Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, Colorado
The Monument Florissant Fossil Beds' claim to fame
is its large collection of plant and insect fossils and gigantic petrified redwood stumps.
In addition to the petrified inhabitants, the monument is also home to a wide variety of
wildflowers and a Colorado homestead preserved from the 1870s. The monument is located off
US 24 about 30 miles west of Colorado Springs.
Our Visit We have visited the fossil beds twice, both during July. Each time, we
spent about 2-3 hours there.
Our Weather Both times, it was partly cloudy, a little rainy, and very warm.
The Monument is set in Rocky Mountain meadows and forest (July)
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Overall Impression Florissant Fossil Beds is a nice place to spend a few hours
hiking and exploring. If you plan a big trip from New York just to see the Florissant
Fossil Beds, you'll probably be disappointed. While the monument is set in a beautiful
area of the Rockies, it lacks the breathtaking beauty of a National Park or many other
National Monuments. However, if you're in the Colorado Springs/Denver area and are looking
for a place away from the city to experience some of Colorado's charming forests and
meadows, then the fossil beds are a good place to escape and relax for a few hours. If
you're going to bring kids along, make sure you explain beforehand that "fossil"
doesn't always mean "dinosaur" as there are no dinosaur fossils in the park.
Visiting Plan on 1 hour to 1/2 a day. In one hour, you can see some fossils in
the Visitors Center and take the 1 mile Petrified Forest Trail around a
large meadow and see several petrified redwood stumps. The hike is easy, and the
atmosphere is very relaxed. You may not be awestruck by the fossils or the stumps, but the
area is a fine display of Colorado high-plains meadow with tons of wildflowers for you
flora buffs.
The Hornbek Homestead is located on the north side of the Monument. You can tour the
buildings when a park ranger is present (July)
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If you have additional time, there are some fossil displays and lectures by the park
rangers. On our second visit, the Fossil Lab near the visitors center was open, and the
park ranger let my 6-year-old son pry open a rock to look for fossils (there was a small
leaf). If hiking is your thing, there are several miles of trails in the park, all of
which are easy or moderate and expose you to forest, meadow and wildlife. The Ponderosa
Loop Trail is only 1/2 mile long and makes it easy for anyone to explore the
forest for a while. The Hornbek Homestead is a short drive or hike from
the Visitors Center. It consists of several buildings (including the original home) which
represent the homestead of the Hornbek family who settled the area in the late 1800s. We
went on a Saturday, and the homestead was open with a park ranger answering questions (the
home is not open all the time), and it was worth seeing.
Florissant Fossil Beds was the first time one of my children has participated in a
Junior Ranger Program, and the park rangers did an outstanding job of motivating him to
finish his qualification activities. It definitely kept my son more interested in the park
(though his nose was in a book for much of the hiking), and he is proud of the badge and
patch he earned. We will definitely be seeking more Junior Ranger opportunities at future
parks.
Nearby Towns Florissant, Divide, Cripple Creek, Woodland Park, Colorado Springs
(Colorado)
Other Nearby Attractions Plenty of camping; Cripple Creek, Colorado - an old
mining (now gambling) town and home of the Cripple Creek & Victor narrow gauge
railroad. Dinosaur Resource Center in Woodland Park (if your kids really want to see
dinosaurs and not plant fossils)
Official NPS Website Florissant
Fossil Beds NM
Photos
Click on thumbnails to view larger image
The "Fossil Lab" allows kids to break open their own rocks in search of fossils
(July)
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Several of the larger petrified redwood stumps reside under a pavilion directly behind the
visitors center. This is where the park rangers give programs (July)
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Florissant Fossil Beds NM is on the west side of 14,000 ft Pikes Peak, and it can be seen
from many of the trails. This is from the Petrified Forest Trail (July)
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The centerpiece of the Petrified Forest Trail is "Big Stump" (July)
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The meadows at the fossil beds are full of Colorado wildflowers. This is the meadow
traversed by the Petrified Forest Trail on our first July visit. On the second July visit
several years later, there had been little rain, and there were few flowers
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The Ponderosa Loop Trail, just behind the visitors center, is well maintained and easy to
hike for all ages (July)
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When a park ranger is present, you can tour the inside of the Hornbek Homestead to get a
glimpse of life in the late 1800s in the Rockies (July)
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