Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum

Another great post from guest blogger Jessi:

The Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum is a great compliment to the nearby Dinosaur National Monument. It is about 20 minutes away. Here you can see fossils all put together to form the dinosaurs, and lots of exhibits throughout all the time periods. More geologic time is revealed here than in the Grand Canyon.

Within an 80 mile radius of Vernal, evidence of the entire Earth's history is visible. At its center is this Natural History State Park Museum. They just moved the Museum two blocks down the road from the old building to have a bigger building and preserve the history and prehistory found in the Uinta Basin.

Outside the building they have a dinosaur garden, which has full sized replicas of dinosaurs, and even a wooly mammoth. The garden is a visitor favorite.

Inside the building there is much to see. It took us about two and a half hours to see all of it. Upstairs there is a fluorescent mineral room, which is all dark with black lights that make the minerals on some rocks glow. Another highlight is the rock room, where from ceiling to floor on one wall is just rocks with fossils in the rocks. There are more display cases throughout the room with more rocks and fossils in them.

This museum kept my kids and my interest the entire time. It is a very good value for the price. For my mom, me and my children (3) it was $15. It was well worth it. It is a must see if you are in Vernal. It is right on Main Street in Vernal. You can't miss it, it is the only building with lifelike dinosaurs surrounding it. It is approximately 175 miles away from Salt Lake City. You drive to Vernal and down Main Street to about 500 East. I plan to go back with my husband pretty soon. 

(Photos courtesy of Jessi Perry)