The Curious Traveler's Guide to the Four Corners
Dinosaur
National Monument: from Jensen UT, take
Hwy. 149 N to the monument, 40 2617N, 109 1825 W (coordinates for Quarry
Visitor Center), 5000 feet elevation at the visitor center, 435-781-7700,
www.nps.gov/dino/index.htm,
facebook page updated regularly, park is open 24 hours daily but visitor
centers and quarry have limited hours (see below), $10 private vehicle, $5
individual, $20 annual pass,
Description:
This is an incredible National Monument because of its
isolation, beauty, geology and history. But, it's not for those who expect
luxury and lots of services. It's rugged, largely undeveloped but incredibly
awe inspiring. It spans 210,000 acres, contains 2 rivers and sits at the edge
of one of the largest mountain ranges in the United States. If you get a chance to go, try to schedule
two to three days so that you can appreciate the diversity the park has to
offer.
Getting Oriented:
·
Dinosaur is a pretty isolated park. It's always
a good idea in this area to bring water and to have the tank filled with gas.
Gravel or dirt roads are usually impassable when wet. If weather is iffy, call
for road conditions, 435-781-7700
·
From Vernal, the monument is directly east
on 3500 South and from Jensen directly
North on Hwy. 14. Both roads converge on Hwy. 149 which takes visitors to the
Quarry Visitor Center. Other access routes in Utah are on dirt or gravel roads.
From the Quarry Visitor Center, visitors must check in the rangers and then
continue, on the shuttle in the main season, to the Quarry Exhibit Wall. See
map
,
http://aMAP.to/fhncwsp
·
Once in the park, hwy. 146 splits about 10 miles
in with the north fork going to Split Mountain and the South fork going to
Green River and several miles further on a dirt road to Josie Morris Cabin and
petroglyphs. You can access the north side of the park from two separate
routes. From Hwy. 146, take 3500 South for 4.8 miles to a paved turn off. This
will take you to Rainbow Park and Island Park.
From the paved turn off at 3500 South, you can also get to Jones Hole.
Travel 4.1m on the paved road and at a fork that goes east to Rainbow park on a
dirt road or north on a paved road, follow the paved road to a water tank and
then head west on Jones Hole Rd.
·
The monument bridges the border of Colorado and
Utah. Much of the dinosaur interpretation can be found on the Utah side of the
border where the Dinosaur Quarry and Visitor Center reside.
·
comments: a shuttle runs from the visitor center
to the Quarry Exhibit between May and Sept. See info below.
·
reviews
Media connection: The Intermountain Natural History Association has a large
selection of reading materials about the area. You can always order these
before you go to brush up on your information and it's a great way to get kids
involved. Check out their web shopping at http://www.inhaweb.com/index.html
Practicalities: Some Facts about the monument: Dinosaur National
Monument was declared by Woodrow Wilson as a National Monument in 1915, it is
one of the older monuments in the system
·
grocery
·
No grocery in the park
·
laundry
·
No laundry in the park
·
restrooms
·
available
at the Quarry Visitor Center, Island Park overlook, Harper Corner, Canyon
Overlook, campgrounds
·
permits
·
Permit office, 970-374-2468
·
Permit applications for high use season (Green
River from May 13-Sept 30; Yampa River May 14-July 13) are accepted after Nov.
1 through Feb. 1. Low use areas, low water and one-day trip applications are
accepted beginning March 1.
·
Permits are required for all river trips within
the park. Multiday trip permits ($15 application fee, $185 permit fee) and
single-day permits ($15 for application fee, $20 for permit fee) are issued
through a lottery process.
·
boat permits are required to launch above Gates
of Lodore or Deerlodge and to raft the Green River below the Split Mountain
boat ramp
·
Free back country permits, available at the
visitor center, are required for stays outside of developed campgrounds.
·
weather
·
Summers are hot, often in the 100's. Expect
afternoon showers that can make for difficult driving and hiking conditions.
Evenings, however, are cool. Dinosaur Quarry is one of the hotter areas while
Harper's Corners is cooler.
·
road quality, contact 435-781-7700
Kid Alert: Very few children (and many adults as well) can
resist Dinosaurs, and this park gets you as close as possible to the process of
how Dinosaurs are discovered, classified, prepared and presented. It's one of
the few places in the world where you can actually see the dinosaur fossils
exposed in rock before they are excavated. The monument's website has a
multimedia presentation that introduces visitors to the monument. While the
presentation has lots of interesting information, kids may find the site
initially a bit boring (there is lots of text) but if they can view it with an
adult, the adult can help them focus on the media part of the website It's a
great introduction to the monument for all ages. http://www.cr.nps.gov/museum/exhibits/dino/overview.html
Media Connection for kids: Check out these books and activities if you've
got a curious child or two
·
Shuttle: a shuttle starts running from Quarry
Visitor Center in mid-May through the summer. You park at the visitor center
and then take the shuttle, running throughout the day about every hour, to the
Exhibit wall. If you arrive before 9am, when the shuttle starts, you can drive
your own car to the wall.
