Dinosaur National Monument

Hey, it’s Random Scientist Inc. here with an article I wrote about Dinosaur National Monument. Located near Vernal, Utah, DNM is one of the best hotspots for Late Jurassic fossils in the world. It’s also one of the best geological sites in the world. Have you ever heard of it? If not, read on for a brief history:

The Late Jurassic bonebeds were found in 1909 by Earl Douglass. Along with his crews, he excavated literally thousands of bones. In fact, he loved the hotspot so much, he spent the winter there! Now, you may be thinking, “Aw, Utah’s a desert, it doesn’t get cold.” But as a native of Utah, I can say it gets cold and snowy during the winter! The winter he spent was particularly harsh; however, regardless of the conditions, he and his family stayed the entire winter. Anyway, eventually, Earl proposed his idea of making this wonderful hotspot into a national monument, and in 1915, president Woodrow Wilson declared the site a national monument.

Today the monument still stands. It is now a very popular tourist destination, especially among dinosaur enthusiasts. Sadly, the visitor center was closed indefinitely (forever) in July 2006 due to deterioration problems it had been experiencing since 1957, because it was built on unstable clay. I was very fortunate enough to go there before it closed down, and it was a very cool place. The hiking trails there are still open, as are all other attractions besides the visitor center. In fact, there has been a proposal to build a new visitor center elsewhere. I’m not sure when this visitor center will actually be built, but I’m sure it will be pretty soon.

I hope you enjoyed this short and educational article.

Random Scientist Inc.