all bundled up when a park ranger came out and told us that the park was closing in about half an hour. Most park entrance's do close at some point but the park it self stays open so this took me as a bit odd that the whole park would close at 5 and we wouldn't really be able to get a good hike in. But we had driven for over two hours so we were at least going to see what we could.

 

Right behind the visitors center is a wide sidewalk with the typical park "information stations" those boards that tell you about the local landscape and why it is important. So we followed the winding path till it curved around to another sign and a very interesting artifact. There in a big hole in the ground was a petrified red wood tree. Colorado is a state littered in prehistoric history, a place where the dinosaurs and the hidden treasures buried deep in the Earth are rich and a primary focus of preservation. Even though we only spent about 20 minutes on the sidewalk looking around I could tell that getting off the beaten path and exploring this park further would be a real spectacular treat. Though as it was we didn't get off the path and we only got to see the 5 or so trees right on the visitors center path. 

My advice to anyone visiting this park is to get there earlier in the day to give your self some time to explore and get off the path. Also take a second to read the boards, there are some really interesting facts to be learned, not only in how old the trees are, but how the are made. I learned that redwood trees will sprout from their roots if the main tree dies. That way the ding tree can serve as a support system for the new tree.  Also on some of the trees it is hard to see but one the last one ( in the pic with the kids and I) if you look closely you can still see the grains of the wood.