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Dinosaur National Monument

The Quarry, Harper's Corner, Green River ...

 

Dinosaurs once ruled this land. This is the only place in the world where you can view over 1,500 bones partially exposed in the final resting place and left on display to awe modern day visitors. The main fossil exhibit, including the "wall" of 1500 bones, has reopened in Octobber 2011 after a 5 year long closure for repairs on the building. A new "State of the Art" structure has been built around the "Wall of Bones" that will protect the quarry at Dinosaur National Monument for years to come.

As you explore the craggy hills, discover fragments of a long ago world where the largest land creatures of all time once roamed and died. The Fossil Discovery Trail near the visitor center in Jensen, Utah, allows a walk through layers of time and a chance to find clues that reveal the changing environments of the past. Discovering the dinosaur bone fragments, including a "string" of vertebrae, may be the highlight of this excursion through the layers of time.

 

Josie Bassett Morris

 

Wild and Dangerous, romantic and adventurous, the American West is for most people today and almost mythological world, one separated from ours by time, technology, and civilization. Yet, for Josie Bassett Morris, the Wild West was a stark reality. Josie lived most of her 90 years of life in this austere, yet beautiful, landscape in a time simpler than today, when people depended directly on the bounty of the land for survival and "neighbors" for companionship.

 

Rafting in Dinosaur National Monument

 

The river passage through Split Mountain has been described as , "swift waters at great speed," and "water heaped up in great billows."  Visitors can experience that same type of river adventure on a one to five-day rafting trip through Dinosaur National Monument on the Green and Yampa rivers.

You don't have to take to either of these rivers alone. Dinosaur National Monument and the area around it are well-served by rafting experts. Look at our whitewater guides and outfitters and choose the one that's best for you. Private boating through the monument requires a permit.

Scenic Drives in Dinosaur National Monument

 

The Dinosaur Diamond Utah/Colorado Prehistoric National Scenic Byway is the most famous of the Monument's drives, an epic route through two states and several petroglyph sites. Any drive through this fascinating National Monument is scenic, however.

Near Jensen, Utah, the Tour of the Tilted Rocks scenic drive is an 11-mile (one-way) auto tour route along Cub Creek Road. Highlights include petroglyphs and pictograph panels, a historic homesite, hiking trailheads, and excellent views of geologic features and formations.

Near Dinosaur, Colorado, the Harpers Corner Scenic Drive is a 31-mile (one-way) auto tour route. Highlights include magnificent views into the Green and Yamp river canyons and access to hiking trails.

Hiking in Dinosaur National Monument

 

From the canyon rims to the river banks, visitors can discover various fossils, mysterious petroglyphs, historic homesites, and spectacular scenery along the numerous hiking trails in Dinosaur National Monument.

Dinosaur National Monument
20.0
Intermediate