Dinosaurs and footprints

About 120 million years ago, in the Cretacic period, just after Jurassic, the lands of Rioja, if we consider the thousands of tracks found and counted in the region, were probably something like a paradise of fauna and flora for the dinosaurs and their  different species.  The high basins of  Cidacos and Alhama rivers as well as in the high and medium basin of the Leza river  formed  at the end of Jurassic and during the Cretacic period a wide delta where the Ebro river poured its water to the sea of Thetis, that covered that time a great part of the Iberian peninsula and of the European continent.  This is why we can find today in La Rioja one of the greatest concentration of described  catalogued footprints in the world  (more than 10.000) as well as a great number of  fossil molluscs and shells, small crustaceans, ammonites, insects etc

Site of Vadecevillo (Enciso)
(Access from Enciso along paved road with a wide parking area, at +- 1,5 Km)

In this small valley of Valdecevillo, after more than 20 years' work in summer camps , numerous footprints of Dinos have been discovered  For delight of tourists, models at  natural size of different species have been erected.

Magnificent model of Hypselosaurus (reptilian of high crest) Right  over there, an Iguanodon (teeth of Iguana), very frequent in the area. It was  5 m  high and 5 Tm of weight View of the valley upstream	It could be up to 12 m high and weigh 13 or more tons Downstream view
panoramic view of the valley, with  access paths  and  a balcony,  to observe the different footprints and models	Family of dinos, caring for their young baby
In this picture we can appreciate the enormous  size of the reptile compared with the people	Tracks of a carnivorous dino, people believed in ancient times to be from dragons or 'gigantic birds', with their sharp and deadly claws
	Detail of the footprints, protected now from rain and erosion by a roof  and from  'predatory animals' by a fence

 Site Virgen del Campo (Enciso)
About  100 m away from the hermitage of Virgen del Campo and  300 m from the bridge over Cidacos river, we can find this other site. Access, on foot. In the Paleontologic Museum, whose visit I highly recommend, you can request from  spring to autumn, guided visits to the site. They are of great interest, if we want to understand and to know how to interpret what we can see there.

Here we can see a group with their guide, visiting the site.	For better conservation of the site,  some runways have been constructed so that people can observe the tracks,  their traces and other existing fossils in the place perfectly.
This is a struggle for their lives between a carnivorous and an herbivorous  dino.	Jumble of tracks in multiple directions that experts interpret as the place where the fight could have happened.
details of the body and claws of the carnivorous dino	jaws of the carnivorous dino

Site of los Cayos (Cornago)
Access from Cornago, taking first the road to Igea and then left on a trail of gravel and stones (some 2 Km)
It is one of the best-known and researched sites. We can find there 36 very well conserved  traces of big footprints of carnivorous dinos. There are other sites in the area or minor importance.  In the site we can see not only tracks of Dinosaurs but also of tortoises, birds of smaller size and of pterosaurs  (reptilian with wings)

Landscape around the site Los Cayos	The uncovered stratus in Los Cayos. The great objection to discover the tracks to study them and show to the public is that, after some years, ice and erosion crack the rocks and destroy the original prints for ever.

Conifer fossil trunk (Igea, Virgen del Villar)

We can find everywhere not only tracks of dinosaurs, but numerous rests of fossil animals and plants as well as marks of the swell in the strata. At  4 Km. from Igea to Cornago, on a hill in front of the chapel  Virgen del Villar, we can contemplate this impressive fossil trunk of the Cretacic period (120 million years). It is 11 m long and the original tree could have been about 30 m high.  We can see, it is well protected from rain and from the pick of irresponsible people.

Fotos: Reslitour. August 2004
More about Dinos in La Rioja in internet (only Spanish)

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