Wyoming

This is a long overdue post on our trip to Wyoming this August, courtesy of the last of Jim's frequent flier miles. The trip was inspired by one of the best Dinosaur museums in North America, but Larkin and Finn were at least as excited about their first plane trip. With three flights on the way there and two on the way home, I'd say that cup was pretty well filled.

Day one was all about dinosaurs. Here is Finn, reverently stroking *real* dinosaur eggs:

I was quite impressed by how many species Larkin and Finn could accurately identify based on skeletons. We divided to conquer the museum so unfortunately I have more pictures of Finn. Another favorite of his was the nest of baby Maiasauras:

We had a bit of a disappointment when we discovered that we would not be able to participate in a dig (especially since I had called to make sure our timing would correspond with one of their dig programs!), but we were able to go on a tour of one of their active dig sites. We got to see half exposed bones and some footprints. Here are Emile and the kids at the dig site, up close and personal with a bone that we were allowed to paw because it had been compromised somehow.

The town we stayed in was called Thermopolis. Yes, there were hot springs. Day two was mainly hot springs, water slides and ice cream, plus a short decompression period for Finn and I in our cabin. After dinner, we took a half hour drive through the high prairie sagebrush that is most of Wyoming to a site with petroglyphs. It turned out we arrived after hours but the kind staff let us in for a low donation of $10 and we locked the gate behind us when we left. The petroglyphs were super cool. We made up some of our own names. Man walking a stone:

Surprised dog:

Upside-down demonic gnome:

Sledding rabbits:

Ancient ancestor of Mr. Peanut, and possibly Spongebob:

On our drive back to the highway from the petroglyph site, we counted 79 antelope.

Day three was a leisurely drive back to the airport, stopping for a long swim at a high desert reservoir.

We also stopped to see "Hell's Half Acre," Wyoming's self-proclaimed answer to the Grand Canyon. While I thought that claim was a little too grand, there were some pretty interesting rock formations and colors.

I think Larkin and Finn were most impressed by eating out for Every Meal and the most anticipated Plane Rides, but we all definitely learned a lot and were exposed to some new and interesting country. Fun stuff.