Big Water Visitor Center | Dinosaurs

Posted in Museums
Updated April 26, 2023

On a recent trip to Kanab, we visited the Big Water Visitor Center near Lake Powell. One of our readers told us that this Visitor Center was full of interesting dinosaur fossils, and they were right. If you are in the area, we recommend a quick stop at the Big Water Visitor Center. It’s free and educational.

Although this museum is small, it has a lot to see and a lot of information.

Inside

The Big Water Visitor Center is an information center for Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. This Visitor Center is along Highway 89 between Kanab and Page. The Visitor Center is home to lots of fossils and rocks. You can also ask questions about the national monument and the surrounding area.

The employees were very helpful and hopped right up when we came in. They showed us some of their favorite fossils and answered a few questions. Then they gave us time to explore the small museum. The entire back wall is one large mural showcasing the dinosaurs that lived in this area.

The rangers were excited to show us this baby dinosaur that has so many bones found.

The Big Water Visitor Center is not very large. It is just one room, but there is a lot to see in this small area. There is information about mammoth fossils that were found in Grand Staircase. And we were fascinated by the Utahceratops fossils. One of the neat things about this museum is that all of the fossils were found in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. So, it was amazing to see the flipper from a water dinosaur, and huge skulls from other dinosaurs that lived right in this area of Utah.

The mural is of Utah’s past was really beautiful.

Mammoths are one of Utah’s past residents.

Big Water Visitor Center also has some interesting rocks on display.

Outside

Make sure to spend some time outside at the monument. The building is designed to look like an ammonite fossil, which are sea fossils found in the area. Make sure to find the sign that talks about this design. There are also some other dinosaur fossils on display outside.

We think the building design is so creative.

There are nice restrooms if you are using the Big Water Visitor Center as a stop on your drive. If you enjoy dinosaurs, make sure to check our our list of Dinosaur Destinations in Utah for other ideas. Also, don’t miss out on all of the fun things to do near Kanab in this part of the state. For current hours and location, visit the Big Water Visitor Center website.