ashfall fossil beds state historical park

About 11 million years ago a huge volcano in what is now Idaho erupted, spewing volcanic ash over hundreds of square miles. Animals here at the time succumbed to the ash particles in their lungs, dying painful deaths a few weeks after the eruption. The ash was dated using uranium and argon. There are horse and camel skeletons here. I was most impressed with the large number of rhino skeletons, most of them well articulated. There is a walkway that allows visitors to view the rhino dig site. I understand that during the summer months this is still an active dig site. My wife and I were here too late in the year to watch the site being worked by paleontologists and students.

For those that have an historical interest looking back about 12 million years, the evolution and demise of different animals, how such as volcanos and ice ages create the land we know today. Or how does a volcano relocate from Idaho to Yellowstone? Or, what did relocate I would highly recommend. An archeological dig that is more like an uncovering, very unique. Staff very knowledgeable and friendly. Don't be looking for services such as restaurants and filling stations. For those that have another day I would suggest heading west towards Valentine -- Smith Falls, Fort Falls and the Cowboy Trail / Bridge. For that that like serenity, like nature -- go.

We saw the exhibit when we were tired at the end of our day but it was worth the short drive off Highway 20. We imagine that during the summer when active work is being conducted on the fossils bed would ignite more excitement but the park personnel were knowledgeable and helpful. Walking is not long and accommodations support handicap issues should one need this assistance to view the park.

It is well off the beaten path but worth the trip or detour to take a 10 million-year step back in time. It is also amazing to see the remains of creatures that were so common here but now have no remaining descendants such rhinos and five or so species of horses. It is a small facility, easy to navigate, and easy to find with any GPS service. It is covered so visit rain or shine. I really liked that they have left the animals remains just as they were when they died so many millions of years ago. Close your eyes and it is so easy to turn back the hands of time and transport yourself to an era when the land was pristine and untouched by humans.

Ashfall is a 2.75 hour hour drive one way, and it was a nice day trip. Google maps gave very accurate directions, and signage is lacking until you are only a few miles away. The grounds are well maintained, and the visit center and rhino barn are set up excellently for self-guided tours. The posters and other materials are informative, understandable, and the art drawings are well done. What an interesting place, and I left with a deeper appreciation of paleontology.

Five of us women decided a few years a go to start going to places of interest in Nebraska. We had all been to Grove lake camping and Verdigre Creek trout fishing numerous times over the years with our husbands. But we had never been to Ashfall. So this year we went. It was about a 2 hour drive and we rented a very nice cabin and just explored the area. Very beautiful country up there. The Ashfall Fossil Beds were amazing. We also were able to watch students from UNL actually excavating bones. It is very easy to find just north off of Hwy 20 between Royal and Orchard. $5.00 fee to get in and current park sticker required. They do have 1 day park sticker.The dig site is very well organized and well worth the trip.

We live about 3 hours away from Ashfall and have wanted to make the trip for about 3 years now. Today we did it! It was a beautiful drive and a fascinating place! Would recommend it highly. If you spend 3 hours, you have the landmark covered thoroughly.

It was a nice scenic drive to the place. We especially enjoyed checking out the small towns on our way. The site itself is very interesting. They've done a nice job of leaving the bones well displayed and explaining the source and dispersion of the ash. It's a fun place to go. The down side; 12,000,000 years is an obvious contradiction to the Bible. This does put some doubt on the rest of their assertions. Like the Beardog for instance. I would recommend it as a place well-worth visiting.

Usually when you see mass graves of extinct animals, the bones are jumbled up together, but these animals (mostly rhinoceroses) died quietly from volcanic ash 12 million years ago. It is an active fossil dig, with university graduate students working and explaining their work. The fossil dig is inside a big building. This place is way out in the countryside but it was the main thing that I traveled through Nebraska to see. Science at work!

This was a side trip for the weekend that my wife had wanted to do. Outside of being a long drive and hard to find, I was pleasantly suprised. It was very interesting and informative.

I had no idea our visit to see family in Nebraska would involve a fossil dig. It was mind expanding. I had no idea there were so many different animals in the western hemisphere! Our preschooler loved the digging area in the education building. The site is off the beaten path, but worth the adventure.

This was the best stop on our week long vacation. After visiting Morill Hall at the U. of Nebraska last summer this has been on our radar to visit. It is worth the extra effort to get out this direction. We wanted to eat lunch at Green Gables after seeing it in other reviews but after calling I realized they are not open on Mondays and Tuesdays so we had to go to plan B. We stopped at a grocery store in Norfolk and packed a picnic lunch to enjoy out at the park. That worked perfectly. They had a nice covered picnic area and we had a very nice cool day for July to enjoy the area. We were a group of nine with five kids (ages 13, 11, 7, 7, and 4). The visitor's center was a great place to start. They have a gift shop as well as some nice displays explaining the site. We were also able to talk to a summer intern who was studying to become an paleontologist. My son was thrilled to talk to him about his job and what he got to do during his summer here. He did a nice job answering his questions and helped to grow his enthusiasm about fossils. After that, we took a trip out to the barn to see the amazing dig site. We talked to more summer interns and I was so happy that seemed at ease to talk to us about their work. At this point, I was losing the three younger children but we then moved over to the picnic area and there was a small dig area outside. This pulled this younger kids back into with a hands on activity. They did this while we go out and set up lunch After lunch, we were amazed to find the smaller building next to the picnic area was all for the kids as well. It had puzzles (like taking apart and putting together fossils) and another replica dig area which all five of them enjoyed. Even the big ones got into uncovering the fossils. It was awesome!! We had a long trek to Lincoln that evening so we had to drag everyone out to the car. They would have stayed and played even longer! The site is awesome by itself but the thought that was put into the layout and design of hands on activities for the kids to go with it makes it a great stop for all ages to enjoy. The cost was $5 a person on the day were were there but you also had to have a Nebraska park permit (daily permit was just $5 for the car). We thought it was well worth the cost of admission and park pass.

Similar to the mammoth dig is Hot Springs SD. This dig has a Varity of animals that got caught in the aftermath of a volcanic cloud form Idaho. The main dig is in a building however there are fossils on outcrops around the area and a trail to hike.

I came upon this hidden treasure when I was planning my trip across country and was going to take a different route. It was only about 10 miles off my path and we decided to go. The printed directions from google and my gps both weren't able to find this place. It took me down a dirt road that wasn't it. I finally just gave up and was going to continue my travels, when about 5 miles down the road there was a sign for it. I followed those signs and found it without problem. A staff person said that gps has a hard time finding the place. I would have never thought this would be in Nebraska. The fee includes a daily use permit, but is well worth it. There are many educational information provided and there was the ability to actually see people working on the site. I'm glad we stopped.

Unique fossil site, nice interpretive center, active digging, kids activities. Off the beaten path but worth the drive.