Day 5 – Dinosaur museum/ The Mercury mine – Drumheller – Wayne
So I woke up this morning and deciding I wanted to take the entire day to explore Drumheller and area. as well as finding out about the hotel. I decided to pay for a room in the 5 room hotel. With my stuff now safe and secure I hoped on the scooter and headed into Drumheller. First stop of course being Tim Hortons before taking off to the Royal Tyrrell dinosaur museum.
Royal Tyrrell Museum
operated by Alberta’s Ministry of Culture and Community Spirit.
Mission: to collect, preserve, research and interpret palaeontological history with special reference to Alberta’s fossil heritage.
The Museum is named in honour of Joseph Burr Tyrrell, a geologist who discovered the first dinosaur in the Red Deer River Valley in 1884. The Museum opened September 25, 1985 and was given “Royal” status by Queen Elizabeth II in 1990. In its first year of operation, the Museum attracted over 500,000 visitors. The average annual number of visitors is approximately 400,000. In 2010 the museum welcomed its 10-millionth visitor, a young boy from Edmonton.
More than 4,400 square metres (47,000 sq ft) of the museum’s 11,200 square metres (121,000 sq ft) is dedicated to exhibits in a series of chronological galleries celebrating the 3.9 billion year history of life on Earth. One of the most popular is “Dinosaur Hall”, with almost 40 mounted dinosaur skeletons, including specimens of Tyrannosaurus rex and Albertosaurus. Other exhibits include “Lords of the Land”; “Burgess Shale”, a diorama of dozens of creatures from Yoho National Park in British Columbia; “Devonian Reef”, a life-size model of a 375 million year old reef; a “Cretaceous Garden”, with over 600 living species of plants, and “Age of Mammals” and “Ice Ages” which cover mammalian life in the Cenozoic. “Triassic Giant” is a 1,700 square feet (160 m2) long specimen of the largest known marine reptile. The 21 metres (69 ft) long ichthyosaur Shonisaurus sikanniensis was recovered from the shores of the Sikanni Chief River in northeastern British Columbia by a team led by Elizabeth Nicholls, former curator of Marine Reptiles. This exhibit pays homage to the work of Nicholls, who died in 2004.
A window into the “Preparation Lab” allows visitors to watch technicians as they carefully prepare fossils for research and exhibition. Additional offerings include guided and self-guided tours of the badlands, the hands-on “Nexen Science Hall” with interactive stations that introduce important palaeontological concepts, simulated fossil digs, fossil casting, school programs, summer camps for both children and families, and much more.
The Royal Tyrrell Museum is a popular Canadian tourist attraction and a leading centre of palaeontological research noted for its collection of more than 130,000 fossils.
Located 6 kilometres (4 mi) from Drumheller, Alberta and 135 kilometres (84 mi) from Calgary, the museum is situated in the middle of the fossil-bearing strata of the Late Cretaceous Horseshoe Canyon Formation and holds numerous specimens from Dinosaur Provincial Park and the Devil’s Coulee Dinosaur Egg Historic Nest Site.
Site: http://www.traveldrumheller.com/royal-tyrrell-museum.html
Things to do at the Royal Tyrrell Museum
The first thing to do at the Royal Tyrrell is walk through the galleries and marvel at the amazing displays and exhibits that highlight millions of years of our Earth’s history. For a preview of what there is to see, visit Exhibits at the Tyrrell.
After the galleries, why not hike through the Badlands with an dinosaur expert? Or how about join an expedition for real dinosaur remains? These and many other programs are available at the Royal Tyrrell Museum. To see what there is to do, visit Programs at the Tyrrell.
Visitor Information for the Royal Tyrrell Museum
long with the great exhibits and programs, the museum also features free parking, a full-service cafeteria, stroller and wheelchair rentals, audio guides, an outdoor picnic and playground area, as well as a gift shop. And don’t forget your camera because photos are allowed (just leave your lights, tripods, and stands at home).
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One-day pass: Adult (18-64) $11.00 Senior (65+) $8.00 Youth (7-17) $6.00 Children (6 and under) FREE Family $30.00** Cooperating Society Members Free Experience Alberta’s History Pass Free |
Two-day pass: Adult (18-64) $16.50 Senior (65+) $12.00 Youth (7-17) $9.00 Children (6 and under) FREE Family $45.00** Cooperating Society Members Free Experience Alberta’s History Pass Free |
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*Rates are subject to change without notice. **Family rate includes two adults and their children (ages 7 – 17). max 8 |
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Maps and Directions to the Royal Tyrrell Museum
Click the map to the left for a printable copy of the Drumheller Valley Map. The Royal Tyrrell Museum is located 6 km west of Drumheller on North Dinosaur Trail (Hwy 838). If traveling by foot, click to see the Pedestrian Trail Map – it will take you from the town centre straight to the museum.
Contact Information for the Royal Tyrrell Museum
Royal Tyrrell Museum
Drumheller, Alberta, Canada
Toll free in Alberta: 310-0000 then 403-823-7707
Toll free in North American (outside Alberta): 1-888-440-4240
Outside North America: 403-823-7707
Office hours: Monday to Friday, 8:15 am – 4:30 pm (MST)
Email: tyrrell.info@gov.ab.ca
Or visit the Royal Tyrrell Museum Website http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/
After spending close to 3 hours walking through all the exhibits and even doing a Dino dig, I hoped back on the Scooter and was off to my next adventure… The Mercury mine.
A coal mine that was operational from 1925 to 1959. The mine was located a few kilometers north west of Drumheller. This was one of the largest coal mines in the area. Operation of the mine begun by newly spawned company Mercury Collieries, which was later renamed the Midland Coal Mining Limited. This company was started by Seneca L. McMullan, one of the founder of the coal industry in Alberta. The mine is no longer present, & is a park. No collecting & artifact removal allowed. The site can we visited for historical purposes.
This was just a quick 30min stop as the mine was no longer there, just some signs of what was there, and some old part remains.
Heading back to Wayne. While back at the last chance saloon & rosedeer hotel, I was getting ready for bed when I met up with a few guys who were intown for the weekend for a disc golf tournament. While hanging out drinking with them a few hours, I could never of guessed what I was about to see. The northern lights, I don’t think I have ever seen sometime so fascinating in my life!