Follow The Montana Dinosaur Trail For Adventure

The Montana Dinosaur Trail Prehistoric Passport

The Prehistoric Passport is your guide back in time – millions of years back – as you explore the Montana Dinosaur Trail.
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Carter County Museum, Ekalaka

Montana's first county museum, its paleontological finds include a mounted skeleton of Anatotitan copei (one of only a few nearly complete skeletons of this species found in the world to date), as well as complete skulls of Triceratops horridus (three horns), Pachycepalosaurus wyomingensisi (dome head) and Nannotyrannys lancesis (tiny Tyrannosaur) – all collected from the nearby Hell Creek Formation. Free. Open all year. 406-775-6886, www.cartercountymuseum-ekalaka.org. Located at 306 N. Main, Ekalaka; MT Hwy 7, 35 mi. S. of Baker and U.S. Hwy 12.

Makoshika State Park, Glendive

Makoshika (meaning “bad land” in Lakota) is part of the late Cretaceous Hell Creek Formation; more than ten different dinosaur species have been discovered in or near Makoshika’s borders. Significant finds include a complete Triceratops horridus skull (on display at the park’s Visitor Center), fossil remains of Edmontosaurus and Tyrannosaurus rex and a nearly complete skeleton of the rare Thescelosaur. Open year-round; camping sites available. 406-377-6256, http://fwp.mt.gov/parks. Located 1.4 mi. S.E. of Glendive on Snyder Ave., follow State Park/Dinosaur Track signs through town.

Makoshika Dinosaur Museum, Glendive

The Makoshika Dinosaur Museum displays fossils from around the world. The late Cretaceous, Jurassic and Ages of the Sea Cavern are interpreted. Showcase displays include life-sized Allosaurus and Stegosaurus in combat. Pterosaurs of all sizes, a full-size T. rex skull and many "fleshed-out" dinosaur sculptures. Open Memorial Weekend-Sept 1; winter hours by appt. 406-377-1637. Located at 111 W. Bell St., downtown Glendive. For updated information check the website. www.makoshika.com.

Garfield County Museum, Jordan

The Garfield County Museum features Cretaceous fossils from the Hell Creek Formation. The first T. rex ever discovered was found near Jordan in 1902! Free attractions include a full T. rex skull, full-size Triceratops replica, and a Pachycephalosaur domed skull. Open June 1-Sept 1, 1- 5 p.m. daily, 406-557-2517. Local dinosaur digs available at www.paleoworld.org. or 557-2226. Located on U.S. Hwy 200, Jordan.

Fort Peck Interpretive Center
and Museum, Fort Peck

The Fort Peck Interpretive Center's signature attraction is "Peck's RexTM," one of the most complete Tyrannosaurus rex skeletons ever found. The lobby features a life-size replica model of Peck's Rex, and the exhibit hall displays a full-size skeleton cast. A Cretaceous Sea display and several other dinosaurs exhibits are also highlighted. Free. Open daily May-Sept. Seasonal hours Oct-Apr. 406-526-3493 www.nwo.usace.army.mil/html/Lake_Proj/fortpeck/museum.html Located 1.5 mi. E. of Fort Peck townsite, Lower Yellowstone Rd.

Blaine County Museum, Chinook

The Blaine County Museum's Paleontology Department displays a dozen Judith River Formation exhibits including Hadrosaur, Gorgosaurus, and Ankylosaurus fossils from the area. Remains of gigantic marine reptiles Mosasaur and Plesiosaur are featured, along with invertebrates from the area's ancient ocean (75-500 million years past). In the Look, Touch, and Wonder room guests can handle fossils of sea creatures, plants, and dinosaurs that roamed this area millions of years ago. Open all year: Memorial Day-Labor Day: Mon-Sat 8 a.m.-12 p.m. & 1-5 p.m., Sun 12-5 p.m.; May & Sept: M-F 8 a.m.-12 p.m., & 1-5 p.m.; Oct-Apr: M-F 1-5 p.m. 406-357-2590, www.chinookmontana.com. Free. Located 4 blocks off U.S. Hwy 2, 501 Indiana Street

Located 4 blocks off HWY 2, 501 Indiana Street.

Exhibits		Unique paleontology displays, interpretation, replicas or actual skeletons of dinosaurs and other fossils found in Montana.

Programs		Facility provides public/visitor education programs and/or guided tours of paleontology displays associated with the facility. Regularly scheduled or upon request.

Field Digs		Facility operates or is formally affiliated with organization(s) conducting paleontology field digs open to the public. Strict adherence to the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology Code of Ethics is required. Black icons indicate activity available at each location.

Fort Peck Field Station of Paleontology,Fort Peck

This unique working field station associated with the University of Montana’s Paleontology Department is a state fossil repository. Here, paleontologists research, prepare, mold and cast fossil finds. The full scale cast of “Peck’s Rex™” featured at the nearby Fort Peck Interpretive Center and Museum was made here. Gift shop offers cast replicas and other fossil-related items for sale. Open Mon-Fri, 9 a.m-4 p.m. May–Sept. Seasonal hours Oct–Apr. Large groups encouraged to make appointments, 406-526-3539, www.pecksrex.com. Located at 40 Deer Born Rd., across from the Fish Hatchery.

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Phillips County Museum, Malta

The Phillips County Museum features fossil discoveries from the nearby Judith River Formation (late cretaceous period, 77 million years ago). Features include a 33-foot long skeleton of “Elvis” the Brachylophosaurus, one of the best articulated dinosaur skeletons ever found, a complete T. rex skull, and a dynamically posed 28’ skeleton of an early T. rex cousin, Albertosaurus. Pose with a 700-pound Apatosaurus femur and shop in the gift store. Open all year Mon-Sat., 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sun 12:30-5 p.m. 406-654-1037, pcm@mtintouch.net, www.maltachamber.com/museum.htm Located on US Hwy 2, next to the Great Plains Dinosaur Museum and Field Station.

Great Plains Dinosaur Museum and Field Station, Malta

Opened June 2008, the Great Plains Dinosaur Museum and Field Station houses some of Montana's finest fossils and a preparation lab. Specimen displays include Brachylophosaurs "Roberta" and "Leonardo," the mummy dinosaur recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the "best preserved" dinosaur; “Giffen” and “Gates,” Montana’s first Jurassic Stegosaurs; “Ralph,” a new species of Sauropod. View the lab where staff prepare dinosaur fossils. Museum and gift shop open daily May-Sept. and by special appointment, Mon-Sat. 10 a.m.–5p.m., Sun. 12:30-5 p.m. 406-654-5300, dinosaur@mtintouch.net, www.maltachamber.com/dinosaurs.htm Located next to the Phillips County Museum on U.S. Hwy 2.

H. Earl Clack Memorial Museum, Havre

The museum's feature displays are 75 million year old dinosaur eggs and embryos found in area exposures of the Judith River Formation. Research suggests these eggs were laid by a Lambeosaur (a "duck bill" dinosaur) along the banks of an ancient river and estuary of the Bearpaw Sea that once covered this area. In addition to the dinosaur eggs and other fossil displays, the museum highlights the story of an archeological treasure immediately north of the museum facility: the Wahkpa Chu'gn Buffalo Jump Site. Open all year. 406-265-4000. Located on U.S. Hwy 2 W. of Havre, Holiday Village Mall.

Rudyard Depot Museum, Rudyard

The Rudyard area has provided dinosaur specimens for the Museum of the Rockies (MOR) and other premier institutions for years. Now an MOR affiliate, the Depot Museum’s signature display is the "Oldest Sorehead," a fully articulated Gryposaurus found near here. The facility’s lifelike duckbill dinosaur and egg nest display places you right next to these ancient creatures, plus other permanent and changing dinosaur exhibits. Open Memorial Day to Labor Day, Mon-Sat 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Sun 1-4 p.m., Winter hours by appointment, 406-355-4322 or 4356. Located off U.S. Hwy 2, 4th Avenue NW.

Upper Musselshell Museum, Harlowton

The museum’s centerpiece is “Ava,” the full-size skeleton replica of a “first of its kind” Avaceratops, found in the Judith River Formation near Shawmut. The museum also has a Hadrosaur tibia and fibula, a cast of a Gypsonictops jaw, numerous dinosaur leg bone and hip bone fossils, and fossilized ancient sea creatures. Open Memorial Day-Labor Day. 406-632-5519, museum@mtintouch.net, www.harlowtonmuseum.com. Located at 11 & 36 South Central Ave., downtown Harlowton.

Old Trail Museum, Choteau

Unearth the Mystery, past and present, at the Old Trail Museum. The Dinosaur Antechamber showcases discoveries from the area’s Two Medicine Formation: Maiasaura and Einosaurus skulls, nestling, hatchling and adult Maiasaura skeletons and bones, and a Sauronitholestes skeleton casting are featured exhibits. A prep lab display and geologic information about the Rocky Mountain Front and Willow Creek Anticline provide additional information about the area and its rich paleontology heritage. Open seasonally. 406-466-5332, www.theoldtrailmuseum.com, otm@3rivers.net. Located at 823 N. Main St. U.S. Hwy 89.

Two Medicine Dinosaur Center, Bynum

See the first baby dinosaur bones found in North America, the Guinness Book of World Records largest, scientifically accurate dinosaur reconstruction - Seismosaurus halli (earth-shaker lizard), and other spectacular dinosaur-related displays. The Center is famous for its public, hands-on dinosaur research and education programs ranging from 3 hrs to 10 days in length. Advance registration required; some programs available for college credit. Open all year: Memorial Day-Labor Day: 9 a.m.-6 p.m., 7 days/week, closed major holidays; winter hours vary–call for appointment, 1-800-238-6873, dinoinfo@tmdinosaur.org, www.tmdinosaur.org Located on U.S. Hwy 89, downtown Bynum. Look for the dinosaurs!

Museum of the Rockies, Bozeman

Home to one of the largest collections of dinosaur fossils in the world, the Museum of the Rockies houses the world's largest T. rex skull and one of the first identified female dinosaurs in the world — an ovulating T. rex. The new Siebel Dinosaur Complex (designed by world-renowned dinosaur paleontologist and advisor to the Jurassic Park Films, Dr. Jack Horner) features some of the world's rarest fossils. Part of Montana State University-Bozeman, it is the state's official repository for both federal and state paleontological collections. Open year-round. 406-994-DINO, www.museumoftherockies.org. Located south of MSU campus, 600 W. Kagy Blvd.
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