Akal Wood Fossil Park

Rajasthan is rich in history and artifacts, but one location, in particular, takes you past the ‘present timeline' and into the prehistoric Jurassic age. The Akal Wood Fossil Park is a 21-hectare protected area about 17 kilometers west of Jaisalmer, in the direction of Barmer. A jungle once stood where the park now stands 180 million years ago. After that, the region was submerged in the sea, and the tree trunks were preserved as fossils. The park is an absolute must-see destination, with remains of collapsed and fractured logs dating back to prehistoric times. Huge fossilised trunks from various-sized trees have been placed in corrugated iron shelters. There are about 25 numb trees, as well as centuries-old fossils and a fossil of an ancient red-wood tree trunk, right at the door. An whole forest of massive trees was fossilised in a volcanic environment of only non-flowering trees. The appearance of these massive trees means that the region had a hot and humid climate that could sustain a lush forest in the lower Jurassic period, as opposed to today's harsh dry climate.