Vernal, Our Last Summer Hurrah.
After we got back from Washington I looked at my summer list and decided I wanted to fit in one last thing. Everyone has been telling us that we need to take Olive to Vernal because it's known as "Dinosaur land." I had thought maybe we should go Labor Day weekend but I had to work and I hate driving places on holiday weekends and dealing with crowds and traffic and all that so we just decided kind of last minute that we would the weekend before. It's a bit under a 3 hours drive, which isn't too bad, and we found a deal on a hotel and just spent one night up there.
I tried to fit in as much as possible in those two days, and I feel like we saw everything we wanted to see! We hit up all the major dinosaur landmarks including the museums, all the dinosaur statues around town, the dinosaur national monument, some dinosaur tracks, and also some awesome petroglyphs. I feel like the town has done a really good job of informing the visitors of all the sites. Their website was really easy to read and navigate and there were lots of similar guides and booklets that we used throughout our trip that were provided in various locations in the town.
Olive loved the dinosaur garden that had large statues of all kinds of different dinosaurs. We took pictures in front of the dinosaur "monuments" in the town for little scavenger hunt and then we got to go to a local candy shop where Olive got to pick her prize. The hike up to see the petroglyphs was easy and really fun. The kids absolutely loved it. We spotted several little geckos and every time the kids would see a little creature scurry in the bushes they would get so excited. They loved climbing on the rocks and collecting branches and Elijah climbed into every nook that caught his eye. The sun was going down and it was the perfect temperature and it was so beautiful outside, besides that the petroglyphs were really cool, not too much of a hike, and easy to navigate and find.
The next morning we headed up to the Dinosaur National Monument. We got the bonus of going on a National Park's weekend when all the National Parks were free, and you know everything is a bonus when it's free! Careful when you travel to the monument not to be confused by your GPS which we will tell you it is a lot further than it really is because the actual monument spans a huge area, but the museum and wall of bones (which is their main attraction) is actually really close to Vernal. The wall of preserved dinosaur bones is just so amazing you can't believe it's real! You are standing in front of this mass pile of Dinosaur Bones preserved for millions of years! It's incredible!
After our adventurous morning the kids were so exhausted so we let them sleep in the car while we took a drive up to see the Flaming Gorge. We stopped at all the view points that looked out over the valley and read the history on the area and all the things they had discovered there. It was really remarkable to read about all the fossils and other remnants that had been preserved there due to multiple natural disasters. The view of the Gorge and the dam was magnificent and I had a really fun drive looking at all the beautiful scenery and just taking things slow and talking with Kc about life. It was a good little break for all of us.
On our way back down from the gorge I wanted to stop and do a short little hike with the kids to find the Dinosaur Trackway where some theropod foot prints are preserved in rock by the water. The kids woke up just in time but they were still a little groggy and it was getting a little later so we decided it was best to just carry them the whole way. I put Olive in the Ergo on my back and Kc carried Elijah in his arms. When we got there the dinosaur prints were not as visible as we had hoped because it is a soft sandstone and the water rises and falls I think the prints have eroded and cracked quite a bit over time, but we did find some cool ones and it was crazy to think these prints had been preserved in the ground like this for millions of years. For a hike that we debated doing for several different reasons it ended up being my favorite thing we did the whole trip. KC and I were so hot from hiking with the kids, and despite advisory not to jump into the water from the rock we decided to do so anyways and had no regrets about it whatsoever, in fact it was so fun and freeing and made me feel like I was 15 again. We spent some time walking around and playing and talking and then we headed back. Olive walked some of the way back, it had cooled down quite a bit and the sun was starting to go down. We saw a couple bunnies and Olive collected some rocks. After we got back to the car we stopped and grabbed some ice cream and drove home. It was such a memorable trip and I can't wait to go back and do it all over again someday.
After we got back from Washington I looked at my summer list and decided I wanted to fit in one last thing. Everyone has been telling us that we need to take Olive to Vernal because it's known as "Dinosaur land." I had thought maybe we should go Labor Day weekend but I had to work and I hate driving places on holiday weekends and dealing with crowds and traffic and all that so we just decided kind of last minute that we would the weekend before. It's a bit under a 3 hours drive, which isn't too bad, and we found a deal on a hotel and just spent one night up there.
I tried to fit in as much as possible in those two days, and I feel like we saw everything we wanted to see! We hit up all the major dinosaur landmarks including the museums, all the dinosaur statues around town, the dinosaur national monument, some dinosaur tracks, and also some awesome petroglyphs. I feel like the town has done a really good job of informing the visitors of all the sites. Their website was really easy to read and navigate and there were lots of similar guides and booklets that we used throughout our trip that were provided in various locations in the town.
Olive loved the dinosaur garden that had large statues of all kinds of different dinosaurs. We took pictures in front of the dinosaur "monuments" in the town for little scavenger hunt and then we got to go to a local candy shop where Olive got to pick her prize. The hike up to see the petroglyphs was easy and really fun. The kids absolutely loved it. We spotted several little geckos and every time the kids would see a little creature scurry in the bushes they would get so excited. They loved climbing on the rocks and collecting branches and Elijah climbed into every nook that caught his eye. The sun was going down and it was the perfect temperature and it was so beautiful outside, besides that the petroglyphs were really cool, not too much of a hike, and easy to navigate and find.
The next morning we headed up to the Dinosaur National Monument. We got the bonus of going on a National Park's weekend when all the National Parks were free, and you know everything is a bonus when it's free! Careful when you travel to the monument not to be confused by your GPS which we will tell you it is a lot further than it really is because the actual monument spans a huge area, but the museum and wall of bones (which is their main attraction) is actually really close to Vernal. The wall of preserved dinosaur bones is just so amazing you can't believe it's real! You are standing in front of this mass pile of Dinosaur Bones preserved for millions of years! It's incredible!
After our adventurous morning the kids were so exhausted so we let them sleep in the car while we took a drive up to see the Flaming Gorge. We stopped at all the view points that looked out over the valley and read the history on the area and all the things they had discovered there. It was really remarkable to read about all the fossils and other remnants that had been preserved there due to multiple natural disasters. The view of the Gorge and the dam was magnificent and I had a really fun drive looking at all the beautiful scenery and just taking things slow and talking with Kc about life. It was a good little break for all of us.
On our way back down from the gorge I wanted to stop and do a short little hike with the kids to find the Dinosaur Trackway where some theropod foot prints are preserved in rock by the water. The kids woke up just in time but they were still a little groggy and it was getting a little later so we decided it was best to just carry them the whole way. I put Olive in the Ergo on my back and Kc carried Elijah in his arms. When we got there the dinosaur prints were not as visible as we had hoped because it is a soft sandstone and the water rises and falls I think the prints have eroded and cracked quite a bit over time, but we did find some cool ones and it was crazy to think these prints had been preserved in the ground like this for millions of years. For a hike that we debated doing for several different reasons it ended up being my favorite thing we did the whole trip. KC and I were so hot from hiking with the kids, and despite advisory not to jump into the water from the rock we decided to do so anyways and had no regrets about it whatsoever, in fact it was so fun and freeing and made me feel like I was 15 again. We spent some time walking around and playing and talking and then we headed back. Olive walked some of the way back, it had cooled down quite a bit and the sun was starting to go down. We saw a couple bunnies and Olive collected some rocks. After we got back to the car we stopped and grabbed some ice cream and drove home. It was such a memorable trip and I can't wait to go back and do it all over again someday.
Now that's love.
Wish I had gotten a picture of Elijah when he was laying flat on the ground trying to peek under the rock to find the gecko.
Here is pointing to where he went.
Elijah stayed so quiet and still in this cave. I think he was hoping we wouldn't see him so he could live in there forever. He was not happy when we eventually told him to come out.
More geckos on our way back!
When did my little boy turn 25?
Look at those adorable faces.
Touching real Dinosaur Bones!!
Dilophosaurus Foot Print.
After I jumped in the water I wanted to lay our for a bit on the rock. Olive laid by me and then spontaneously started singing "Popcorn Popping." Here we are making "popcorn balls."
These are the moments we live for.
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