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A visit to the Falls of the Ohio River evokes feelings of an ancient time. Three hundred and seventy-five million years ago it was a tropical sea! These falls are the only natural obstruction on the river between Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and New Orleans, Louisiana. It’s one of those places that make you think in terms of geologic time. You realize how short our time on Earth really is and yet how we all are connected to a past long ago. For Louisvillians, it is the reason we are here. People had to stop and portage around the falls. Many stayed to start businesses and families.
The Falls are really a series of rapids. They are overlooked by the Falls of Ohio River State Park in Indiana. They have exhibits telling the dramatic history of the area. How much of the 220-acre fossil beds are exposed depends on rainfall and time of the year. Call the park (812-280-9970) for current information on hiking options. My most recent visit was in May 2013 and the water was up. I could still hike down to the river and see a wide variety of fossils and animal life. Examples of corals, sponges, brachiopods, mollusks, and echinoderms could be seen. Six hundred species of fossils have been identified. The Black-crowned night heron along with 270 species of birds, and 125 species of fish have been identified. It is the largest outcropping of Devonian fossils in the world. John James Audubon came as a witness to this crossroads of many civilizations to draw birds at the Falls from 1808 to 1810. Your visit promises to bring a new perspective on time and our place near the Falls of the Ohio.
Links:
West Riverside Drive
Clarksville, Indiana
812.280.9970
Other attractions close by:
July 14, 2023
