Expeditions

Half-day digs - Fruita Paleo Area

Take a tour of the world-class Fruita Paleontological Area, home to rare Late Jurassic crocodiles, mammals, fish, frogs, lizards and other beasts known from the Morrison Formation. Stegosaurus and Ceratosaurus are among the large dinosaurs that also have been found here. After your introductory tour of the area and its fossils, you will assist Museum of Western Colorado paleontologists in digging at a quarry famous for yielding many of the area's most important fossils, including one of the smallest dinosaurs in the world - the newly-named omnivore Fruitadens.

Half-day digs run from 8:30 am - 11:30 am.

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One-Day Digs - Mygatt-Moore

For this introduction to field paleontology, we meet at the Dinosaur Journey Museum at 8:30 am for the short drive out to the quarry. After an introduction to the excavation techniques and surrounding geology, you assist paleontologists in the removal of large dinosaur bones belonging to Jurassic giants such as Allosaurus and Apatosaurus. At the end of the digging day (around 2:30 pm), we head back to the Museum for a tour of the lab.

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Three-day Tracks & Bones Expeditions

This is an introduction to geology and paleontology with a little variety.
Day 1: We will take a trip to several dinosaur track sites.
Day 2: We'll spend the day excavating Jurassic dinosaur material at the Mygatt-Moore Quarry.
Day 3: Today we tour the geology of the area on a raft trip through beautiful Ruby and Horsethief Canyons.

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Five-Day Moab Expedition

On this overview of the whole art of field paleontology, we spend a day working on each step of the process and see some of the most scenic parts of the Colorado Plateau.

Day 1: After your arrival, we meet for dinner and an introductory geology/paleontology slide show at your motel.

Day 2: We drive to Moab, Utah, and tour some local geology highlights, including Deadhorse Point State Park and Arches National Park.

Day 3: Today we head out to prospect for new sites. You help paleontologists log data on the locations and conditions of dinosaur bone and footprint localities.

Day 4: We spend the day quarrying at a dinosaur site in the desert near Moab.

Day 5: In the morning we will take a break from dinosaurs and raft the Colorado River upstream from Moab. After lunch we will travel back to Colorado and tour the paleontology lab at the Dinosaur Journey Museum, then have dinner before returning to Grand Junction.

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Please note the following

Our Dino Digs programs are for ages 5 and older. However, those 16 or younger must be accompanied by a participating adult. Due to safety reasons no children under the age of 5 are allowed on digs.

Weather conditions are unpredictable. Bring hats, insect repellent, sunscreen, sturdy shoes and sweatshirt or light jacket.

Note to the heat sensitive and young: Although the average high for Grand Junction is 92 in July, it can be 5-10 degrees hotter in the quarry. There are shade tents over the quarry but there is no native shade.

TERMS: Prepayment of 14 days in advance guarantees reservation. Please note dig schedule may change.

Space is limited for expeditions so be sure to get your reservations in soon!

You can register online or by calling toll-free at 1-888-488-DINO.

The Museum of Western Colorado's Dinosaur Journey invites you to join us this summer for an experience that you will never forget! 

Download our 2010 Dinosaur Expeditions brochure!