The Big Water Visitor Center is one of four visitor centers in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, each with a different theme. However, the Big Water Visitor Center is more like a real-world time machine focusing on the early geologic and paleontological discoveries in this region.
Located between Kanab, Utah, and Page, Arizona, along Highway 89, it is a great place to stop if you love rocks, dinosaurs, or both! Visitors will be greeted by friendly, knowledgeable staff and several paleontology exhibits that were discovered locally, right here on the Monument. Since 2005, fourteen new dinosaur species from the Monument, and one from Utah State Land north of Big Water, have been named. This makes the Monument one of the most productive places to find new dinosaur species in North America! These world-class fossils largely represent animals and ecosystems unknown prior to 2000, something that surprised even researchers working on the Monument.
So if you are planning a trip to the Monument, consider making a stop at the Big Water Visitor Center. For inquisitive minds, there is a full-length mural inside the Visitor Center that depicts the Late Cretaceous landscape, paleontology and geology exhibits, and of course everyone’s favorite – dinosaur bones.
To learn more, visit the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Visitor Centers page.