Dinosaurs, Oh My!

Today we set out from the city limits of Calgary and spent close to two hours traveling to Drumheller, site of the Royal Tyrell Museum. The trip over was a stark contrast to the city as the landscape was filled with amber waves of grain, huge rolls of hay, silos, and farmland for as far as the eye could see. A truly remarkable sight and one that I am sure our photo does not completely capture. All of the children were great and kept occupied by counting cows and the number of hay bales.


On the way into the town of Drumheller, we encountered one of the classic tourist traps of the region: the world's largest dinosuar, a tryannosaurus rex. It really is just a large staircase surrounded by a fiberglass dinosaur. I would like to say it was truly inspiring to be looking at the outside world through the mouth of this giant creature, but alas no. The kids enjoyed the whole ten minute experience, but I could find a more worthwhile way to spend ten Canadian dollars.


With Michael and Laura taking shorts naps on the way to the museum, the children arrived ready to go. Outside were accurate replicas of several dinosaurs including the Albertasuarus. The entire region used to have the temperature of the Carolinas and a wide variety of plant species that still exist are housed at the museum. I thought it difficult to imagine this province filled with dinosaurs and warm temperatures, but the greenhouse helped to place me and the family there. While I would like to say the kids were fascinated by all of the dinosaur fossils, and we did a get a few photo opportunities, the highlight was a room filled with soft balls and air tubes that shot the balls in all directions. We also took a tour of the badlands surrounding the facility and tried to look for fossils with our guide, but to little avail. Alberta has the toughest fossil laws in the world and you are prohibited from exporting fossils or taking any from the province. You can pick them up and look at them, but you cannot dig them up even if you see the fossil sticking up from the ground. The guide did show us an exisitng fossil that clearly showed the tail and claws of an albertasaurus. Very neat. No trip would be complete without a visit to the giftshop and Michael took home a Pterosaur, what I think used to be called a pterodactyl.

A good day for a trip and the weather was stunning with blue skies and 70 degree temperatures. The trip back to Calgary was filled with beautiful plains views and then a dinner with our host Terry at a local hotspot, Earl's. Our best meal of the trip and we then celebrated Laura's 2nd birthday with ice cream. The only unfortunate incident of the day occurred when dad was playing tag with the children and Julia bounced off dad and bumped her head on the cement walkway. She has a tough head though and with a little ice and TLC she was off to bed.