Floy Wash -- a ride in dinosaur country

Green River is famous for juicy watermelons, the adventures of John Wesley Powell and, of course, the muddy green of the river for which the town is named. Not far from the watermelon stands, however, evidence that dinosaurs really did roam the earth is ready to be discovered.

I explored this area with a group of ATV friends recently. While it was not my first trip to the wash, I found myself enjoying the sites anew, through the eyes of these friends who were seeing it for the first time.

Floy Wash is accessed by traveling east on I-70 to exit 175, the first exit past Green River. Take the road south for about six miles. Floy Wash is a large, flat area to the left side of the road. Look for a fenced area to the east side of the flat for a reference point. This is a good place to unload.

The area is excellent for rock hounding. Look for gastroliths or stomach stones. Dinosaurs had gullets much like birds and swallowed stones to grind their food. When the stones became smooth, they were discarded. These gastroliths are easy to identify because of their smooth, almost greasy, feel. They do not feel like river rock. They are more colorful and shiny.

This is a great place to explore. We followed a trail on the east side along the fence that turned south and around the base of a large hill. The ground on the hill is littered with Blood Agate, a white translucent rock with dark red blotches that look like blood.

Farther south, we discovered some old buildings. At first glance, they look like old mining shacks, but there is no evidence of mining so their purpose remains a mystery to us.

We wound south, then west, back to the main road. Turning right, we found a road that turned back west. It took us past a fascinating rock formation, a landmark on this trail. It looks like an old man with a huge nose whose face is squished down by a heavy weight on his head. It made me smile. The best view of the old man is from the west.

The road continues along the base of a cliff that looks like a many-layered cake. As you pass the end of the cliff, the road forks with the road to the north going to Crystal Geyser on the banks of the Green River. We took the fork to the west, watching for a faint trail that takes off the main road toward the north.

We traveled to the top of a small hill covered with large dark rocks. Dinosaurs, much like pets, would go to the same spot to take care of their business. This hill is covered with petrified dinosaur dung. Looking closely at the colorful rock made me wonder what they had to eat. The rocks can be cut, polished, and made into jewelry. Now that would be a conversation piece.

Taking the route further north, we snaked west through a gate and north again toward a mountain with shallow finger canyons. We stopped and walked up through the canyons toward a ridge. This is a good place to look for gastroliths and pieces of dinosaur bone.

A Salt Lake City rock hounding club took me to this place the first time I went. They told me that a university archeology department has verified that a huge dinosaur skeleton is buried inside the ridge. They even showed me where the skull is partly exposed.

Is there really a dinosaur up there? All I know is when you ride in dinosaur country, take plenty of water, keep the rubber side down, and take a gastrolith home to your mother-in-law.

Lynn Blamires can be reached at quadmanone@gmail.com.