Fort Peck Interpretive Center 5.0 (reviews)

The Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge is HUGE - so what better way to get right to the heart of it than at Fort Peck Interpretative Center. (There are dinosaurs too!)

The center is filled with a number of fascinating exhibits where kids can look back into history, as well as discover some pretty impressive engineering feats!

The first thing you notice when you walk in - only a life size T-Rex right in the foyer! This T-Rex was discovered 20 miles SE of Fort Peck, so he's a local! The skeleton cast is right in the exhibit hall. There are also other dinosaurs in the center (it is Montana after all!) that includes the Struthimomimus (say that 5 times fast!) - one of the FASTEST dinosaurs discovered to date!

Naturally, in a wildlife refuge, there is wildlife! The Fort Peck Interpretive Center has some amazing creatures on display - from the prairie dogs to the mighty grizzly bears. It's a great way for kids to safely get up close to these beautiful creatures and learn all about them - their habits and their habitats.

Love fish? Lucky the center has the two largest aquariums in Montana then! They display native and game fish of both Fort Peck Lake and the Missouri River. Pretty impressive huh!

For those little engineering buffs, there is a display on the HUGE effort put into building the 1930's hydraulically filled dam - the largest in the country!  Kids will be able to see a life size mural of the construction, as well as a 3D model of the dam and history on the lives of those who worked on it.

There is also a fascinating history of those who lived in the area - from Native Americans to homesteaders. 

A historically fun day out for the kids!