Dinosaur State Park and Arboretum
Submitted by Andy_B on Tuesday, 02 June 2020 Page Views: 482
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Country: United States, Connecticut County: Hartford, CT
Type: Ancient Dinosaur Tracks
Nearest Town: Hartford, CT (11.5 km or 7.15 miles south), off of Rt. 91
Latitude: 41°39′03″N Longitude: 72°39′28″W
There were no Thunderbolt casino bonuses during the times of the dinosaurs (if there had been, the dinosaurs might have stuck around a little longer). Food, shelter, and running away from predators were at the top of the priority lists of these ancient . And, of course, dodging meteors that eventually led to their extinction - without much success.
Can you just imagine being the bulldozer operator that discovered those tracks? One day, you go to work, like any other day. You dig a hole, and move the dirt from one place to another place. Day in and day out Not much new and exciting happens in your world. Then one day, it starts out like any other day in 1966, you're using your machine to dig a site for a new state office building. Then all of a sudden, you find these dinosaur tracks. What do you do? Do you just say, “That’s nice” and move on with your life? Do you contact your supervisor? What does your supervisor do?
Well fortunatley, the workers realized that what they had uncovered was not something you find every day, so they stopped working and contacted the local historical society.
The area was registered as a National Landmark, and the site opened as Dinosaur State Park in 1968. The seven acres of dinosaur tracks have been memorialized for future generations to enjoy.The park has a 55,000-square-foot (5,100 m2) geodesic dome that encloses around 500 ancient dinosaur tracks. Another 1500 remain buried for preservation. The tracks are from the early Jurassic period, over 200 million years ago and made on what must have been the sandy shore of a lake. Some tracks were made by a carnivorous dinosaur similar to the dilophosaurus. The tracks range from 10 to 16 inches each. By comparison, an adult human food is on average between 9 inches to 11 inches. In addition to the tracks, the dome houses lifesize dioramas of plants and creatures that depict the Triassic and Jurassic periods.
Dinosaur State Park also has an Arboretum, nature trails, and educational programs. When the weather permits, visitors are also able to make casts of a dinosaur footprint on Tuesdays to Sundays from May 1 to October 31 from 9:00am to 3:30 pm. The process does not work well in wet weather.
The park provides the Eubrotes tracks, metal rings, and water. You will need to bring ¼ cup cooking oil, cloth rags and paper towels, a 5-gallon plastic bucket, and 10 pounds of Plaster of Paris (no substitutes). The entire process takes 30 to 45 minutes. You can also mine for gems and fossils, and there is a picnic area. Dinosaur State Park is a really interesting place to visit with the kids (or even by yourself).
With many thanks to Staci Myers, Glenn Kraek, Thunderbolt Casino and Dinosaur State Park for their kind help and support for this article, including Creative Commons images.
