Field Station: Dinosaurs

Hadrosaurus

This past weekend was the opening day of Field Station: Dinosaurs, a 20-acre outdoor educational park filled with 31 animatronic dinosaurs, located next to Laurel Hill Park in Secaucus, NJ.

It is set up so that visitors walk an outdoor trail that looks like an expedition site and along the way come across moving, breathing and roaring dinosaurs. The dinosaurs are to scale.

Of course, New Jersey is not a new home for dinosaurs or paleontology. The park has some NJ natives including the Hadrosaurus (our state dinosaur) and the Dryptosaurus.

Our state once had many dig sites. There are still active digs including one in Gloucester County that still yields plant and animal fossils.

The park is a mix of science and theater. Guy Gsell, the park's president and chief executive producer, was previously the founding director of Discovery Times Square in Manhattan. The park has interactive workshops and games, such as game shows, dinosaur meet and greets, a fossil dig site, and interactive shows featuring a 15-foot animatronic T-Rex puppet.

Field Station: Dinosaurs is located at One Dinosaur Way, which connects to New Country Road in Secaucus. It is accessible via exit 15X on the NJ Turnpike, and within walking distance of the Secaucus NJ Transit station. Admission is $25 for adults and $20 for children ages 12 and younger, and senior citizens. Children younger than the age of two are admitted free.

From May 26-June 17, hours are: Sat & Sun from 10am - 5pm; Weekdays - school groups only. From June 20 to September 3, the Field Station is OPEN EVERY DAY, from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

For more information on the park, visit www.fieldstationdinosaurs.com