Imagine you’re in a time machine and you travel back 150 million years to when dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Wait! You’re not done. Go back even further back 480 million years ago to the Ordovician Period. Things looked A LOT different then. Vermont’s Isle La Motte was part of a coral reef in a tropical environment. Explore this time before humans, by taking a fossil hike at the Goodsell Ridge Fossil Preserve.

Isle La Mott was once submerged under a shallow sea. Under this ancient Iapetus Ocean, the first known specials of coral and other organisms began to build the world's first coral reef.
Lake Champlain Land Trust
Goodsell Ridge Fossil Preserve protects this primitive fossil bed so we can experience this amazing piece of ancient history first hand. Take a walk through time to see the world's oldest reef fossils for yourself.
Facebook/Isle La Motte Preservation Trust
Find the fossils of creatures older than dinosaurs in the rock. While you can't take the fossils home, you can view them up close and take pictures.
Facebook/Isle La Motte Preservation Trust
Explore the reef bed to see early ancestors of the horseshoe crab and squid along with other early marine animals.
Facebook/Isle La Motte Preservation Trust

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The trails at the preserve are easy to navigate and a self-guided tour will help answer all of your questions about this incredible place.
Facebook/Isle La Motte Preservation Trust
Walking, hiking, snow shoeing, and cross-country skiing are encouraged at the 85-acre preserve. But the reef is still a delicate place and motorized vehicles and bicycles are not allowed.
Facebook/Isle La Motte Preservation Trust
Hike the trails from dusk to dawn, exploring the fossil beds and further outlying previous farmland.
Facebook/Isle La Motte Preservation Trust
Submerge yourself in times past with a visit to Chazy Reef, the oldest of its kind in the entire world.
Facebook/Isle La Motte Preservation Trust
Visit the Goodsell Ridge Fossil Preserve at 69 Pine St., Isle La Motte, VT 05463. For more information visit the Champlain Land Trust website.

Have you ever taken this unbelievable fossil hike? While you’re in the area, you should also check out the stunning rail trail that lets you see for miles and miles.

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