National Park Service · Utah
A fossil-rich monument on the Utah-Colorado line where a wall of 1,500 dinosaur bones is enclosed in the Quarry Exhibit Hall, reached by a timed ticket in peak season.
Field briefing
Dinosaur National Monument changes fast with season and elevation.
Before you go
The quarry is the draw, and in peak season you need a $1 timed ticket on Recreation.gov plus the $25 vehicle entrance fee, with a shuttle running to the Quarry Exhibit Hall because parking is limited. Book the quarry ticket first, then build the day around your entry time.
The landmarks worth the trip. Tap any photo to enlarge.
Weather, crowds, and what the season changes about the trip.
Mild days, cold nights, and high, muddy rivers from snowmelt.
Pack Layers, sun protection, and footwear for muddy canyon trails.
Hot and dry, with the quarry shuttle running and afternoon storms possible.
Pack Maximum water, sun shirt, electrolytes, and a booked quarry ticket.
Comfortable days, cool nights, and the best light in the river canyons.
Pack Warm camp layer, headlamp, and water even on cool days.
Cold, quiet, and snowy, with reduced services and possible road limits.
Pack Insulation, traction, and a plan for limited winter access.
Quarry Exhibit Hall
The main event: a tilted rock wall holding about 1,500 exposed dinosaur bones you can touch, enclosed in a glass-walled building.
Fossil Discovery Trail
A short trail from the visitor center past exposed fossils still in the rock, the only hike where you can see bones outside the quarry building.
Harpers Corner and the river canyons
On the Colorado side, drive Harpers Corner Road to overlooks above the Green and Yampa river canyons for the monument's big-landscape payoff.
Put the access rule first: shuttle, parking, timed-entry, or reservation windows should decide the order of the day. For one day in Dinosaur National Monument, make Quarry Exhibit Hall the non-negotiable, add Fossil Discovery Trail only if the first stop runs clean, and keep Harpers Corner and the river canyons as the flexible finish.
Turn Dinosaur's conditions into water, pack, and sleep-system decisions.
Build around conditions
Let season, elevation, and weather set the plan.
Plan your trip
4 quick tools, already seeded for Dinosaur National Monument. Tune the numbers around temperature swings, footing, layers, and how much margin the route needs.
Start with the gear decisions this park changes: footing, weather, camping, and water.
Kit Authority
Dinosaur National Monument packing list
0 of 24 packed. Check items as you pack, then take this list to the store, trailhead, or campsite.
Pack planning
Use this as a constraint check while you are still shaping the trip. The active checklist becomes useful once your route, dates, and sleep plan are set.
Checklist mode
24 items, grouped for the trip you are actually taking.
The buying guides that match what Dinosaur asks of your kit, with our current top picks across budget and use case.
There is no lodging inside the monument. Vernal, Utah is the main base for the quarry side, with the broadest lodging, food, and fuel. On the Colorado side, the small town of Dinosaur and the larger Rangely are the closest services. For camping, Green River Campground near the quarry is the best developed option and is reservable on Recreation.gov, with Split Mountain and other smaller campgrounds nearby.
Camping reservations
The monument has several campgrounds, but Green River near the quarry is the one to reserve. The Quarry Exhibit Hall timed ticket is a separate Recreation.gov booking from your campsite.
Reviewed June 11, 2026
Booking window
Green River Campground individual sites are reservable on Recreation.gov. Quarry Exhibit Hall timed tickets are $1 and also booked on Recreation.gov in peak season.
Where to book or verify
Recreation.gov page for Green River Campground sites, availability, and booking.
Official NPS page explaining the $1 timed-ticket system and shuttle in peak season.
Check for federal campground, backcountry, tour, and permit inventory tied to this park.
Campgrounds to know
Plan the handoff from arrival to shuttle.
Parking, pedestrian entrances, and shuttle timing decide how calmly the first morning starts.
Getting there
Arrival note
The quarry side sits just east of Vernal, Utah, off US 40 near Jensen.
Access note
The Colorado canyon side is reached from the town of Dinosaur, Colorado, also on US 40, about an hour east.
Car strategy
The two halves are not connected by a road inside the monument, so decide which side you are visiting before you set out.
Pair this with lodging: sleep where the park transfer is simple, especially if your route needs an early start.
In peak season, yes. You need a $1 timed ticket booked on Recreation.gov to enter the Quarry Exhibit Hall, because a shuttle runs to the quarry and parking is limited. The timed ticket is in addition to the $25 vehicle entrance fee.
Yes. Green River Campground near the quarry side is reservable on Recreation.gov and is the best developed option. Split Mountain and some smaller campgrounds operate first come, first served or as group sites.
Yes. Inside the Quarry Exhibit Hall there is a section of the bone wall you are allowed to touch, and the Fossil Discovery Trail passes fossils still embedded in the rock outdoors.
The Utah side near Vernal holds the fossil quarry and most of the fossil features. The Colorado side near Dinosaur, Colorado is about deep river canyons and overlooks along Harpers Corner Road. There is no road connecting the two halves inside the monument.