If you have a sense of adventure and want to experience discovering a truly magnificent fossil in nature, then the Ammonite Fossil Trail, just minutes away from Fernie BC, is a great hike to consider! The hike is no longer an 'official' trail, and it does take some navigating to find the trailhead, but once you get going, you'll hike through forests, take in views of the valley, descend a rope to reach the river bed, scramble over river rocks and finally come face to face with the ammonite itself!
THE AMMONITE FOSSIL HIKE OVERVIEW
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AMMONITE FOSSIL TRAIL HIKE - KEY INFORMATION
Here is the key hike information:
Distance: 4.0km out and back trail
Difficulty: Moderately challenging. We did this trail with our 6 and 8 year old kids and they had no real problems. There are some steep sections but they are fairly short in length. The rope descent could be difficult for anyone younger than 6 years old old.
Elevation Gain: 201m according to All Trails
Time: The trail took us around 2 hours with our kids (plus an extra bit of time as we went the wrong way.....! (explained below)
One thing to note is that this is bear country! We actually saw a bear from across the valley but be sure to bring bear spray with you, hike in groups and make lots of noise!
HOW TO FIND THE TRAILHEAD
As this trail is no longer an official trail, it can be hard to find. Below is a map showing where to park your car, along with our notes to help you find the trailhead, as from there it is fairly straight forward to navigate to the fossil.
Ammonite Fossil Trail Map:
Drive along the logging road to the start of the trail, and park by a washed out bridge (there is plenty of room to park although we only saw one other car when we were there). It's worth noting that the logging road does have some pot holes and a few areas where I would recommend having a 4x4 or truck to navigate, although we did fine in our Ford Escape and Rav4.
You need to cross the creek anywhere near the washed out bridge, and this was easy to do by using rocks as stepping stones, although I wouldn't recommend doing this hike just after a heavy rainfall. Once across the creek you need to get up on to the road that the bridge is connected to (the opposite side of the creek from where you parked) and hike to the left as you look at the bridge from your car.
There are two ways to get up there; the first is to the left of the bridge and requires a quick scramble up the rocks of the river bed side, or the second, a slightly easier way, is to go around to the right of the bridge and find a small path that loops back round on top of the bridge. Once on the road, you want to walk about 100m along until you see an unmarked trail on your right. You'll know you are in the right place if you see some old picnic benches off to you left once you start on the trail.
NAVIGATING THE TRAIL
Once on the trail you will hike up through the forest for a good 30 minutes or so. The trail is a little overgrown but we went in August and it was easy enough to follow the path so you shouldn't have any problems sticking to the trail. There are quite a few fallen trees and branches so it's a good idea for the kids to wear some long trousers to prevent getting scratches on their legs (ours didn't and they complained a bit!). There are also a few parts of the trail that have fallen away so keep your kids close and help them around those sections.
Eventually the path will level out a bit and then you will come to a small creek. DO NOT WALK UP THIS CREEK! I say this as we did and we wasted about 30 minutes doing so! The way to tell that you need to keep going is to see if the path continues across the other side of the creek. Also, if you haven't reached the rope to descend in to the creek then you are not there yet. Keep going and you will eventually hike through some nice meadow areas.
There are also some lovely views of the valley. We saw a bear across the valley so keep your eyes open and bear spray handy (a pair of binoculars would be a great idea too). After the meadows, you will re-enter the trees for a fairly short but steep hike where you will eventually come to the rope to help you descend in to the creek bed.
FINDING THE AMMONITE FOSSIL
The rope itself was fairly easy to do but make sure everyone is comfortable before heading down. For context, it would have been difficult (but doable) for the kids to scramble up there with my help if there wasn't a rope installed.
Once in the creek bed, head left up stream where you will clamber over rocks for around 10-15 minutes. You can see that the river was pretty low so there were no problems with getting wet feet. Eventually the creek takes a sharp turn right, at which point you will clearly see the ammonite in plain view on your right hand side.
The ammonite fossil really is quite amazing! The fossil is a massive 1.4m diameter (the biggest ammonite fossil ever found in Canada) and is probably around 150 million years old. What I find even more amazing is that this former sea creature is sat on the side of a creek bed in the middle of the rocky mountains! What a great way for the kids to learn by seeing this right there in nature!
Remember. This fossil is millions of years old and while there is no way to stop natural erosion, we need to ensure that we minimize our impact. Be respectful to ensure that this amazing piece of nature can be enjoyed for years to come. I'm sure one day Parks Canada will do something to make it a more mainstream attraction, but for now, it remains largely secret (which is a good thing!).
WHAT TO TAKE WITH YOU
Bear spray – This hike is definitely in bear country. We came across some bear scat on the trail (it was quite old) and also spotted a bear across the other side of the valley so bring bear spray with you, keep it handy and know how to use it. Make lots of noise (I'm pretty sure no bears would want anything to do with our noisy kids though!)
Good Hiking boots – This is definitely not a flip flop type of hike! Make sure the whole family has some good hiking boots as you do have to walk over quite a few rocks on the river bed and you definitely don't want to turn an ankle down there.
Phone – Quite a bit of the trail does have signal so it's worth bringing with you from a safety standpoint, plus you'll probably want to take a photo or two.....
Food and Water – Bring lots of water! We recently bought both of our kids Camelbaks so that they can drink on the go and it has been a game changer! There aren't really too many places to eat along the route, but bring plenty of snacks and gummy treats!
Binoculars: There are some great views across the valley, we saw a bear but a pair of binoculars would have been great to see it closer!
First Aid Kit – I always recommend bringing a basic first aid kit in your bag as a precaution.
ENJOY THE AMMONITE FOSSIL TRAIL
The Ammonite Fossil Trail hike is a one of a kind hike, that the kids will really enjoy. I mean, how often can you say you found a fossil bigger than the kids?!
As always, if you have any questions about the hike feel free to ask away in the comments section!
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