Hundreds of Preserved Dinosaur Footprints

Did you know there’s a place in Spain where you can literally walk alongside dinosaur footprints? In the small town of Enciso, in the region of La Rioja, scientists have found thousands of fossilized dinosaur tracks that are over 120 million years old! Back in the Early Cretaceous period, this area was full of swamps, rivers, and soft mud—perfect for capturing footprints. When dinosaurs walked through, their tracks were left behind in the mud and eventually turned into stone. Now, these footprints are scattered across the hills for everyone to see!

There are more than 11,000 dinosaur footprints spread across over 130 sites near Enciso. That’s a ton of dino action! Some prints were made by giant plant-eaters like sauropods, while others were left by meat-eating predators like theropods. There are even tracks from dinosaurs called iguanodonts, which could walk on both two and four legs. Some prints are so well-preserved, you can see where the dinosaur’s tail dragged on the ground—or even where their skin left a mark in the mud!

Dinosaur Foot Prints

One of the coolest sites is called Villar-Poyales, where scientists discovered a rare type of footprint from a dinosaur they named Theroplantigrada encisensis. This dino had webbed feet (like a duck!) and may have been good at swimming. Other tracks in the area show dinosaurs actually swimming—you can see where their claws scratched the bottom of a shallow river as they paddled along. Imagine a dino doing the doggy paddle across ancient Spain!

Today, you can hike along these fossil trails yourself. Many of the sites have easy paths, signs that explain what you’re seeing, and even giant sculptures of the dinosaurs that made the prints. It’s like a real-life Jurassic Park—but no need to worry, the dinosaurs aren’t coming back to life! If you’re into science, nature, or just love dinosaurs, Enciso is an awesome place to explore and step into the prehistoric past.