Akal Wood Fossil Park

Akal Wood Fossil Park, on the Barmer road out of Jaisalmer, protects 180-million-year-old fossilised tree trunks scattered across 21 hectares of desert, evidence that this part of the Thar was once a lush forest. It's recognised as a National Geological Monument, with information boards explaining how the wood turned to stone over time. It's a quick, low-key stop that works well combined with other sights along the same road.

The park houses 25 petrified tree trunks, with about a dozen of fossilised wood logs. It has fossils of over 180 million years and petrophyllum, equisetitis a ptyllophyllum species of the early Jurassic period. The nearby Thaiyat area is a renowned place where the fossils and footprints of Pterosaurs were found. There are also remnants of non-flowering trees such as Redwood, Deodar and Chir. The existing fossils of gastropod shells imply that the region was a sea once upon a time. It is believed that fossils are lying deep within the soil. Hence excavation processes are ongoing. It was declared the National Geological Monument by the Geological Survey of India in the year 1972, who maintained the park till 1985 after which it was handed over to the Forest Department of the Government of Rajasthan.