Dinosaurs!

With visitors here from out of town, we got to see a few things that I hadn’t gotten around to doing before – including the top item on my list, which was visiting the new Natural History Museum of Utah. It’s been open for about a year and a half, and I’m embarrassed to say that it’s taken this long for me to go.

The old museum was nice, but they only had room to show a small fraction of their entire collection at any one time. The new museum has much more space, and has been creatively designed to show off many more pieces. The dinosaur exhibit in particular is spectacular. We have such a wealth of dinosaur bones that have been found here in the state, especially at the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry,which contains the “the densest concentration of Jurassic-aged dinosaur bones ever found”.

Of course, the dinosaurs are only one of the many exhibits at the museum. We were impressed that there were so many interactive displays, as well. What a great way to get children interested in Natural History! We even had a little fun building a model building and then simulating an earthquake, to see how well our design held up. (Mine survived!)

The museum is located high above the valley, with a spectacular view from the roof. It sits along the Bonneville Shoreline Trail, with trailhead access right from the museum grounds.

The beautiful Red Butte Garden is conveniently located right next door, so it’s extremely convenient to take in both of them in one trip. This should definitely be a must-do for both locals and visitors alike.