DianaT
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Dinosaur National Monument
It seemed appropriate to visit Dinosaur National Monument this year as it is the 100th anniversary of when President Wilson protected the first 80
acres six years after Earl Douglass, a Carnegie Museum paleontologist discovered dinosaur fossils while looking for mammal fossils. Ironically while
his find became a MAJOR dinosaur find, his interest remained with the mammals. In 1938 President Roosevelt added close to 200,000 acres to this
monument that now not only includes the great fossils, but magnificent landscapes and canyons created by the Yampa and Green Rivers; part in Utah and
part in Colorado. We as usual, need to go back and see MORE. There is always that thing called time restrictions.
The Dinosaur Quarry Exhibit is on the Utah side. A part of the major fossil hill is now inside a large glass building where you can even touch some
of the fossils still embedded i the hill.
The fossils include dinosaurs, mammals, exhibits of sea life, insects and croprolite. Unless one believes that humans had dinosaurs as pets beginning
about 6000 years ago, this one area is millions of years of history. It is difficult to photograph as there is such little contrast
On the main drive in that area the landscape is simply beautiful and difficult to capture, but we tried. :-)
And there are great petroglyphs in that area ---
This one convinces me that there were visitors from another world 
And some I found quite different, but then again, I know little about all of this.
And some that look like so many others we have seen.
And some that looked like jewelry.
And then there was the beautiful and serene old homestead from Josie Barrett beginning in about 1914 when she was about 40 years old and where she
lived with no modern amenities for almost 50 years until at the age of 89 she broke a hip and died less than a year later What a woman. She was
widowed by one husband and divorced four other husbands --- the last one shortly after establishing the homestead on Cub Creek. As a young person
with her family, she met Butch Cassidy and friends. While living alone she was accused of cattle rustling and moonshining. And lots more --- I
like this woman.
Her home
Her water source
An old piece of her equipment
Such a serene setting. The silence was only interrupted by the sound of running water and the many birds.
And this little guy seemed undisturbed by our presence, but he had better get smart quickly or he is going to be someone's lunch soon!
There are a number of other places to explore by rougher dirt roads, but we were facing some bad weather and some time restraints.
But we did visit and camp in the north east corner of the Park in Colorado --- the lesser visited Gates of Lodore. There was only one other camper
there --- we loved the solitude.
From the campground there is a less than a mile hike up the mountain to the view of the Gates of Lodore on the Green River.
And the view looking back
So much more to explore there.
And just some misc. pictures of our trip taken with my phone.
Careful who is crossing the road
Walking around Steamboat Springs --- woke up the next morning to snow covering the ground!
And when we travel, we love to stop at local eateries in small towns --- a good way to meet and learn about the locals. So here are phone shots of
some of those places.
Thank you for looking and sharing our experience.
[Edited on 4-30-2015 by DianaT]
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Cliffy
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Nice trip
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Skipjack Joe
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Thanks for the pics and the description of this place. I didn't realize that they had left non excavated dinosaurs for people to look at. That's
pretty cool.
Your petroglyph pictures are super.
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bajabuddha
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Diana, thank you for a trip back in time, again........ may I strongly suggest anyone who's up for it visit the park BY RIVER. Either the Yampa or
the Green are spectacular; my all-time favorite stretch of living river of any I've ever boated is The Gates Of Lodore, the Green River segment of
Dino. Best times are mid-May through September, and bring an extra layer of clothes and rain gear in the summer, and an extra brace of batteries for
your camera (used to be film). The take-out for both stretches, Yampa and Lodore is where the dinosaur quarry is. That part is only
one-one-thousandth of the entire park; car touring, hiking, biking, geology, archaeology, and ........ RIVER !!!! Upper Disaster Falls, Lower
Disaster Falls, Hell's Half Mile, all on the Green... and Warm Springs Rapid on the Yampa that was created by a flash flood back in the '60's that my
old boss was on the river the week it flooded........ went from a little riffle to a class 4+ to 5 overnight. His wife was waiting at the take-out
with word coming down from boaters that a new rapid formed and a guide was killed..... she had to wait for an extra day to find out it wasn't him...
YEE-HAWWW....
Earth happens! Love it and live it. Again, great pics, my heart's thumpin'.
bb
I don't have a BUCKET LIST, but I do have a F***- IT LIST a mile long!
86 - 45*
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DianaT
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Yes Cliffy, it was a good trip.
Igor, it is fun to be able to see the fossils and bones still in the mountain. I have one picture of my beloved old fossil reaching out and touching
another fossil. 
bajabuddha --- wow, what a story. We think we would love to float on the Green thorough those gates --- in calm weather, however. It is BEAUTIFUL.
And yes, so much to explore in many ways- need to spend more time.
There was one campground we really wanted to stay at on the Utah side but they say the road is impassable even with the 4WD in wet weather, so next
time.
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Udo
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We took our son there for his 7th birthday...he was heavily into dinosaurs.
An unforgettable experience...thanks for the memory!
Udo
Youth is wasted on the young!
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bajabuddha
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An extra note on the campgrounds: the Gates of Lodore CG is a ZOO during boating season; 3 to 4 trip loads coming in at all hours of the night, and
not all of them quietly; high nerves, and high boaters, and mornings are early and noisy, especially near the launch ramp.
On the Yampa put-in CG it's called Deer Lodge Park CG. Lots of mosquitoes until the high water crests and drops, then they're 100x WORSE. Take lots
of OFF. Back country camps, especially on the Yampa bench are great, check at Park headquarters.
The pic you have looking down into the Gates with those huge red walls, on the right wall a mile downstream is a huge circular cut, and it's right
above Wade and Curtis Camp, the first of many fabulous river camps for boaters in Lodore. It truly is the most magical place I've ever been...
bighorn, deer, tremendous brown trout fishing, ringtail cats, ahhhhh....... do it. Just do it.
Also, the Vernal airport offers airplane tours of the Park; I've shuttled a few times using their pilots to fly up to Browns Park. Check prices for a
plane-load; I promise you won't regret it.
I don't have a BUCKET LIST, but I do have a F***- IT LIST a mile long!
86 - 45*
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Pompano
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What a great trip to a place frozen in time, Diane. My first visit there was with my parents on a camping trip and I've retained lots of great
memories. (So you know it was quite some time ago...)
Your trips with John and your photos are always well done..kudos to you both.
I do what the voices in my tackle box tell me.
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rts551
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Nice trip report Diana. No commentary, just lots of nice pictures. Brought back some nice memories of my childhood.
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StuckSucks
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Über cool part of the world - thanks for sharing the excellent photos! We've camped and rode mountain bikes in nearby Rabbit Valley.
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DianaT
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Thanks for the nice comments --- and it always makes me smile if one of our trips brings back good memories for some. That is a good thing.
If possible, we hope our next trip will be back to Alaska or a trip across Highway 2. Still deciding. :-)
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