We visited Dinosaur Valley State Park in Glen Rose TX and had quite the adventure. It’s such an amazing and beautiful place to bring kids, explore outdoors, learn about dinosaur history, and have a picnic!
The park itself is over 1100 acres with abundant wildlife, trails, and a turquoise river. It surprises me how much natural beauty there is in Texas as you don’t often see it in your daily commute or surroundings. You have to go out and seek it.
We started our trek at the Main Track Site where you cross the shallow river stepping on large rocks as your path leading to the Ozark Site. Here you’ll find sauropod tracks that once roamed the earth. Jonah was amazed by the size of these massive fossils. As we made our way across the river and over the rock formations, a short and relatively easy hiking trail awaits. The views of the river were a spectacular sight as I’ve never seen a river so turquoise before; beaches and oceans yes, but rivers no.
First sauropod tracks in the world discovered by R.T. Bird
The trail leads up to an Overlook which was the perfect spot to stop for a picnic lunch and take in the valley views from the top. The top of the Overlook can be a little dangerous if you have little ones full of energy as there are cliffs. But if you take caution and hang on to your wild ones, the views from the top are rewarding and worth the climb.
View of the Paluxy River Valley from the Overlook
After lunch, we made our way back down the trail and took the kids to the children’s play area. This was the perfect outlet to let the little ones run free and play without the dangers of high cliffs or falling.
Dinosaur Valley State Park has many points of interest and so many more trails. You can easily spend an entire day here exploring. For our first visit here, we spent the the right amount of time exploring to keep both kids’ interest and to tire them out before Baron’s nap time. We definitely plan to come back to explore the rest of the trails.
Travel Tips for visiting Dinosaur Valley State Park:
- Come early in the morning as soon as the park opens and visit before March before the crowds come. Crowds start to visit later in the spring and the park gets busier.
- Pack a lunch and enjoy a picnic at one of the many scenic areas.
- Crossing the river is a highlight – be prepared to get your feet wet then explore where the first sauropod track was discovered.
- Check out the larger than life size dinosaur models at the entrance or on your way out. Great for photo opps.
- Visit the gift shop where you’ll find dinosaur-related gift items. All proceeds benefit the park and provide free educational programs.