Dinosaur National Monument Adventure

So Saturday we got up bright and early and decided to take a little jaunt down the mountain to Dinosaur National Monument. Carl and Brenda have lived there for quite some time, and although they had been to the quarry, they'd never explored the whole park. So it was a new adiventure for everyone!

They have this really cool thing where each of the kids can get a with activities in it. They complete a certain number of activities that help them learn about the history encompassed in the park, and then they get a little badge that says "Junior Ranger". Paul helped Alyssa and she was finished first. The ranger was so funny. He had her raise her hand and promise to learn and to have fun in the park. Super cute.

Alyssa takes her oath

Paul help Alyssa pin on her badge.

 Next stop? The quarry!

Now this is kind of cool. They discovered these magnificent fossils in the early 1900's, and were able to extract 350 tons, still leaving some in the rock wall. They covered the wall in a building made of glass and steel to preserve the relics from the elements, and more recently added some interactive, state of the art exhibits to allow visitors to learn even more. 

There's an upper and lower viewing area (of the same wall). This is the lower part.

And the upper.

And there's a part of the wall where you can touch the bones. I have no idea what is with that face.

Next along the journey were a few stops to see petroglyphs and pictographs captured in the rock walls of the area. These date back thousands of years. It was fun to guess what the story they were trying to tell was. We also laughed wondering if it was just some caveman's kid writing on the walls because they were bored. How exactly do you clean up a carving? 

We stopped for a quick lunch along the Green River. Right here, where the water split right through the mountain. The kids all went down to the river... and Ashlyn came running back telling me they had found a "baby lobster". I assume that was a crawdad.

We actually found this last stop uber fascinating. 

It was the ranch of a woman, Josie Bassett Morris,  who decided she had had enough of modern society and moved out by herself into the middle of nowhere. She'd been married, a lot. Her kids were grown. She got a divorce, and moved to this land in the middle of nowhere.No electricity. Hand built cabin. And stayed there until she died.

I get that. It was very peaceful. Maybe not the whole no electricity thing. Or indoor plumbing. But otherwise...yeah.

Here is a link to the whole story.