Rocks, Rock!, October 17-18 (Monroe Lake: Paynetown SRA)

In addition to the programs and activities listed below, the Paynetown Activity Center is open Saturday-Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m. Drop by to make a different craft each day, view our live snakes, check out the wall exhibits and taxidermy collection, the reference library, spend time at the puzzle table, or play in the kids' corner - or ask a question of the park naturalist.
Join us for ROCKS, ROCK!, a celebration of rocks, fossils, and minerals...
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17
Trapped in Amber from 10 to 11:30 a.m.
Paynetown SRA, Campground Playground
DROP BY to learn about a unique kind of fossil that is preserved in solidified tree sap, amber! And you can make your own faux amber fossil using glass stones.
Pasta “Fossils” from 1 to 4:30 p.m.
Paynetown SRA, Activity Center
DROP BY to design your own fossil of an imaginary animal – using pasta pieces to represent the bones!
Travel the “Road to Fossilization” from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
Paynetown SRA, Campground Playground
DROP BY to see if you can successfully complete the journey from living organism to fossil… Will you survive to be discovered millions of years later? Or will you exit the road early and become lost to time? Successful “travelers” can select a fossil to help remember their journey!
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 18
Fossil Dig Exploration from 10 to 11:30 a.m.
Paynetown SRA, Overflow Parking Area (back end)
DROP BY to search our “dig” for rocks, minerals, and fossils – that you’re allowed (legally!) to take home with you! We’ll have a few tools available to help you dig, water to wash off your finds, and guides to common Indiana fossils to help you identify what you find.
Construct a Trilobite from 1 to 4:30 p.m.
Paynetown SRA, Activity Center
DROP BY to learn about trilobites and where you can find their fossils in southern Indiana, and craft a paper model of this ancient “roly poly.”