* SOLD OUT * Geology Field Trip – The Mesozoic

Geology Field Trip with the Draper Natural History Museum

Please note: this field trip is sold out! There’s another opportunity on September 25.

August 12, 2024
8 a.m.–noon

(Sold Out) $65 for students and Center of the West members
(Sold Out) $85 for non-members

The Mesozoic Era was an amazing time on Earth, bracketed by two mass extinctions. The Mesozoic (Jurassic, Triassic, and Cretaceous periods) saw great changes in lifeforms largely dominated by the dinosaurs. In this roadside geology field trip with the Draper Natural History Museum, we’ll look at local rocks that formed during this time, observe lots of fossils, and contemplate inland seas and deserts appearing and disappearing.

Join guides Larry Oliveria, host of the YouTube series Layers with Larry, and Digital and Outreach Educator George Miller for this exciting bit of “time travel” as we explore the Mesozoic madness of the Bighorn Basin near Cody! The four-hour field trip is designed for the student in all of us, starting and ending at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West and transporting you through the Mesozoic era in the interim. Intended for an audience of age 18 and older, this programmatic offering is more than just a field trip—it’s an opportunity to gain intimate knowledge of your backyard!

Our first geology field trips in May and June covered the oldest and youngest rocks in the Bighorn Basin. This trip will highlight the amazing middle period, the Mesozoic Era. If you missed the first trip, don’t worry, it’s not a pre-requisite for this one, which will start and end with aspects of the first trip.

During this trip, we investigate the more than 200 million years when dinosaurs ruled the land and giant reptiles ruled the inland seas from Cody to Kansas and the Arctic Circle to Texas. Topics include local Mesozoic geology as it relates to the petroleum industry; the extinction event that opened a world of opportunity for mammals; the greatest landslide in Earth’s history; and the reign of the dinosaurs, for which the Mesozoic is probably best known.

Although there is limited hiking or walking on this tour, be prepared to get in and out of vehicles at six geologic stops. Water will be available, but we ask that you bring a water bottle to help cut down on waste. There is one scheduled bathroom break, but be prepared to spend the 4-hour period away from restrooms.

Note: This field trip is now sold out. The trip was limited to a maximum of 8 people; $85 for non-members, and just $65 for Center of the West members and for students.

Due to the limited space, this field trip is fully refundable until 48 hours before the date of your tour. After 48 hours, 50 percent of the ticket price is refundable. Transportation is provided by the Center of the West.

Meet Our Instructors

Larry Oliveria retired from teaching high school science and moved to Cody in 2013. He is active in Park County schools and has led outdoor excursions in local geology/paleontology for adults in the “Spring Into Yellowstone” program. He has also led similar trips for local school children with the Science Kids Cody Program. For nine years, he served as a volunteer and now, as a research assistant, works part-time at the Draper Museum of Natural History dealing with things geological and working in the lab preparing various specimens for study.

Larry has been collecting rocks and fossils since he was a child and loves to share his extensive collections with fellow curious minds both young and old. A perpetual student, Larry continues to learn about and has developed a broad understanding of Bighorn Basin geology and paleontology. He is a long-time member of the local rock club the Cody 59ers and has given talks and led fossil exploration excursions. He says, “We live in a sort of geologic heaven exposing the history of the Earth and the life that has developed upon it spanning over two billion years that others must travel from all over the world to see, right in our backyard.”

George Miller is the Digital and Outreach Educator at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West. He has been teaching virtual geology classes for the last six years. His interests include the Yellowstone Hotspot and the Laramide Orogeny. He has collaborated with geologists from the University of Wyoming and the USGS in creating curricula for the museum.

George holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah in Anthropology, and a Master’s degree from Oregon State University in Adult Education. He has previously worked in Community Colleges and Universities and for private online education and training companies.

Additional Opportunities to Join this Geology Field Trip

• September 3 (sold out)
• September 25 (sold out)