6 Best Sights in Dinosaurland and Eastern Utah, Utah

The hundreds of petroglyphs etched into the boulders and cliffs of Nine Mile Canyon may be one of the world's largest outdoor art galleries. They're attributed to the Fremont and Ute peoples, who lived in much of what is now Utah more than a thousand years ago. The canyon also shelters the remnants of many early homesteads, stage stops, and ranches. It's important not to touch the fragile rock art because oils from your fingers can damage them. The scenic drive through Nine Mile Canyon spans about 100 miles round-trip.

Tremendous geological upheavals pushed through the Earth's surface eons ago, forming a giant oval-shape dome of rock about 80 miles long and 30 miles wide, giving rise to the name "swell." Over the years, the harsh climate beat down the dome, eroding it into a wild array of multicolor sandstone and creating buttes, pinnacles, mesas, and canyons that spread across nearly 1 million acres—an area larger than the state of Rhode Island.

Managed by the Bureau of Land Management, the Swell offers visitors spectacular sights similar to those in Utah's national parks but without the crowds. In the northern Swell, the Wedge Overlook peers into the Little Grand Canyon with the San Rafael River below, for one of the most scenic vistas in the state. The strata at the edges of the southern Swell are angled nearly vertical, creating the San Rafael Reef. Both are known for fantastic hiking, canyoneering, and mountain biking. As recently as 2018, proposals have been made to designate the Swell a national monument; until then, the San Rafael Swell remains one of the little-known natural wonders of the American West.

Interstate 70 bisects the San Rafael Swell and is the only paved road in the region. Although there are many off-road opportunities, the main gravel road and many of the graded dirt roads through the Swell are accessible to two-wheel-drive vehicles. The Swell is about 25 miles south of Price (typically considered the main gateway to the Swell), and the setting is so remote that it's essential you bring whatever supplies you might need, including plenty of water, food, and a spare tire. For directions on how to access the San Rafael Swell viewing area from Green River, turn to the Green River section of the Moab and Southeastern Utah chapter.  Always keep your wits about you, as flash flooding can be deadly, especially in the Swell's narrow slot canyons.

Paleontologists and geologists have excavated more than 12,000 dinosaur bones from the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry, making this the densest concentration of Jurassic fossils ever found. Since the quarry's discovery by herders in the 1920s, scores of dinosaur remains have been uncovered here, and much of what the world knows about the Allosaurus was discovered on these grounds. Although many of the bones found in the quarry now reside in museums around the world, a trip to the remote landscape surrounding the quarry pit is worth the journey. Paleontologists still come here for digs every year. The visitor center, which generates its own electricity from rooftop solar panels, has a reconstructed dinosaur skeleton and exhibits about the quarry, and the area has some short hiking trails. The center is 15 miles on a gravel road from the nearest services, so bring food and water and dress for desert conditions. It's 33 miles south of Price: take Highway 10 south to the Cleveland/Elmo turnoff and follow the signs.

There's free admission for ages 15 and younger.

This section of U.S. 191 climbs north from the Price and Helper vicinity, cresting at Indian Creek Pass at an elevation of 9,100 feet. It then begins a long descent into the Uinta Basin area, ending at Duchesne. The winding, 43-mile route takes you through canyons, over plateaus, and into the heart of the geology and natural beauty that define this part of Utah. Take it slow and watch for fallen rocks and rockslides, which often litter the road. There are plenty of scenic viewpoints along the way. Expect at least one hour of driving.

The 200-foot-long mural inside the Price Municipal Building is a visual narration of the history of the town and of Carbon County, beginning with the first trappers and white settlers. The painting took artist Lynn Fausett almost four years to complete back in the late 1930s.

Ever since the 1910s, archaeologists have been coming to this rural area to excavate rare natural treasures, including dinosaur bones, eggs, skeletons, and fossilized tracks. These are all on exhibit at Utah State University Eastern's Prehistoric Museum. For families, this museum offers a small but excellent kids' discovery area where children can experiment with excavating dino bones all on their own. A second hall is devoted to indigenous peoples, with displays of beadwork, clay figurines, a walk-in teepee, and other area artifacts. You can't miss the museum's gigantic mammoth and saber-toothed tiger replicas.