The Royal Tyrrell Museum is a must see attraction in Drumheller, Alberta

by Keith and Heather Nicol

The Royal Tyrrell Museum is well worth a visit

     Enroute to visit my brother in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan we stopped in Drumheller at the Tyrrell Museum.  The Royal Tyrrell Museum as it is officially known is a fine place to spend a few hours since it has so much to offer the interested visitor. On our arrival we saw all ages heading into the museum from young families to retired couples and the parking lot was virtually full when we arrived on Thursday, July 28 around 10:30 am. Although this area is world famous for its dinosaur fossils the museum is much more than that and offers a walk through the history of life on earth through close to 4 billion years of evolution. Obviously with so many dinosaur skeletons found locally the emphasis is on dinosaurs but the museum does cover lots of other ground from plate tectonics to ice age mammals. Although the parking lot was packed the museum doesn’t feel crowded inside and after exploring the inside museum displays for 90 minutes or so we headed outside to walk the Badlands Interpretative Trail. We also found using the audio guide very helpful and is worthwhile renting for your visit.

There are many true to life skeletons of dinosaurs on display with lots of interpretative material available

The Badlands Interpretative Trail is also well worth doing since it highlights various aspects of this unique type of landscape. The layers of rock come in a variety of colours and the micro topography is fascinating with all of the narrow valleys and gullies that have been eroded into this soft rock. There are numerous interpretative signs to help explain what you are seeing and since the walk is just 1.5 km it is suited to a wide range of people. On our visit there were towering cumulous clouds which made the whole experience feel very dramatic. We didn’t have time to try out any of the various museum programs but they have a variety of outdoor and indoor activity focused experiences mostly geared for kids but others are for all ages. Next time we visit we hope to take part in one or two of those. The dig experience and the 7 wonders of the badlands look particularly interesting. For more information see: http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/

   

The Badlands Interpretative Trail is gives you a chance to explore the unusual geology of this area