The history of this place is fascinating so I recommend a quick read about it before you go so you will appreciate how the gorge was discovered and how significant the flood was to the local Iowans. It is rather rocky and rough terrain, so the gorge is not handicap accessible. We also saw lots of poison ivy in the grooves and cracks. You will see small fossilized creatures that are marked. It is a little disappointing that the site's markers and story boards are not better maintained, but the story of this place is fascinating and you can read on line. It is worth the 30 minutes to an hour you will spend there. It is free and dogs are welcome. Highly recommend if you want to walk on an ancient sea bed.

The hike was rocky and uneven but fairly easy to navigate. There are 12 stopping spots with info for each in the pamphlet we picked up at the entrance.The hike from spot 1 to 12 took about 40 minutes several pictures along the hike are attached.After the fossil hike we continued south on the river walk trail, a few more pictures of this part are also attached, including of a large eagle nest.

Very interesting with lots of information on the history of the gorge. Unfortunately, the visitor center was closed when we were there, so didn't have the opportunity to check out everything there. If we are in the area again, we would definitely check that out. But, it was still a good experience to visit the gorge.

What a great stop! The fossil gorge is easy to explore on foot. The printed brochure or audio tour provides geologic history as well as the history of how the site was affected by flooding over the past few decades. There are additional walking trails adjacent to enjoy the area longer. It is a bit hard to find within the Coralville Lake park property so recommend consulting online map rather than relying on the street address listed, which goes to a building nearby.

A nice short hike to see fossils that are 375 million years old!Grab the brochure for the description of each numbered marker.