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| Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument Weather |
| | |  | 63°F
Feels like
63°F | | P/SUNNY | | Visibility:
| 8
Unlimited Miles |
| Wind:
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From the N at 2 mph |
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| | Extended
Forecast >>> |
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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.
Operating Hours &
Seasons
Daily, 9:00 a.m.
to 5:00 p.m.
Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Years Day
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| Communities
Surrounding Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument | |
| Note: The times listed below are approximate driving times to the park. | Florissant, CO (2 min.
)
Lake George, CO (7 min.
)
Divide, CO (11 min.
)
Woodland Park, CO (18 min.
) Pop. 6,515
Cripple Creek, CO (20 min.
) Pop. 1,115
Green Mountain Falls, CO (25 min.
) Pop. 773
Stratton, CO (28 min.
) Pop. 669
Victor, CO (31 min.
) Pop. 445
Manitou Springs, CO (35 min.
) Pop. 4,980
| Guffey, CO (37 min.
)
Hartsel, CO (38 min.
)
Colorado Springs, CO (43 min.
) Pop. 360,890
Canon City, CO (59 min.
) Pop. 15,431
Monument, CO (1 hr.
2 min.
) Pop. 1,971
Buffalo Creek, CO (1 hr.
3 min.
)
Palmer Lake, CO (1 hr.
6 min.
) Pop. 2,179
Pine, CO (1 hr.
8 min.
)
Larkspur, CO (1 hr.
11 min.
) Pop. 234
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