Location: Kemmerer
Top Things to do in Kemmerer
Top 10 Things to do in Kemmerer, Wyoming (WY)
Kemmerer is the largest city in and the county seat of Lincoln County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 2,656 at the 2010 census. As the county seat of Lincoln County, Kemmerer is the location of the Lincoln County Courthouse.
Restaurants in Kemmerer
1. Ham's Fork River
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 2 reviews
Remote river popular among fishermen.
2. Fossil Safari at Warfield Fossil Quarries
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 89 reviews
Reviewed By danielfF1719XJ - Blair, United States
For a different vacation experience, why not try fossil hunting with professional quarrymen? If passing through the Kemmerer, Wyoming region, and you have time to take a 2 hour detour (half hour there and back, and at least an hour of digging), you can have a lot of fun with almost guaranteed success of uncovering something truly ancient. Actually, for a complete experience, one should first stop at the nearby Fossil Butte National Monument for the background history of the prehistoric lake, and view some extraordinary fossil finds, such as crocodiles. The visitor center has paved roads right up to the door, is free, and is a completely modern facility. Explicably, when traveling Wyoming, you quickly discover that anything worth visiting, any good trail to hike that is not within a national park boundary, any natural feature, etc., is on a dirt/gravel road. That is just the way it is. These roads are not like the gravel roads of the midwest where the speed limit is 50 mph. These can be decent in some places, or have potholes, and may have rocks sticking up 3 to 6" in different places. With a conventional low-clearance automobile, I was able to negotiate the 20-30 miles (cannot recall the full distance once departing the highway) at about 30 mph. If it had just rained 2" then I would not have felt as adventurous, unless I was in something SUV height. But then of course, Wyoming does not get a lot of rain The road to Fossil Safari (Warfield Fossil Quarries) is the same road that leads you to American Fossil Quarries. They are within close proximity of each other. The roads are marked, and Google maps was functional most of the time, so a Cell tower must be near. This is not always the case when negotiating ranch or fire roads in Wyoming. The quarry manager was very helpful and accomodating. The tools were in great condition. In order to provide a satisfying experience, there was an option to split plates of the soft rock that were previously extracted and set aside for quick access. I opted to go right to the freshly freed rock right at the base of the quarry wall. Optionally, you can pull rock a little higher off the stair-stepped quarry wall, and have a chance to find some interesting fossils, but perhaps little or nothing at all. However, if you pull out rock plates from the "fish layer", where pointed out by the quarry manager, it is nearly impossible not to find little brown fish. My advice - find the dryest rock plates possible for your splitting. You can start with a 1 1/2" thick plate, and keep splitting into thinner pieces as little as a quarter inch or less. This includes huge plates 2' or 3' in diameter. The rock plates in the piles along the base of the quarry wall will vary in moisture content as to whether they have seen enough sun or wind to dry out. As you pull plates from the lower reaches of the pile, you will find the stone looking a little darker and cool to the touch. These will not split easily and will crumble more. A good reason to opt for splitting the stone piled away from the wall, that has been drying in the sun. Do not overlook the small rocks, splitting even a 8" diameter piece of rock can yield a fish fossil. For most of my hour there I was the only customer, and the manager trimmed one of the fossil finds down to a manageable size for me. Otherwise be prepared for packing the fossils you want to take home in something that will contain all the white dust that will also be all over your legs. I highly recommend fossil hunting at Fossil Safari!
3. Pisces Prehistoric
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 10 reviews
4. American Fossil
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 98 reviews
American fossil is giving you the opportunity of a lifetime. We have the only quarry in the world where you have the opportunity to keep every fossil you find. We have recently acquired the South Dempsey Quarry, in the Green River Formation and want to make it the most exciting destination in the world for families and everyone who loves fossils or the outdoors. Our quarry is open May 15-September 30th.
Reviewed By toobugs - Redmond, United States
We came from Oregon to do this, we have always wanted to and it did not disappoint! We were a little disappointed by how roped off we were to actual fossil digging, it seemed to take the ambiance away and seemed a little too structured. BUT.... After being there a little while you understand why it has to be done this way. Piles 6 feet apart roping you into a section that you can only pick from. You obviously cannot roam free around the quarry like you see in your vision. But that is dangerous! And you could never did out chunks from that wall yourself. We had a 12 yr old and 11 yr old and they had great time, although the heat was a bit much for 4 hrs. Tips: Bring more water than you think you need! Bring camp chair without arms Sunscreen and hat! Plan to be there at hour or more AFTER your time is up packing your Fossils We didn't know the larger fossils had to ride vertical, they can't lay flat or risk breaking. Buy a large roll of bubble wrap from Home depot, cheap and works great/tape gun Staff was very helpful and we found lots of cool fish! 2nd day our daughter found a stingray!!! We will be back someday but will bring our trailer for a week of fossil digging! Thanks to the staff for helping, was a experience us and the kids won't forget!
5. Fossil Island Golf Club
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 2 reviews
Fossil Island Golf Club is a public 9 Hole Golf Course in Kemmerer, Wyoming. This course features the only dual Island Green in the United States. We offer a full bar, driving range, and practice area. We also offer a variety of merchandise with name brand equipment such as Titleist, TaylorMade, Callaway, Ping, Cleveland, Nike, and Adidas.
6. Fossil Butte National Monument
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 240 reviews
Reviewed By BisonBro - Utah, United States
This is a little out of the way stop that is full of natural history. A nice visitor center with clean bathrooms and a lot of cool displays. This area was a lake that had just the right environment for making fossils - mostly fish, some snakes, even alligators. Family and very accessible. The staff was very helpful and fun to interact with. They are set up to show a live demonstration of how they get they clean the sandstone off of the fossils. A little known spot that should be more famous than it is.
7. Ulrich's Fossil Gallery
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 43 reviews
We operate a quarry that is open to the public by reservation and we also have a gallery/store where we sell prepared and unprepared fossils to the public.
8. J.C. Penney House
9. Fossil Country Frontier Museum
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 11 reviews
A museum strictly for the fossil-enthusiasts of the world.
10. JCPenney Kemmerer (Mother) Store
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 59 reviews
Reviewed By csrockclimber - Colorado Springs, United States
Who knew that JC Penney started his empire in Kemmerer! Just down the street is his home ( note...only open in summer). Reminds me of when you go to Seattle and see the original Starbucks...just a non-descipt place where a dynasty was born. Plus, Jo, who works there is a bubbly treat to visit with.
