Florissant Fossil Beds
The Florissant Valley holds one of the richest fossil troves on Earth. But, no dinosaurs here. Picture instead a still lake ringed by forests. Thirty-four million years ago, volcanoes erupted. Mud and ash poured in and sank leaves and insects to the lake bottom, preserving an entire ecosystem. Fast forward to the 1870s. Homesteaders discover massive petrified tree stumps and uncover thousands of species, fossils in astonishing detail — serrated leaves, veins in insect wings, even compound eyes: proof that central Colorado was once warm and temperate. Scientists and collectors stripped the land. But conservationists fought for decades to preserve the area. Now a national monument, Florissant Fossil Beds safeguards ancient life in stone, and the night sky above, protected as an International Dark Sky Park.
About Colorado Postcards
Colorado Postcards are snapshots of our colorful state in sound. They give brief insights into our people and places, our flora and fauna, and our past and present, from every corner of Colorado. See more postcards.
