And a few living things as well.

Started the day without coffee at the hotel so it was a bit of a rough start. However, once fully caffeinated thanks to McDonalds, it was back in the saddle and heading towards Fossil Butte National Monument in southwestern Wyoming.

Shortly after getting onto highway 28 the ground started rising up sharply into the Rockies and the day promised some great riding – twisting roads, views of sharp mountain peaks, greenery. And then at the summit, it all ended abruptly. The ground just essentially leveled out and became brown. I guess the one benefit was that the low sage brush (>10” high) allowed me to spot some antelopes including two young that were having a great time playing. I had pulled over and got so caught up in watching them that I failed to take any photos. An interesting oddity from this stop was that a bicyclist came out of nowhere down a long dirt rode and just kept on going. He also caught me off guard and I failed to get a picture of him either. Funny, short diversion.

After being on the road for a bit again, I decided I should stop and feed the gnats and mosquitos at the Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge. One new species was identified (Sage Thrasher) and it made the abuse from the bugs worth it.

And finally, off to the Fossil Butte National Monument. And holy cow, what an exhibition. I think this is the best of the fossil sites I’ve been to so far on this trip (Florissant Fossil Beds NM, Agate Fossil Beds NM, and Fossil Butte NM). But, to be fair, they have all been fantastic. What makes this fossil site so remarkable is the degree of preservation, the shear abundance, and the diversity. The fossils are dominated by fishes but also include lake marginal species. The lake was unique in that it was stratified with fresh water on the surface and saltwater at depth. This relationship resulted in an extensive algal mat at the lake bottom which in turn greatly increased the odds of preservation. The ancestral lake was so large that only a portion of the lake (and fossil abundance) is covered by the National Monument. The remainder is open to private and commercial fossil hunting and many of the fish fossil on the market come from this area. Below are a few photos of displays in the visitor center. All fossils are originals or casts of the originals. Actually made me say “wow” out loud as I walked in.

And, in the men’s bathroom, a wall of poop.

The monument also has a couple of trails – a nature trail and a trail that overlooks the historic fossil quarry. I opted for the nature trail (1.5 miles and approximately 400 feet of elevation gain) and was rewarded with a wide variety of wildflowers. Some of those are here as well as a couple of butterflies that were kind enough to sit still momentarily.