The Florissant Fossil beds national monuments require just 3$ per individual to get inside. But can you think of how much activities you can participate in inside the monument. You will definitely find it very interesting to participate in the activities. The activities which you can participate in are both indoor and outdoor. However you will find the outdoor activities to be more popular than the indoor activities. But everything depends upon your choice.

Hiking
There are fourteen miles of hiking trails in the monument. Most of the trails wind through the pine covered hills with the patches of aspen and Douglas fir. Some of the trails pass through the wet meadows or through riparian areas.

I would like to discuss all kind of trails. They are as follows:

1. Self guided trails
There are three kinds of self guided trails that are available year round. Brochures for these tours are available at the visitors’ center. The trails are the Petrified Forest walks, the ponderosa walk and a tour of the grounds of the Hornbek Homestead.

• Petrified Forest walk. This one mile trail passes massive, petrified redwood stumps. This trail begin from the outdoor exhibit area which just behind the visitor center.
• The ponderosa loop trail. This is half mile long through the modern ponderosa pine forest. This is the monument shortest trail and is fully wheel chair accessible. The trail begins at the same outdoor exhibit area which is just behind the visitor center.
• Walk the grounds of the historic 1878 homestead. You can take the brochures from the visitor’s center and it will explain you about the whole trail. The Hornbek homestead is available one mile north of the visitor center entrance road.

2. Guided tours
There are some guided tours also available. Between the Memorial Day and the Labor Day the monument offers a series of ranger guided tours. This depends upon the staffing level and hence you should call in advance to book a place for yourself. The number is (719) 748-3253. I would like to discuss each type of tour.

• The first thing which you will come across will be the interpretive talks. These are 30 minutes of talk which take place in the amphitheater behind visitor center. They will provide the visitor with the basic geology stories of the areas.
• The guided walks are generally one and half miles long. The various geology stories can be covered during the walk.

You will also be interested to note that limited horse riding trips are also available but it is allowed under the boundary of the monument. All these activities are really a treat to watch and there are some indoor activities also like book reading. However rangers are available for your help throughout the time and you will definitely not find yourself lost in the monument. It is my promise that you will always enjoy.

Tags: Guided tours, kind of trails, things to do in florissant fossil beds