Alaska is a hodgepodge of different terranes, crust with different histories and formations that have been pushed together. When I see a map of Alaska I always think of the side profile of a person’s face. The tectonic plates (mostly Pacific and North American) moving under the surface of Alaska are not moving at the same speeds parallel to each other, which means over time, pieces are getting closer faster than others in some places. Here is a link and another link to the pictures below of different terranes that make up Alaska. As some of these terranes used to be sea bottoms, and some were forests, we can find leftovers from another time and geographic location. I remember hunting for the first time with my Dad as a kid and discovering shelled fossils, being confused because I was walking on ground, yet this object belonged in the sea. The famous Denali National Park has discovered a whole ecosystem of fossils from the Cretaceous period, see articles and pictures here where I snagged the picture of animal fossil below. So, a few years ago I remember hearing that there were some close by hikes to go fossil hunting, I did a Google search for “fossil hunting alaska kids” and hit on this thread. My interest piqued. In 2019, I was able to execute visiting two places in the Mat-Su that were accessible to kids (one with more hiking effort), where everyone was able to find plant fossils. Now, it is important when fossil hunting to be mindful of the space and make sure you aren’t damaging the area or on private property. Here is a podcast talking about rocks, minerals, fossil collecting in Alaska.
On the hottest day in the Summer of 2019, my cousin Alan would be visiting Alaska for a whopping 24 hours. We decided to maximize his short trip by taking a motorhome up the Glenn Highway, taking in the views, hiking and his main goal was to see the Matanuska Glacier, which can be found around Mile 100. We stopped at scenic pull outs, bought teriyaki and spicy jerky from a truck stand, and stopped at Mile 105, the location of Victory Bible Camp. My memory of this camp are from 6th grade. Our entire grade fundraised for the whole year to culminate in a three day trip to Victory Bible Camp. It was different, and fun, but my memories are hazy. Victory Bible Camp is also home to Victory Peak, our goal for fossil hunting. When you arrive, please check in at the camp main building, as they want to know who is on the mountain.
The thread I read referring to this hike said it was only 30-45 minutes up to the fossil bed. We had a 7,6,5,4 and almost 2 year old, it took longer, much longer. *Spoiler alert* they all made it out! I carried the baby in a back Ergobaby when she got tired. We ran out of water halfway up. Note to self: refill at beginning when at Victory Bible Camp doing bathroom breaks. There was lots of whining and wanting to stop on the way up, however the four boys we had helped encourage each other and none wanted to be left behind or the last. We wondered how we would know we reached the fossil bed, having never been there. The trail opens up to the fossil bed and the sedimentary rock is very light colored. You can keep hiking up to the peak, but we were there for the fossils. Everyone discovered fossils and we let the kids take a few. Cousin Alan’s goal that day was to see Matanuska Glacier, and we had plenty of views from the highway and from the mountain hike. He was happy.
The second fossil hike we successfully made was later in the summer in 2019. It was the second time we started out. The first time I was with my kids and nephews. We took Jonesville Mine Road, stopped when pavement ended, parked, and started walking on the melting dirt road. We walked less than a mile and the kids shoes started sticking in the mud and we decided to turn around. The second attempt was later in the summer, the meltoff was gone, and we had ATVs and UTVs. We rode to the end of the dirt road and it ended in a cleared area which opened to a lake when you walked further down. Above the lake was a hill with loose rock, and in those rock we found fossils. Again, everyone who came was able to find fossils. This rock was darker sedimentary rock than at Victory. It was a great day! I said hike, but we didn’t really hike. I highly recommend this activity. It is close to the city of Palmer, it isn’t a huge hike up elevation, everyone can be successful, and even if you don’t have an ATV, you hike on foot for a little over a mile on the dirt road. My favorites: Close, enjoyable, successful, memorable.
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