Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Getting There & Away
Florissant is located about 35 miles west of Colorado Springs on Hwy 24. The visitor cen-
ter is in the middle of the monument on Teller County Rd 1, some 2 miles south of Hwy
24.
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Around Florissant
Sights
Rocky Mountain Dinosaur Center
(
www.rmdrc.com
; Hwy 24 at S Fairview St; adult/child $11.50/7.50; 9am-6pm Mon-Sat, 10am-5pm Sun; )
This fun dinosaur center is located in Woodland Park, 19 miles west of Colorado Springs.
The kids won't want to miss this private museum owned by working paleontologists,
where you can watch lab techs assemble casts and clean fossils from digs across the
Western states, from Montana to Texas.
Most of the 35 pieces on display are casts based on the fossils they've found. There's a
massive
Toxochelys
and
Protostega gigas,
giant marine turtles, but, as always, the T-Rex
is the star of the show.
As you drive up Hwy 24 into Woodland Park, look for the cheesy fake palms in the
rock garden. But don't snicker too much. When the dinosaurs roamed Colorado, these
were the native trees.
MUSEUM
Colorado Wolf & Wildlife
Center
( 719-687-9742;
www.wolfeducation.org
;
County Rd 42; adult/child $10/7; Tue-Sun; )
Located
between the town of Divide and Florissant off Hwy 24, this private, nonprofit wildlife
sanctuary shelters three subspecies of wolf (timber, arctic and Mexican gray), two species
of fox (red and swift) and coyotes. It offers three to four one-hour walking tours per day to
educate the public about the importance of these creatures to the ecosystem of the Rocky
Mountains. You must reserve in advance.
WILDLIFE SANCTUARY
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