Category Archives: Dallas Day Trips

Texas Dinosaurs and Mammoths

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Calling all North Texas dinosaur lovers and would-be-paleontologists! While you wait for the DVD release of Jurassic World, why not check out two local dinosaur (and mammoth) venues?

Dinosaurs Live!

North Texas Ramblings - Dinosaurs Live Heard Natural Science MuseumBeware! Beasts not seen for millions of years stalk the Heard Natural History Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary in McKinney from now through mid-February. Dilophosaurus, Stegosaurus, and the infamous Tyrannosaurus Rex roam the trails at the wildlife sanctuary – almost like Jurassic World. These life-sized replicas roar and move delighting young dinosaur enthusiasts.

Billings Production in McKinney makes the animatronic creatures. The Heard dinosaurs are part of over 200 Billings’ dinosaurs found at zoos and museums throughout North American. The robotic dinosaurs are uniquely adapted to operating outdoors. A hinged steel structure within the fabricated body allows dinosaur heads and limbs to move. A computer program further enhances dinosaur movements, making these monstrous creatures look and act almost real — Jurassic Park Texas style.

While the dinosaurs draw the crowds, there is much more to the Heard Natural History Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary. Once you’ve explored the dinosaur trek, take a stroll through The World Conservation exhibit to see modern day animals. Some animals are native to North America and others like the lemur are from exotic locales. Many exhibit animals imprinted with humans and can’t be released into the wild. Seized from an illegal animal breeder, some animals found new homes at the wildlife sanctuary. There are mongoose and capybara, the world’s largest rodents. An albino raccoon found a home here too.

The Heard Natural History Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., and on Sunday from 1 until 5 p.m. Pets are not allowed in the sanctuary and there is an admission fee. The trails around Dinosaurs Live are accessible with a stroller, however all trails within the sanctuary are on natural, unpaved surfaces — challenging for wheel chairs and strollers. Picnic areas are available. The Heard Natural History Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary is at 1 Nature Place in McKinney. Contact them at 972-562-5566 or through their Dinosaurs Live website.

Waco Mammoth National Monument

This past week, a mammoth found in a Michigan farmer’s field gained national attention. But, did you know that one of the largest herds of mammoth ever discovered in North America is right here in North Texas?

Visit Waco Mammoth National Monument and travel back in time 68,000 years. It’s the Ice Age but without the ice. Instead, grassy plains cover North Texas; and ice age animals like the Columbian mammoth, camel, and saber-tooth cat wander the grasslands.  A nursery herd of mammoth (cows and calves) peacefully graze along a creek bed until a flash flood buries the entire herd. Fast forward to 1978 when two teenage boys, looking for arrowheads, spot a bone embedded in the dry creek bed. The boys’ find yielded the largest nursery herd of Columbian mammoth (19 mammoths and a camel) ever discovered.

Baylor University paleontologists worked the site for years, uncovering mammoth from three separate floods that trapped these prehistoric animals over thousands of years. The Baylor scientists have found over two dozen mammoth, camels, and a young saber-tooth cat.

Baylor University and the City of Waco opened the Waco Mammoth Site to the public in 2009. Just this summer, the mammoth site became a National Monument. Docent-led tours give visitors fascinating facts about Ice Age Texas and its inhabitants. You also gain insights into a paleontologists’ world. While most bones were jacketed and transported for further study, many have been left in place. A climate-controlled building surrounds the dig site and a boardwalk pathway winds through the building allowing visitors to see mammoth bones as they were found. Tiered excavations stair-step the dig site displaying finds from all three major flood events. Wall murals illustrate the Colombian mammoths’ size and appearance.

The visitors center and dig site are located within a scenic parkland along the banks of the Bosque River. The Waco Mammoth National Monument is at 6220 Steinbeck Bend Road in Waco. The site is open Tuesday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. There is a fee for the guided tour.

You can find more Waco attractions at our Waco Day Trip post.

 

 

Scarborough Renaissance Festival

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What do turkey legs, knife throwing acts, wenches, and men in tights all have in common?

They’re all things you’ll find at the Scarborough Renaissance Festival.

Scarborough FestivalHeld on weekends from April through May, the festival combines high fantasy and courtly adventure, offering visitors an opportunity to enter a whimsical realm. Staged around sixteenth century England, Scarborough Renaissance Festival has a little something for everyone. You can ride a camel, engage in a sword fight, and  enjoy wine tasting at the Vinery. The entertainment is top notch. Be sure to catch Don Juan and Miguel who bill their show as sword fighting, comedy, and romance. These two have performed at Renaissance festivals for almost three decades. The Star Dancers are another crowd favorite, but be careful as you may find yourself onstage and part of the belly dancing.

Visitor tips

Buy a program. If you purchase nothing else, buy the souvenir program. It contains all the information you’ll need for the day including performance times, craft demonstration locations, and information on all the eateries and merchants. Best of all, there’ll be a map.

Dress the part. First, you don’t have to wear a costume to enjoy the festivities. However, the festival is the ideal place to wear that kilt in your closet, medieval Halloween costume, or leftover Harry Potter wizard cape. Visitors can also rent costumes inside fair grounds. And festival merchants sell everything from medieval robes to belly dancing outfits, though you’ll pay a hefty price for your attire. As for the kids, flower hair wreaths, fairy wings, and wooden swords are big hits with the youngsters.

The festival employs a troupe of paid, costumed actors. The actors set the stage. But it’s the costumed visitors who make for the best people watching.

Eat like a king. Within the festival grounds, food purveyors sell everything from turkey legs to baked potato. You won’t go hungry but you can expect to pay as much to eat as you did for your admission ticket. While you can’t bring outside food into the parks, one economical way to get around the high prices is to enjoy a tailgate picnic back at your car. Just be sure to get your hand stamped for readmission.

Bring dollar bills. Yes, admission includes entertainment on half a dozen stages along with smaller acts scattered around the village. However, expect the performers to pass the hat (or hat facsimile) around for tips following every performance. Tipping is optional. But these folks work hard for minimal wages, and some of the smaller acts working entirely for tips. If you liked the act, tip the performer a buck or two.

Wear sun protection. Don’t forget your sun screen. Texas can be hot even outside the summer months. A hand fan or paper umbrella work well to cool you down or provide a little shade.

When you go.

Scarborough Renaissance Festival is in Waxahachie at 2511 FM 66 (just off of Interstate 35). The festival operates Saturday and Sunday, from 10 a.m. until 7 p.m. For the best price on admission, purchase your tickets online or visit your local Kroger for discounted tickets. Adult admission begins at $22 and children’s admission begins at $9. Visit the festivals website at www.srfestival.com for more information.

Eisenhower’s Birthplace in Denison

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It’s almost President’s Day, so how about a day trip to the birthplace of our thirty fourth president? World War II hero and President, Dwight D. “Ike” Eisenhower was born in Denison, Texas.

North Texas Ramblings - Eisenhower's Birthplace in DenisonLocated just 70 miles north of Dallas near the Oklahoma border, Denison thrived as a railroad town in the 1880s. Eisenhower’s father, David, came to Denison to work for the Missouri-Kansas-Texas (KATY) Railroad in 1889. David and his wife, Ida, already had two boys. Dwight, their third child, would be born in 1890. The Eisenhowers lived in Denison only three years, returning to Kansas when Dwight was just a toddler. Ironically, Dwight Eisenhower did not even know he was born in Denison until mid-life. A Denison teacher, Ms Jennie Jackson, thought she remembered the Eisenhowers, and discovered the family’s link to the town by combing through old city records. Following World War II, the local community bought the house where Dwight Eisenhower was born and that his family had rented while living in Texas. Eisenhower visited Denison for the first time as an adult in 1946 having breakfast with community leaders and Ms Jackson at his birthplace home.

The Texas Historical Commission now operates the site. The Dwight D. Eisenhower Library and Museum, in Abiliene Kansas, houses the presidential papers and almost all presidential artifacts. However, Eisenhower’s Birthplace in Denison has a small collection of Eisenhower memorabilia including a painting by the President. A film in the visitor’s center provides a short history of President Eisenhower’s life and legacy. The docent-lead tour is well worth the admission cost. The knowledgeable guides paint a picture of Denison life in the 1890s, and shares a wealth of information about the challenges Eisenhower’s parents faced in those early years when David, Ike’s father, worked for the KATY railroad.

Near the Eisenhower’s home, a larger than life bronze statue stands atop a marble base. This is one of four Robert Dean sculptures of Eisenhower in military uniform. The other three statues are at West Point, the London Embassy and at his presidential library in Abilene.

Eisenhower’s Birthplace (609 S. Lamar, Denison, 903/465-8908) is open Tuesday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and on Sunday from 1:00 until 5:00 p.m. Admission is $4 for adults and $3 for students. There are picnic grounds next to the visitors’ center.

Winter Weekends Near Dallas

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While our northern neighbors are shoveling snow, Dallasites can take advantage of moderate winter weather. In fact, many of these destinations are best visited in winter or early spring before our hot summer heat makes outdoor activities unbearable. Whether it’s a family safari, gathering fossils or diamond hunting, here are five family-friendly winter weekend destinations within driving distance of Dallas.

Mineral Wells, Texas.

Mineral Wells Fossil Park will capture young paleontologists’ imaginations. Located just 80 miles southwest of Dallas, the park contains thousands of small, prehistoric sea life fossils. The park was once a borrow pit used by the city for dirt fill. Years of rain and erosion exposed the 300 million old fossils with many readily visible throughout the pit.

Gathering fossils is easy – no digging necessary. Bring a small baggie for collecting treasures. You won’t find a dinosaur here, but you can keep what you unearth! The park is free, and is open Friday through Monday.

Glen Rose, Texas

Fossil Rim Wildlife Center is as close as you’ll get to an African safari without boarding a plane. Spanning 1800 acres near Glen Rose, Texas, the sprawling complex is home to North Texas Ramblingsover 50 species of exotic African and Eurasian animals. The most common way to observe the animals is from your car. Buy a bag of animal feed and you’ll make a herd of new friends as you drive the nine mile park route.

Nearby Dinosaur World will thrill pint-sized dino lovers with over 100 dinosaur replicas.

Waco, Texas

Waco Mammoth Site is an often overlooked destination. In 1978, two teenage boys spotted a bone embedded in a dry Waco creek bed. The boys’ find became the largest nursery herd of Columbian mammoth (19 mammoths and a camel) discovered. The Waco Mammoth Site opened to the public in 2009. Docent-led tours take you through a climate-controlled building surrounding the dig site where you can see mammoth bones as they were found.

While in Waco, stop by the Texas Rangers Hall of Fame. Most of the museum focuses on real Texas Rangers, but one section is dedicated to our fictional heroes like those in Lone Ranger and Walker Texas Ranger television series.

Murfreesboro, Arkansas

Crater of the Diamond State Park may make you rich. Or so you hope. About 250 miles east of Dallas, the park is the only diamond mine open to the public. To the uninitiated, the mine looks like nothing more than a plowed farmer’s field. But appearances can be deceiving. Hidden in the dirt furrows are diamonds, agate, jasper and quartz.

Park visitors find over 500 diamonds each year, though most diamonds are less than the size of a pea. Adventurous families can camp at the park or the Queen of Diamonds Inn in Murfreesboro offers affordable and comfortable lodging.

Grapevine, Texas

Great Wolf Lodge Grapevine fits the bill for those wanting a weekend escape without the car drive. Your stay at the lodge includes access to their massive indoor water park – a guaranteed winner with the youngsters. Great Wolf Lodge offers special discounts for multiple night stays (up to 20 percent off) and even deeper room discounts for families staying during the weeknights.

While it’s possible to spend an entire weekend just at the lodge, be sure to take advantage of all the nearby Grapevine offers. Reopening February 22, 2013, the Grapevine Vintage Railroad transports passengers from Grapevine depot to the Stockyards in Fort Worth via old time rail cars pulled by either Puffy (a 1896 steam engine) or Vinny (a 1953 diesel engine).

Fossil Rim

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Fossil Rim Wildlife Center is an ideal family day trip. Once a hunting ranch stocked with North Texas Ramblingsexotic animals, Fossil Rim is now a nationally recognized conservation center located southwest of the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex. This unique park offers North Texans an opportunity to go on safari without ever boarding an airplane. Spanning 1800 acres near Glen Rose, the sprawling complex is home to over 50 species. Wildebeest, zebras, and giraffe roam over land resembling the Serengeti, just with a few more rolling hills than the African version.

The drive. A scenic, nine-mile drive allows you to observe the animals up close from the safe confines of your car. Be sure to purchase a food sack at the visitor’s center. You’ll make instant friends with the long-necked ostriches and the ever greedy addax who seem to take turns stopping vehicles for handouts. There are fallow deer, Thomson’s gazelles, kudo, and bongo. The park’s antelope herds are nothing short of impressive.

Fossil Rim offers several ways to enjoy the preserve and its inhabitants. The self-guided drive is the most common way to see the park. Visitors must remain in their vehicles but are welcome to stop anywhere along the drive to feed the animals. Each vehicle is restricted to one food bag, but that is enough to make countless two and four legged friends along the way. Expect to take a minimum of two hours to travel the circuit. Stop at the Overlook, the drive’s halfway point, for lunch with tables available for picnickers. I recommend a visit to the Overlook Café for both the Fossil Rim Burger and the awesome view.

Guided tours. For an even closer look at the animals, try one of many guided tours. The Behind the Scenes tour is available daily and other specialty tours occur on a scheduled basis. My family went on the Discovery After Dark, a monthly tour. An open-air vehicle took us through the park at dusk. We learned about Fossil Rim’s successful cheetah and white rhino breeding programs, fed the shy bongo and were delighted when a giraffe stopped by for dinner – there is nothing quite like a giraffe eating out of your hand!

Details. Fossil Rim Wildlife Center is a not-for-profit organization and member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. The center is involved in Species Survival Plan® programs for over a dozen species including rhino, oryx and zebra. Fossil Rim is also engaged in SSP programs for North American animals too like the wolf and our own Texas Attwater’s prairie chicken. Located at 2155 County Road 2008 in Glen Rose, the wildlife center is open daily. For more information, visit their website at fossilrim.org.