If you’re heading East towards Yellowstone National Park on the scenic and tricky US-14, then you have to take the time to stop by and touch real dinosaur tracks. Discovered only near the turn of the 21st century, the dinosaur tracks are very well preserved in what used to be the shore of a sea. Comprising of many (several unknown) species of dinosaurs, this place is a literal walk back in time.
With a rough gravel path leading up to a modest carpark in the middle of what looks like a western film, this places gets fewer visitors than it deserves. There, I met an elderly couple that were there for the fourth time. They recalled a park ranger recommending the site to them before it was even a national park site. We signed a visitor’s book that was kept inside a tin box and admired the surroundings for a while. The colors are not unlike that of the Badlands National Park, also in Wyoming..
Visitors to the park are invited to access the tracksite via a sloped walkway, where we are reminded not to rub, cast, or deface the surface. I treaded lightly to do no harm and proceeded to put my hands and feet inside the dinosaur footprints. It felt as if I was walking with the dinosaurs that went extinct so many years ago. It’s surprising that something as passing and fragile as an imprint on the ground can last so long.
Regardless of whether you’re into Jurassic history or just a fan of Jurassic park, this place is well worth the bumpy ride in. Though if you have kids I might wait till they’re older, there is really nothing else out there to see.
