This is known as Dinosaurland, because there's Dinosaur National Monument outside of town and a big Dinosaur museum in town as well. And James was in heaven. We teased him that he was meeting his ancestors, and he ate it up.
The fossil bone quarry is incredible. A whole section of hillside with dozens of dinosaur bones in one place. Decades ago they removed several skeletons and placed them in museums around the world. Now they leave them in place and have built a two-story viewing area around it.
The ranger told me they think it was a riverbed where bones washed up and settled. Then shifting plates moved it up to where it was discovered in the early 1900s. I could not stop staring.
Close by was a small hike to petroglyphs. Notice James roaring like a T Rex. He did this often during the day.
James and Andrew earned their Junior Ranger badges at the visitors center.
Back in Vernal is a state museum that had outside and inside features.
Ben's finger making an appearance in this picture of me by the ancestor of my favorite animal.
Oh, and the hotel had a pool. And great breakfast.
Every night for several years now, I have read some version of a dinosaur book to the boys - but especially to James. He is obsessed. I've seen every size, shape, name and theory about dinosaurs over the years in the variety of books from the library. And, as I type this, we are watching Jurassic Park. This movie scared me at 14 years old but it only thrills my boys.
2 comments:
Wow, Griffin would be in HEAVEN!!
I wish I could have seen how happy James was!
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