Tag Archives: museum

Idaho

Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument

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Overview

More than 3.5-million years ago, this section of southern Idaho was on a floodplain of a giant lake.  Lush grasslands and forests attracted camels, llamas, mastodons, zebra-like horses, and a variety of birds.  Their fossils were not discovered until 1928, on the steep bluffs on the west bank of the Snake River, now Lower Salmon Falls Reservoir.

Highlights

Museum, film, Snake River Overlook, Oregon Trail Overlook

Must-Do Activity

Numerous mammal fossils from the Pliocene Epoch are on display at the National Park Service visitor center, located on the main drag in the small town of Hagerman, Idaho.  Scenic overlooks of the Snake River and Oregon Trail are located further south, but there is no public access to the fossil beds.

Best Trail

The 3-mile long Emigrant Trail parallels the Oregon National Historic Trail, which has wagon ruts accessible from both the Snake River Overlook and Oregon Trail Overlook (where there is also a half-mile interpretive trail).

Instagram-worthy Photo

Interstate 84 passes directly over Malad Gorge State Park, north of Hagerman, Idaho.  Take the freeway exit and walk to the canyon rim to see the beautiful waterfall you missed from the bridge.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/hafo/planyourvisit/visitor-center-operating-hours-seasons.htm

Fees

None for Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument, but there is a day-use fee at Malad Gorge State Park.

Road Conditions

The main access roads are paved.  There is a one-lane bridge crossing the Snake River off Highway 30 that was closed during our visit so we took the Gridley Island Bridge instead.

Camping

There are places to camp along many sections of the Snake River, but not within the National Monument.

  • NPS museum in Hagerrman, Idaho
  • Tiff at the Oregon Trail Overlook
  • Scott at Malad Gorge State Park
  • Malad Gorge State Park

Explore More – How many complete skeletons of zebra-like horses were discovered within Hagerman Fossil Beds?

Wyoming

Fossil Butte National Monument

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Wyoming

Managed by National Park Service

Established 1972

8,198 acres

Website: nps.gov/fobu

Overview

Exactly 100 years after the creation of Yellowstone National Park, another Wyoming site was added to the National Park Service (NPS) system in 1972: Fossil Butte National Monument.  It is dedicated to 50-million-year-old fossils found in an ancient subtropical lakebed, including plants (like palms and ferns) and animals (like turtles and lemurs). 

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Highlights

NPS museum, film, Fossil Lake Trail, Historic Quarry Trail

Must-Do Activity

Even 50-million years ago it was windy in Wyoming!  The excellent preservation of the fossils may be in part due to high winds that kept surface water well-oxygenated while deeper waters were stagnant.  If you need to get out of the wind, head into the visitor center to see fossil fish, turtles, and other species on display.  On the deck outside there is an awesome timeline that traces CO2 levels and life on Earth throughout geologic time.

Best Trail

Take the steep steps up the Historic Quarry Trail to find fish fossils still in the rocks.  There is no shade along the trail, but even in the summer the weather is usually not that hot at 7,000 feet in elevation.  From the picnic area, the 1.5-mile Fossil Lake Trail leads to aspen groves.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Get up close with fossils that stand out against the white bedrock in the NPS museum or on the Historic Quarry Trail.  On private land nearby, you can pay to excavate your own fish fossils that you get to keep.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/fobu/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Entrance road is paved

Camping

None within the National Monument, but to the north Bridger-Teton National Forest provides opportunities for dispersed camping.

Related Sites

Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming-Montana-Idaho)

Bridger National Forest (Wyoming)

Devils Tower National Monument (Wyoming)

Nearest National Park

Grand Teton

Tiff with a crocodile
Stingray
Turtles
Scott pointing to the fish
A fish still in the rock at the butte
Fossils plants

Explore More – Kemmerer, Wyoming is home the very first example of which well-known department store?

Learn more about the other 137 National Monuments in our book Monumental America: Your Guide to All 138 National Monuments

Pennsylvania

Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site

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Overview

Rather than blast a canal through the mountains, this unique railroad carried sectioned canal boats 36 miles up and over the Alleghenies on a series of 10 inclined planes run by stationary steam engines.  It only ran between 1834 and 1854 before becoming obsolete when the Pennsylvania Railroad provided continuous service to the Ohio River Valley.

Highlights

Museum, film, Engine House 6, Lemon House, Skew Arch Bridge

Must-Do Activity

After watching the film in the visitor center, follow the boardwalk through a stone quarry to Engine House 6 Exhibit Building to see a life-sized model of a stationary steam engine and its cable system.  Continue on to Lemon House on Cresson Summit, built around 1832 to serve as a home and tavern. 

Best Trail

From the Engine House 6 Exhibit Building, you can walk a trail through the forest or the mowed incline less than half a mile down to Skew Arch Bridge, or you can drive there.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Skew Arch Bridge was the only road bridge purposely built along the portage.  The “skew” comes in because in 1833 the bridge design was changed to accommodate a bend in the Huntington, Cambria, and Indiana Turnpike Road.  The arch is 22 feet tall and demonstrates the excellence of stone masonry at the time as it was built without mortar.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/alpo/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None

Road Conditions

All roads paved

Camping

Prince Gallitzin State Park offers a campground with showers 20 miles northwest of Altoona, Pennsylvania.

  • Visitor center
  • Tiff with a steam engine
  • A sectional canal boat, which was loaded onto rail cars
  • Tiff on the railroad incline
  • Inside Engine House 6 Exhibit Building
  • Lemon House
  • Inside Lemon House
  • Tiff playing the cup and ball game inside Lemon House

Explore More – What is Staple Bend Tunnel famous for being the first example of with railroads in the United States?

Alaska

Denali National Park and Preserve

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Overview

At 20,320 feet above-sea-level, Denali is the highest point in North America.  It is also the tallest mountain on Earth measured from base to summit.  Mt. Everest starts from a 13,000-foot plateau, while Denali’s base is only 700 feet.  The park is also home to an incredibly diverse array of wildlife, including our favorite, the hoary marmot.

Highlights

Denali peak, Sled Dog Demonstration, Mt. Healy Overlook Trail, wildlife

Must-Do Activity

The summit of Denali is only visible 10% of the summer, so flightseeing is the most successful option to the see the peak.  While in the park, it is better to focus on the wildlife, so bring a good camera with a zoom lens for moose, caribou, Dall sheep, gray wolves, and brown bears.  Your best chance to see wildlife is to buy a shuttle bus ticket online or at the Wilderness Access Center.  We recommend you only take the eight hour roundtrip to Eielson Visitor Center (Mile 66) and spend some time hiking the tundra, instead of going all the way to Wonder Lake (Mile 85).

Best Trail

Most of the park is managed as wilderness so there are no trails, but around the park entrance there are a few.  We recommend climbing as high on the steep trail up Mt. Healy as you can for unsurpassed views of the mountainous area.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Even if the summit of Denali is hidden, the tundra scenery here is incredibly colorful, especially around the bus stop for Polychrome Overlook (Mile 47).

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/dena/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

There is no admission fee; however, visitors can only get past Mile 15 of the Park Road on a tour bus or with campground or backcountry reservations.

Road Conditions

The Park Road is paved to the Mile 15 Savage River Check Station, past which personal vehicles are not allowed.  The dirt road is groomed, but it can get bumpy in the back of the bus.

Camping

Riley Creek Campground is open year round, a rarity in Alaska.  A reservation at Teklanika River Campground allows you to drive your own vehicle to Mile 29 partway into the park.  

  • Scott at Eielson Visitor Center in September 2004
  • Dall sheep
  • Scott and Tiff at Polychrome Overlook in July 2007
  • Caribou
  • Tiff on the Savage River Trail
  • Grizzly or brown bear
  • Scott on our March 2015 visit
  • Moose cow and calf
  • Hoary marmot

This design we created to celebrate Denali National Park is available on a variety of products at Cafe Press and Amazon.

Explore More – How many earthquakes are recorded annually in Denali National Park and Preserve?

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Utah

Golden Spike National Historical Park

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Overview

On May 10, 1869, there were actually four commemorative spikes (made of both silver and gold) to celebrate completing the monumental task to lay 1,776 miles of track connecting Sacramento and Omaha, linking west to east.  In front of a crowd of thousands that gathered at Promontory Point in Utah, Leland Stanford, President of the Central Pacific Railroad, missed when attempting to drive the final spike.

Highlights

Replica train engines, museum, film, Chinese Arch

Must-Do Activity

Thanks to the National Park Service, each day in the summer you can see working replicas of two steam engines, burning wood and coal, come together for a daily photo op.  It took some effort just to figure out where the junction occurred, since it was moved by 1870, in 1904 a shorter causeway was built across the Great Salt Lake, and during World War II the track here was ripped up. 

Best Trail

Big Fill Loop Trail (1.5 miles) leads to a ravine filled by hand to create a gentle grade for the trains.  Two unpaved auto tours (2 and 14 miles) follow the rail route, with the highlight stop being the natural limestone Chinese Arch.

Instagram-worthy Photo

The Central Pacific Railroad’s locomotive Jupiter and the Union Pacific’s No. 119 are both beautiful reproductions, but they only run between May and mid-October.  Please note that you are not allowed to mush pennies on the train tracks but they do have a 51-cent mushed penny machine inside the visitor center.

Peak Season

Summer, but also May 10 annually (especially in 2019, the 150th anniversary)

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/gosp/planyourvisit/basicinfo.htm

Fees

$20 per vehicle or free with America The Beautiful pass

Road Conditions

The main road to the visitor center is paved, but the two auto tour routes follow graded dirt roads.

Camping

None within the park, but Hyrum Lake State Park, Willard Bay State Park, and Box Elder Campground (U.S. Forest Service) are located near Brigham City, Utah.

  • The 20-starred flag that was flying when the spike was placed
  • Chinese Arch
  • Barn swallows at the visitor center
  • The coal-fired U.P. No. 119 was heating up
  • Baby ravens in a nest outside the visitor center
  • Taking the train off the track for the night
  • Short-eared owl
  • The spot where the two cross-country lines met

Explore More – How many miles of parallel grades did the two greedy companies (that got paid by the mile) lay out before Congress stepped in to establish Promontory Summit as the official meeting place?

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