agate fossil beds national monument

Beautiful panoramics of the plains, a beautiful walk through the swizzing grasses of the plains, giant ancient beaver burrow amongst other fossils and some amazing Native American artwork! Well worth a visit and longer stay than we gave the site...

This out of the way national monument is a great spot for historians and paleo fans. Very nice visitor's center with fun local information.

I was in Lusk, WY heading home to Rapid City, SD and overheard someone recommending this attraction. So I took out my map and found it was very close. Plus it usually is a safe bet being a National monument. I arrived with no info about what I'd find, except for the name. I walked in watched the film, and learned a great deal about creatures I'd never heard about. More recent than dinosaurs, but extinct. Within the visitor center is the Cook Collection of Native American artifacts. It turns out the man who owned this land was friends with Red Cloud and his family and friends and they would camp here. They would get permission to leave Pine Ridge and go up here. They trusted Cook and wanted their culture preserved, so they gave him many, many gifts, which are exhibited here today. On reflection, these objects are fossils of a free culture which once lived in North America. I was touched to see Red Clouds Shirt and pipe bag. I also walked one of the trails, about a mile long.

Make sure to stop by the Visitor Center. Very informative!! While out on the trails beware of snakes. Beautiful and peaceful here. Summers are hot so make sure to carry water.

On the vast grass covered plains, 22 miles south of Harrison, Ne and 34 miles north of Mitchell on highway 29 lies Agate Fossil Beds National Park. It's remote so you are going to want to fuel up, also I could not get cellphone service. It's a National Park so use what ever passes you posses. Miocene fossils from 25-13 million years ago abound here and are featured in museums around the world. The most famous fossils are of Palaeocaster (land beaver) which left it's tunnels and bones here. Mionippus (minute ancestor of the horse),Meoceras (small rhinoceros that roamed the savanna in large herds), Amphreyon (an eight foot bear like dog), Stenomylus (a small gazelle-like camel) and Daeodon ( a giant pig-like ungulate can all be seen at Agate as life size exhibits. In addition to the fossil collections there a trails which take you to the fossilized tunnels, quarry where the fossils were excavated and Carnegie and University hills were the first fossils were found. There is a sign which states beware of rattlesnakes. The trails are well worn and the sighting of rattlesnakes is rare. The Visitor's Center has 500 plus artifacts from the Captain James Cook collection of artifacts from Plains Indians. The shirt worn by Red Cloud is of notable importance but other artifacts are equally interesting like moccasins, pipes and weapons. I'm glad I made this a stop on my tour.

We got here at closing so we didn't get a chance to go through the visitor's center. The temperature was in the 90s and so we opted to walk the shorter Daemonelix Trail. At the beginning of the trail we picked up a brochure and off we went. The really interesting part of this trail is the preserved burrows of the land beaver, Paleocastor. The land beavers were about the size of today's prairie dogs and they created corkscrew burrows. Several of these can be seen along the trail. The drive out to the park is kind of long without much to see, except thousands of tumbleweeds everywhere, but is worth it if you are interested in prehistoric animals.

We happened to be in the area while returning from the Harrison WY area to Colorado and decided to stop in at Agate Fossil Beds. This was an unexpected pleasure as the visitor's center is beautiful with many displays and educational attractions.We only wish we had several hours to thoroughly tour the displays and to do the outdoor walk on the main fossil bed trail. Before leaving we walked the Daemonelix Trail, near the park entrance. Photographed the fossilized, 22 million year-old Paleocastor (beaver) burrows. This place is well worth a stop.

We didn't have a lot of time traveling between Scottsbluff and Badlands National Park, but made sure to make the stop at Agate Fossil Beds. Stopping in at the visitors center, the ranger gave us a short introduction before playing the video - it helped a lot to understand the monument. The visitor's center was very nice and had a number of displays.I wish we would have had time to hike to University and Carnegie Hills trail as that is where the fossils were discovered. Instead, we did the mile long Daemonelix trail which was interesting and had a few good examples of the fossil digging. We were there for about 1.5 hours - but wish we would have had another 1.5 for the second trail.There is no shade on either of the trails. There are bathroom facilities at the visitors center.

Off the beaten path,this is worth a visit.Very interesting story of how the wealth of fossils were discovered here and developed.Also enjoyed the story of the original owner of the property's relationship and friendship with the indigenous peoples. A rare white man who treated the natives with respect and mutual admiration.Nice hiking trails-just watch out for rattlers.

This is a place we had not planned on visiting, because we had not heard of it. Another case of too much to do and not enough time. If you like dinosaurs or hiking, this is a great place, and I would have rated it Excellent if we had had time to do anything other than watch the movie at the Visitor Center. Visiting a place like this makes you realize how full of unknown treasures our country is, and if we pass this way again, I will be sure to allow enough time to do the hikes.

Spent 3 hours here and dearly wished that we had more time budgeted. Very nice visitor center with a whole room dedicated to native American exhibits. The animals that were preserved here are fascinating. The corkscrew dens were a kid favorite. It is a beautiful valley and the trails attractive. Coming from the NE, the plains are a dramatic change and it was fun to get out and listen to the rustle of the seemingly endless grass.

Nice drive there kids loved the fact they all became Jr rangers a lot of interesting things to see I do wish there was more tho

The Nebraska panhandle may be remembered historically for the pioneers passing through on the Oregon, California and Mormon Trails. But, the biggest distinction of the panhandle may actually travel back several years, up to 20 million, to be specific.Agate Falls Fossils Bed National Monument near Harrison is home to one of the biggest fossil finds in history. Nebraska didn’t have dinosaurs, but the state is home to many mammal fossils.The mammal fossils at Agate tell the story of a “Serengeti”-type region – large watering hole area, home to several different creatures. Scientists believe the water source dried up, which led to vegetation dying. The animals, of course, followed.The first fossils were found by paleontologists in the 1890s. Two sets of teams dug at the conical hills – Carnegie and University.The digs unearthed the remains of these prehistoric mammals at what was dubbed “The Great Bonebed of Agate”:Moropus. It was likely an ancestor to the modern horse. The feet made scientists think it was a ground sloth originally, according to the park’s website (http://www.nps.gov/agfo/index.htm). However, once they found the horselike skull, they later determined it had slim neck, long front legs sloping back, short hind legs and a little switch tail. The creature stood 7-8 feet tall. With three claws on its feet, it posed a threat to others. Its diet consisted of shrubs, brush and low-lying branches primarily.Menoceras. It was a smaller version of a modern rhinoceros. Can you believe we had rhinos in Nebraska? The early rhino grew to about three feet and had two horns that grew side-by-side at the end of the nose.Stenomlyus. Likened to today’s antelope, this creature was referred to as an early camel. It was a small animal, growing to only about two feet tall. It seemed like the herd suffered a punishing death during the drought. Several fossils had the animals’ heads pulled far back in an unnatural position, likely due to the tightening of a back neck muscle.Paleocastor. The early beaver was about the size of a modern prairie dog. They dug deep holes in a spiral motion to about 6-8 feet below ground. They have some fossilized holes on the park grounds.Dinhyus. Called a “terrible pig,” this animal is considered a cross between the American bison and pig, with “a whole lot of mean thrown in.” Imagine coming across this creature on a trail, standing at about 6 feet at the shoulder with a three-foot long. No thanks. It was an omnivore. Daphaenodon. This animal is referred to a “bear dog.” They had a heavy head and strong jaws. They could dismember the remains of animals. Apparently, it is uncommon to find fossils of carnivores, so it was an even better find for so many to be located together. The bear dogs were discovered in 1905. Then, in 1981, their den was found in a nearby hill.The park has two trails – one to the dig sites and a second to the beaver burrows.We walked the main trail to the Carnegie and University hills. The walk is about 2.5 miles, involving some uphill walking. It’s an easy walk for most people.Prior to leaving the visitors’ center, we saw a warning about rattle snakes in the area. I asked the park ranger how abundant they were on the trail. She said there hadn’t been any reports of them for a few weeks, so we figured it was OK to walk.The trail was a nice walk. We crossed the Niobrara River, which is more like a small creek or stream at the park. It encompasses the wetlands section.The hills themselves are no longer used for excavation. It was interesting to see them, though. Standing in front of both the hills, it’s weird to imagine that these creatures roamed the land. The land didn’t look the same. Wowza!After spending several minutes at the excavation sites, we headed back down to the car. We made great time downhill until…we encountered a skunk family near the bridge over the Niobrara. Mind you, this was the only safe route on the trail. We stood waiting for the mother skunk and her four babies to go back into the high grass. She must have seen us, as she started moving our way. We backed up slowly and she eventually went back to her kids.They stayed on the sidewalk for about 10 minutes. They made their way into the high grass. We watched for about a minute and started walking again. Out they come. Man, we cannot catch a break! We stopped. Backed up again. After a couple more minutes, they went back into the grass. We waited a little longer. No more skunks. We quickly – and I mean quickly – moved down the trail and crossed the bridge. As we walked across, I saw mom’s tail against some grass. Phew!As we walked to the car, we discussed the situation. “There was no one to call, since the center is closed,” my wife said.“Nope,” I replied. “Plus, there is no cell service out here.”Alas, we survived our ordeal. And here, I thought I had to be worried about rattlers.In addition to the great walking trail and dig sites, Agate Falls park offers a look at the collection of Native American artifacts and history that once belonged to rancher Thomas Cook. Cook was the original owner of the park area, known as Agate Springs Ranch.Cook befriended Native Americans, including a long-term friendship with Red Cloud. The items on display were gifts from red Cloud and other Native Americans.The collection is worthy of a museum by itself. The collection is in a temperature-controlled area.Clothing, jewelry and weapons highlight the collection.I recommend visiting Agate Falls Fossil Beds National Monument. It has to be a destination trip, or at least be in the Scottsbluff or Fort Robinson areas. It’s located on Highway 29, between Mitchell and Harrison. It is a beautiful drive. Be prepared for the lack of cell phone service on the road, as well as seeing only a few people on the road. You’ll encounter more cattle than people.Check out the national monument, which has free admission, and you will enjoy a great history lesson.

Great hiking, with an excellent presentation of paleontology. The American Indian artifact display (given to the original ranch owner) is stunning. It would be housed in a big city Eastern museum, except the original ranch owner specified that it had to stay on the monument.

This is the western version of east Nebraska's Ashfall. Similar time frame (10-20 million years ago) and while it has some of the same animals, it has some monsterous mammals such as the omnivore Entelodont which would cause a grizzly to flee in fear. There are other curious animals and the spiral housing which puzzled scientists for many years and it is worth the trip, especially if you are going through Scottsbluff. We had been at Carhenge and took back roads to cut across and shorten up the trip. Great way to get kids interested in science.