Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument

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A beautiful mountain valley, Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, 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 the National Park System; Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument. To get an up close and personal view with this petrified forest, hike on one of the eight trails that are provided.