Posts From The Road: Dinosaur National Monument

Quarry Exhibit Hall: The Quarry Exhibit Hall is home to the ‘Wall of Bones’ , which contains hundreds of dinosaur fossils. The quarry began in 1909 when Earl Douglass discovered exposed dinosaur bones in the area. The current visitors center and Quarry Exhibit Hall opened in 2011. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com

Exhibit Hall and Cliff: A view of the excavated cliff revealing dinosaur bones on the interior of the exhibit hall and the exterior where no excavation has been performed. The site became Dinosaur National Monument in 1915. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com

Bones: Dinosaur fossils are seen in the exhibit hall at Dinosaur National Monument. More than 1,500 bones are exposed in the wall, which shows bones as they were discovered embedded in Morrison sandstone. The larger bones seen in this photo are several feet long. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com

By GARY WARREN
Photographer
Formerly of Los Alamos

During a recent visit to western Colorado we visited the Dinosaur National Monument. We have traveled all around the national monument and even spent time around the Green River on the northern boundary of the park during past trips but we had never really visited Dinosaur National Monument.

Dinosaur National Monument is unique in that its boundaries are within two states, Colorado and Utah. The park is more than 210,000 acres and most of the area is wilderness. Not only is it two states, one park but the two sides of the park have completely different features. The dinosaur fossils are featured in the western portion of the monument in Utah. The rugged canyon country featuring the confluence of the Yampa River and Green River lie on the eastern portion of the monument in Colorado.

Dinosaurs roamed this area millions of years ago. According to Dinosaur National Monument kiosks and brochures the park includes one of the richest dinosaur fossil beds in the world. Flood waters collected the bones of 10 species representing hundreds of dinosaurs and left them in a concentrated area of ancient river sediment called Morrison sandstone.

Over the years erosion occurred and in 1909 paleontologist Earl Douglass discovered exposed dinosaur bones and called the area “the best-looking dinosaur prospect I have ever found”. This was the beginning of what is now Dinosaur National Monument.

Dinosaur National Monument was made official in 1915 in the area of the dinosaur quarry in Utah. Originally the monument included only 80 acres near the dinosaur quarry but was expanded to its current size in 1938 to include the canyons and rivers in Colorado.

Today visiting each of the two sections of the dinosaur National Monument is like visiting two different parks and each side of the park has its own visitors center. Each of the visitors center makes it clear that each side of the park is unique.

In the western section of the park, the Quarry Exhibit Hall is the main feature. The hall is a well-lit glass building which has two levels. The top level of the hall allows visitors a great overall view of the excavated cliff known as “The Wall of Bones” while the lower level is more of a museum and allows visitors to get close to the cliff and even touch partially excavated dinosaur bones in one area. Several of the exhibits in the hall are interactive which attracts children visiting the monument.

To get from one side of Dinosaur National Monument to the other requires a drive of about 28 miles. The visitors center on the Colorado side of the park is located just off of Highway 40 just east of Dinosaur, Colo. The star feature of the eastern side of the monument is Harpers Corner Road, a 31 mile scenic drive which ends at Harpers Corner.

Harpers Corner Road takes visitors across a sagebrush covered plateau to the rugged canyon lands. There are several scenic overlooks along the drive which allow visitors views of the canyons and rivers below. 

Both sides of the Dinosaur National Monument offer hiking trails but the Colorado section offers camping in the park as well as river rafting on the Green and Yamps Rivers. Camping is available in the Utah section but only in campgrounds outside of the monument.

The entire park is home to various wildlife and birds. Deer, elk, and antelope are found in the park as well as many smaller animals. Various birds including hawks are also seen in Dinosaur National Monument.

The Dinosaur National Monument is remote and requires that visitors make the park a destination rather than being on the way or close to other attractions. The monument offers a lot of dinosaur educational opportunities for visitors. Dinosaurs are a popular topic with children and there is much to be gained from a visit to the Quarry Exhibit Hall. Outdoor enthusiasts will enjoy the outdoor activities available on the Colorado section of the park. There are plenty of opportunities for all who visit the Dinosaur National Monument.

Editor’s note: Longtime Los Alamos photographer Gary Warren and his wife Marilyn are traveling around the country, and he shares his photographs, which appear in the “Posts from the Road” series published in the Sunday edition of the Los Alamos Daily Post.

Dinosaur: A cast skeleton of an Allosaurus in front of a life-like mural give visitors at Dinosaur National Monument a visual of the size of this dinosaur that once roamed the land that is now the national monument. Visitors can see and even touch dinosaur bones that are 149 million years old at the Quarry Exhibit Hall. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com

Upper Canyon Overlook: On the Colorado section of the Dinosaur National Monument there are no dinosaur fossils but a magnificent display of the rugged canyon lands, which make up the eastern portion of the national monument. Shown is a view from the Upper Canyon Overlook looking across the landscape to the canyons in the distance. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com

Canyon Country: Shown is a view of the rugged canyon country in the Dinosaur National Monument, which was carved by the Green River and Yampa River. The confluence of the two rivers is within the canyons shown in this photo. River sports such as rafting are popular in both rivers of the park. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com

Geological Wonder: The mountains, mesas and canyon lands of the Dinosaur National Monument are a geological wonder. The various landscapes that make up this area of Dinosaur National Monument are a geological wonder that has taken millions of years to form. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com

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