Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument - Colorado
Photo of Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument courtesy NPS
When the mountains are overthrown and the seas uplifted, the universe at Florissant flings itself against a gnat and preserves it.-- Dr. Arthur C. Peale, Hayden Expedition Geologist, 1873.
A beautiful mountain valley just west of Pikes Peak holds spectacular remnants of the earth's prehistoric life. Huge petrified redwoods and incredibly detailed fossils of ancient insects and plants reveal a very different Colorado of long ago. Almost 35 million years ago, enormous volcanic eruptions buried the then-lush valley and petrified the redwood trees that grew there. A lake formed in the valley and the fine-grained sediments at its bottom became the final resting-place for thousands of insects and plants. These sediments compacted into layers of shale and preserved the delicate details of these organisms as fossils. The Florissant Fossil Beds are world-renowned, and in 1969 were set aside as a part of our National Park System; Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument.Have you visited Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument?
- What is your favorite trail?
Facilities available at Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument:
Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument website
Recreation Area Map
Park Email: FLFO_Information@nps.gov
Phone numbers
Headquarters 719-748-3253
Address
P.O. Box 185
15807 Teller County 1
Florissant, CO 80816-0185
