The Mammoth Site of Hot Springs, Hot Springs

This was awesome. A live dig site, indoors, with AC. The staff were actually working on the fossils while we were there. Scraping with a dental pick. You can watch them work, talk to them, learn about their job and the site. There is a self-guided tour with QR codes you scan at each stop. The tour guides you through the site explaining the numbers, the fossils, the history…amazing. Plus, it is affordable. Pretty neat time, glad we made the drive here!

I'm so glad we stopped here! This was such an interesting place. There's so much information packed in about the fossils and the history of the site. The volunteers and workers are very friendly and informative. We had conversations with several about the fossil they were working on, what finds they had discovered that day, or how they worked with the various tools. Definitely scan the QR codes located on the walkway railing around the site. They explain the different areas you can see from each stop. I put it on speaker so the kids could listen with me. There's 4-5 codes to scan, so make sure you get them all. We spent a good hour and a half here. There's another portion in the museum at the back of the gift shop that we almost missed. The gift shop has a nice selection. You can also buy a bag of soil to sift using the sluice out front to discover stones and fossils. We did a medium sized fossil find and it had quite a bit of stones and shark teeth in it. The kids loved it. There's also a small snack shack out front with pizza, hotdogs, chips and drinks.

Easy to get to and with lots of parking. No RV specific parking. The primary tour is self directed. This is an active dig site. Please note that the web page has audio files that you can play while you look. Please note that you can stop the staff working on the floor and ask questions. They will answer you and go back to working. Be sure to go into the second section. It has more artifacts about the region rather than just the dig site. There is also a fun room for the kids with a couple cool activities.

Mammoth Site is a unique historical & scientific museum that centers on the remains of mammoths (& other creatures!) found in Hot Springs, SD. It is an active dig & research site, as well as providing an educational experience for the public. The museum has a brief video that details the history of Mammoth Site, and then there is a self-guided tour that follows each part of the dig site. While we toured, staff were working in the sinkhole with the remains. After the site, there is a small museum and a viewing area of the laboratory in the basement. Mammoth Site was family friendly, and had opportunities for children to be “paleontologists.” Grounds were nice, facilities were clean, and the gift shop had a wide variety of options. It is close-by to Wind Cave National Park. If you’re in the area, this is a unique and interesting experience!

What a cool place to visit. Has great history and as a working site we were able to talk with some folks actively digging and recovering bones. Family friendly and clean well kept. All of the different exhibits were interesting and it was a fun part of the trip!