Located 6 miles north of U.S. 20 between Royal and Orchard in northern Antelope County, Ashfall Fossil Beds State Historical Park is a joint project of the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission and the University of Nebraska State Museum.

Your first stop should be the Visitor Center to see the interpretive displays and the working fossil preparation laboratory. You are invited to ask the paleontologists about their work. Educational programs are presented on regular basis. From the Visitor Center, it is but a short stroll to the Rhino Barn, where new discoveries continue to be unearthed.

The park offers a fascinating and educational experience for the entire family and a chance to step back in time to see what Nebraska wildlife was like long before modern man ventured onto the Great Plains.

Visitors are invited to watch the ongoing excavation of this unique "time capsule." A "Rhino Barn" protects part of the deposit, where skeletons are uncovered and displayed exactly where they are found. Walkways give visitors a close-up view as paleontologists carefully brush away the volcanic ash from the massive skulls of native American rhinos and the delicate side hooves of tiny ancestral horses.

Ashfall is situated on 360 acres of rugged rangeland in the scenic Verdigre Creek valley. Nature trails are being developed to help interpret the geology as well as the flora and fauna of the area. Picnicking is permitted on the park, and campers can use nearby Grove Lake Wildlife Management Area near Royal.

Ashfall Fossil Beds State Historical Park is a joint project of the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission and the University of Nebraska State Museum. The park offers a fascinating and educational experience for the entire family a chance to step back in time and see what Nebraska wildlife was like long before modern man ventured onto the Great Plains.