Haggerman Fossil Beds National Monument isn't one of those jaw-dropping kinds of places. The visitor center is pretty small and the Monument doesn't have incredible views or cultural sites. What it did have was a hilarious interpretive ranger.
(Ok, technically he was an Idaho State Parks ranger, but it's a joint NPS-ISP site so don't worry about it too much.)
I played the part of Weird Dad and asked the ranger what the coolest thing was. He pointed us at a huge skull. "It belongs to a third grader!"
Um, what?
Yeah, we send the kids into the caves because they're smaller and the cliffs don't collapse as easily.
Wait. What?!?
Nah. The huge skull belonged to an adolescent mammoth analogous to a human third grader.
Oh. That's not nearly as exciting.
Anyway, they had skulls and stuff. Worth going to get your NPS Passport stamp.
📍On the lands of the Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla people.
