Visiting the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology, Drumheller AB, Canada

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If you are a lover of all things dinosaur then the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology is your ultimate destination. The museum boasts over 130,000 fossils. Opening in 1985, the Tyrrell is located a couple miles outside Drumheller at Horseshoe Canyon known for its rich fossil deposits. The museum is named for Joseph Tyrrell who discovered the first dinosaur bones in 1884 while seeking coal seems. Everything is colossal and spectacular about the place. There is so much to see and ground to cover that you may go on dinosaur overload. The Dinosaur Hall features 40 full size skeletons including tyrannosaurus rex. There are giant teeth, claws and jaws. Massive rock chunk containing bird footprints. A dinosaur laying in sandstone from skull to long tail. More large stone chunks with embedded fish. Not everything is supersized. Displayed in cases are small fossilized creatures and tiny delicate plant and and leaf prints. The age of some fossils is staggering: 74 million year old turtle shell, 140 million year old plant prints, 74 million year old giant snail and 145 million year old stegosaurus. The oldest specimen is a 110 trillion year old armored bird. The museum is an endless journey through prehistoric history passing every imaginable type of dinosaur and other creatures. The majority of fossils and complete skeletons are Canadian but some are from south of the border in the US. There is a sabertooth tiger from the famed La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles. Visitors can see the preparation lab where fossils are being worked on. The exhibitions are beautifully mounted and presented. “Bearpaw Sea” focuses on ancient marine life. Step “outside” into the Cretaceous garden. The second level is a reef area dating 380 million years ago. Visitors should allow plenty of time to take it all in. Kids will love the place. Since there is no real Jurassic Park, the Royal Tyrrell Museum is the next best thing.