Dinosaur National Monument Information and Resources

Dinosaur National Monument protects a large deposit of fossil bones of creatures that lived nearly 150 million years ago. The fossils help us learn more about these fascinating animals.

Dinosaur National Monument is special because visitors can see fossils exposed on the cliff face of the Douglass Quarry at the park visitor center. This site provides one of the best snapshots of Jurassic dinosaurs found anywhere in the world. The quarry was named after Earl Douglass, the paleontologist who found it.

From 1909 through 1924, when work focused on excavating museum specimens, the Douglass Quarry produced more:
· complete dinosaur skeletons;
· well-preserved dinosaur skulls;
· juvenile dinosaurs specimens;
· and different kinds of dinosaurs
than any other single site. Fossils from the Douglass Quarry are displayed in the Carnegie Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, Denver Museum of Natural History, and in many other American museums.

Most great fossil deposits have been excavated until there's nothing left to see. That is not the case at Dinosaur National Monument. The National Park Service reopened the Douglass Quarry in the 1950s, not to remove all the fossils, but to develop them into a unique exhibit. The Douglass Quarry is enclosed within the park visitor center and museum. It offers visitors a unique opportunity to see over 1,400 fossil bones that have been left in place as nature deposited them 150 million years ago.

The Dinosaur Quarry Visitor Center is closed indefinitely due to significant life, health, and safety issues.

Temporary Visitor Center
Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day Weekend
9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. daily
Labor Day through Memorial Day Weekend
8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. daily
During the summer, ranger-led programs are scheduled throughout the day at the Temporary Visitor Center.
Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Day.

Canyon Area Visitor Center
Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day Weekend
8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. daily
Labor Day through October 31
8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday
For hours after October 31, call the park at (970) 374-3000.
During the summer, ranger-led programs are offered on request and when staffing permits. A 12-minute video provides an overview of the park.
Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Day.

The Dinosaur Quarry Visitor Center is the primary place in the park to view dinosaur fossils, but it has been closed indefinitely. A few fossils can be seen by hiking a short distance from the visitor center, and limited fossil displays have been set up at the Temporary Visitor Center, near the Dinosaur Quarry Visitor Center. The Canyon Area Visitor Center is the main entrance to the canyon area, the scenic vistas, Echo Park, and the Yampa Bench Road. There are no fossils in the canyon area of the park.

Directions to the Temporary Visitor Center

Directions to the Canyon Area Visitor Center

Listen to the Utah Outdoors radio show, Saturdays from 6-8 a.m. on KSL.