Red Fleet Dinosaur Trackway (Uintah County, Utah)

 

Red Fleet Reservoir provides a necessary water source for desert area around Vernal, UT. It was also the site of a very interesting find by paleontologists. Now it's time for me to replicate their find, with the help of directions and proper signage. What was found is the fossilized remnant of a muddy lake bottom, on which several small dinosaurs (believed to be dilophosarus) left their tracks for posterity.

The trail is marked by painted dinosaur prints on the desert rocks to show the way, but it still somewhat challenging to follow. The desert here is quite beautiful and offers some great views of the reservoir in the distance. 

When I finally reach the water, a number of signs provide details of the numerous tracks in the area. The area looks almost like a boat ramp. The thin sheets of shale that formed ancient lake bottom have been upturned at an angle similar to a ramp. I utilize the map to locate the tracks. It takes a minute, but eventually, begin seeing them.

There are so many tracks here. In several cases, the prints are believed to have been made by the successive steps of a single specimen, thus making it a trackway. It's really jaw-dropping to see such a rich find here. I spend several minutes locating the different tracks and trackways, comparing my own foot to the ones that created the prints, and snapping pictures. 

Returning to the jeep, I check my mileage and find that I covered about 1.9 miles. It was truly worth the visit though. Seeing such ancient footprints makes one think about what this landscape must have looked like those tens-of-millions of years ago.