Dinosaur Trails: Quarry Area | Canyon Area
The Dinosaur National Monument map indicates the location of each trail.
Dinosaur National Monument Hiking - Dinosaur Quarry/Split Mountain Area Trails
Box Canyon Trail Length 0.4 miles (0.6 km) Elevation change level Trailhead Beside Josie Morris Cabin Rating (1-5) ★★★★★ Two paths begin next to Josie Morris Cabin, a historic ranch at the end of Cub Creek Road, 9.5 miles east of the visitor center; the shortest winds through the lower end of Box Canyon, a sheer walled gorge once used as a corral for pigs. The canyon is cool, shady, moist, and quite overgrown, containing patches of trees, bushes, wildflowers and long grass; the floor stays level for 0.4 miles, as far as a steep rocky slope which marks the end of the trail. |
Desert Voices Trail Length 1.5 miles (2.4 km) (loop) Elevation change 160 feet (49 meters) Trailhead End of the road to Split Mountain boat launch Rating (1-5) ★★★★★ The Desert Voices Trail starts along the short side road to Split Mountain campground/boat launch, beside the Green River; it follows a usually dry streambed (Cottonwood Wash), away from the river, climbing gently up to a viewpoint at the upper end of the ravine, then loops back along the south side. There are many interpretive notices along the way (produced by local children), which describe the wildlife and geology of the area, though the views are somewhat limited for much of the way and the immediate landscape is not so interesting - just bushes and sandy mounds. Rather better views can be obtained by climbing 200 feet to the top of the ridge on the north side, since this overlooks the Green River as it flows out of Split Mountain Canyon. |
Fossil Discovery Trail Length 1.4 miles (2.3 km) (loop) Elevation change 200 feet (61 meters) Trailhead By the visitor center Rating (1-5) ★★★★★ Starting next to the Dinosaur National Monument visitor center, the Fossil Discovery Trail (also known as the Geology Trail) runs alongside the highway at the base of layered cliffs, passes an NPS employee residence/maintenance area then turns north, up a shallow ravine that cuts through jagged, colorful, upturned strata. A very short spur on the left leads to a viewpoint on top of one of the ridges, then soon after another path forks off on the right side towards several fossil sites - single, isolated dinosaur bones still securely embedded in the rock. The fossils are found on an extension of the same 67° cliff face (part of the grey/brown Morrison Formation) exposed in the dinosaur quarry, which is 600 feet west and a little higher up. Four bones are identified by white arrows painted onto the rocks; others (unmarked) can be seen by scrambling around beyond the end of the path, though a sign forbids any such exploration. Views to the south are impressive, looking out over quite a large expanse of jagged, eroded ridges and small ravines. A third side path soon reaches a not-so-interesting group of small shell fossils, while the main trail ends with a climb up a rocky gully to the quarry road, from where the start point is a 0.5 mile walk away downhill. |
Hog Canyon Trail Length 0.8 miles (1.3 km) Elevation change 40 feet (12 meters) Trailhead Beside Josie Morris Cabin Rating (1-5) ★★★★★ Hog Canyon Trail is the longer of two easy paths leading from Josie Morris Cabin into narrow canyons at the edge of the Yampa Plateau. At first the route is quite shaded, passing trees and a small pond near the cabin; it later turns north, following a small trickling stream across an open area into the mouth of the canyon, where the cliffs close in and the surroundings become quite cool and sheltered. After about 0.3 miles the canyon floor starts to gain height steadily and the official path ends, though progressing further upstream is quite possible, by climbing up the steeply-slanting rocks. |
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River Trail Length 1 miles (1.6 km) Elevation change 50 feet (15 meters) Trailhead North side of Green River campground; also accessed from Split Mountain campground Rating (1-5) ★★★★★ This mostly level trail runs across open hillsides along the west bank of the Green River, linking the two park campgrounds (Split Mountain and Green River). |
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Sound of Silence Trail Length 2 miles (3.2 km) (loop) Elevation change 400 feet (122 meters) Trailhead Along the road to Split Mountain Rating (1-5) ★★★★★ Exploring similar terrain to the nearby Desert Voices Trail (and linked to it by a 1/4 mile connecting path), the Sound of Silence Trail loops across ravines, slickrock, upturned strata and small earthen hills on the north side of the scenic drive (Tour of the Tilted Rocks) past the Dinosaur National Monument visitor center. In some places the path can be difficult to follow, but a brochure available at the trailhead has a route map and directions. The higher sections afford a fine view of Split Mountain just to the north. |
Dinosaur National Monument Hiking - Canyon Area Trails
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Cold Desert Trail Length 0.5 miles (0.8 km) (loop) Elevation change level Trailhead Canyon Area visitor center Rating (1-5) 1 The family-friendly Cold Desert Trail loops around bushy land near the Canyon Area visitor center (by the junction of US 40 and Harpers Corner Drive), and has notices about the common plant types found in the region. |
Gates of Lodore Trail Length 0.7 miles (1.1 km) Elevation change level Trailhead South end of country road 34 Rating (1-5) ★★★★★ The only trail in the north section of the national monument runs along the east bank of the Green River for a short distance, to the point where the enclosing walls become high and sheer, marking the start of the Canyon of Lodore. Noticeboards along the way give information about the plant life and geology of the area. |
Harpers Corner Trail Length 2 miles (3.2 km) Elevation change 200 feet (61 meters) Trailhead End of the road to Harpers Corner Rating (1-5) ★★★★★ The Harpers Corner Trail heads northeast from the parking area at the end of the park road, running on top of a narrow, steep-sided ridge far above Green River as it flows round a U-bend close to the Yampa River junction. The trail ends at an amazing viewpoint of the rivers, both enclosed in deep canyons cutting through twisted, eroded sedimentary rock; in the distance the convoluted, inaccessible country extends for many miles. |
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Jones Hole Trail Length 4 miles (6.4 km) Elevation change 500 feet (152 meters) Trailhead Jones Hole Fish Hatchery Rating (1-5) ★★★★★ This trail follows Jones Creek along quite a deep canyon to a beach by the confluence with the Green River, en route passing many pools and small cascades. The stream flows year round so the path is quite shaded by bushes and cottonwood trees, and the downwards gradient remains gentle all the way. After 1.8 miles, just past a ranger station, the trail reaches a junction with a longer path from Ruple Ranch and Island Park. |
Plug Hat Trail Length 0.3 miles (0.5 km) Elevation change level Trailhead Along the road to Harpers Corner Rating (1-5) ★★★★★ North of the Canyon Area visitor center, Harpers Corner Road crosses mostly flat land for 3 miles then climbs up to the top of a pinyon/juniper-covered plateau, passing the protruding summit of Plug Hat Butte. On one side of the road is a spacious, secluded picnic area, while on the far side, a short trail follows the plateau rim to a viewpoint above the highway, looking out over many square miles of desert land to the south. The path is paved, accessible to wheelchairs, and has various notices identifying the common trees and shrubs of this location - most prominent are pinyon pine and juniper. |
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Ruple Point Trail Length 8 miles (12.9 km) Elevation change 200 feet (61 meters) Trailhead Island Park Overlook, long the road to Harpers Corner Rating (1-5) ★★★★★ The longest trail in the national monument begins at Island Park Overlook, 24.5 miles along the Harpers Corner Drive; from the short side road to the viewpoint, the path heads west across open, treeless ground (Ruple Ridge), mostly along the course of an old vehicle track. It descends a little near the edge of the ridge to Ruple Point where the cliffs fall away steeply, 2,400 feet above Split Mountain Canyon and the Green River. |
Steps Trail Length 1.4 miles (2.3 km) to the viewpoint Elevation change 780 feet (238 meters) Trailhead West end of the paved road to Deerlodge Park Rating (1-5) ★★★★★ Short (half mile) path in the Deerlodge Park area at the far east of the national monument, crossing some low hills to a sandy beach at the mouth of the Yampa River canyon. Much more of the canyon can be seen by an off-trail extension, climbing a steeply-sloping hillside to the rim of sheer, 800 foot cliffs. |
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