They’re big, and loud, but not really scary – because of that whole “extinction” thing. Dinosaurs inspire wonder, and if your kids love to learn about them, they’ll also love visiting the sites along the Connecticut Dino Trail. The trail is, in reality, five attractions in different parts of the state that each have dinosaur-themed exhibits or activities. While you can’t visit all of them in one day, you can make a fun adventure out of visiting one every weekend, or one per month.
My family hasn’t hit all of them yet, but we’ve made great strides. Some of these places are more educational in nature, some are more about entertainment. The amount and level of dinosaur content varies at each. We were happy to find something for both of our kids, ages 8 and 15, to enjoy everywhere we went.
Hands-on Learning Experiences
I’m glad we visited Dinosaur State Park in Rocky Hill first, because this is where we had our “aha” moment. Why is there a dinosaur trail in Connecticut, anyway? Because 200 million years ago, there were a lot of dinosaurs around, particularly in the “Connecticut Valley” region. This site, a registered National Natural Landmark, has a preserved rock bed with imprints of more than 600 Theropod footprints left during the early Jurassic Period.
The displays focus on the first discovery of tracks and fossils at this site in 1966. There are more hands-on activities in the Discovery Room, where my daughter enjoyed looking at rock and mineral samples through a magnifying glass. There’s a 60-acre park outside with two miles of hiking trails, and track casting and mining activities.
Just 20 minutes away, at the Connecticut Science Center in Hartford, dinosaurs are just a small part of all there is to see and do. There are more than 165 hands-on, permanent exhibits, covering themes such as space, sports, genetics and energy. There is a roaring, animatronic Dilophosaurus on display, as well as a flying Pterosaur. Kids can also find fossils in the “Digging for Dinosaurs” sand pit.
We didn’t spend much time on the dinosaurs here. There were just too many other intriguing activities vying for our attention. My daughter spent a lot of time in the energy exhibit, while my son enjoyed the visiting Leonardo Da Vinci exhibition.
The Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History in New Haven is more of a traditional museum with static exhibits and, overall, it’s best for older kids. Because it’s a renowned center for dinosaur research, its vertebrate paleontology collection is among the largest in the U.S. When you walk through the Great Hall, you’ll be dwarfed by the 70-foot Brontosaurus skeleton, a Stegosaurus and a Triceratops. Look up, and you’ll see the world’s largest dinosaur painting, Rudolph Zallinger’s The Age of Reptiles.
You’ll also occasionally come across activity tables staffed by high school students who explain science concepts on a kids’ level. The Discovery Room lets younger children work with some interactive experiments, and they can watch a captivating colony of leaf-cutter ants living in a maze of plexiglass tubes.
Just For Fun Dino Attractions
Sometimes it’s just fun to look and listen to dinosaurs in an entertainment-based setting. The Connecticut Dino Trail has two sites that are more about fun than facts. Lake Compounce in Bristol is one of the country’s oldest amusement parks, as well as home to Splash Harbor water park. Last summer, the park unveiled a new attraction, Dino Expedition, featuring a fossil dig area and Jurassic pathways through a forest filled with more than a dozen 40-foot long animatronic dinosaurs that move and roar.
In Montville, the Dinosaur Place at Nature’s Art Village also allows you to walk among dinosaurs. Here, there are more than 40 of them along 1.5 miles of trails. Other attractions include the “aMAZE”asaurus, the Jurassic Moon Bounce, Monty’s DINO-sized playground, and Discover Depot, an indoor area with gem and gold digging.
Frequent contributor Traci L. Suppa blogs about her family’s travels at GoBIGorGoHomeBlog.com.
When You Go …
The Connecticut Dino Trail
– The Dino Trail Passport includes admission to all five attractions in one ticket.
– Becoming a Dino Trail Insider allows you to receive exclusive discounts.
– Dino Trail hotel packages are available with the Hartford Marriott Downtown, Mystic Marriott Hotel and Spa and Bear Creek Campground at Lake Compounce.
For more information
