[Tanba City] A 110 million year old stratum comes into view!

• Table of Contents
• What is the "Tamba Regional Dinosaur Fossil Field Museum"?
• Learn about the Mount Sasa Group at the Tamba Sasayama City Museum of Ancient Creatures
• Play with dinosaurs at Tamba Hyogo Tanba Namikimichi Chuo
• Look for rocks from the suspension bridge! "Kawashiro Park"
• At "Tamba Village Park," you will be overwhelmed by the size of the Tamba.
• Try your hand at fossil excavation! "Genki Village Kamikuge"
• Experience the romance of ancient times at the "Tamba Fossil Discovery Site"
• Watching over the dinosaurs: The Nationally Registered Tangible Cultural Property "Tanba City Former Kamikuge Village Kamitaki Power Station Memorial Hall"
• Deepen your knowledge of dinosaurs at the "Tamba Fossil Workshop Chiitan's House"
• For those traveling by car, the fun is still on!

What is the "Tamba Regional Dinosaur Fossil Field Museum"?

The Mount Sasa Formation, the center of the Field Museum's activities, is an area that stretches over part of Tanba-sasayama City and Tanba City, approximately 6 km north to south and 18 km east to west.

The Mount Sasa Group, a geological stratum formed approximately 110 to 100 million years ago, is notable for the fact that globally valuable fossils, including the Tamba(scientific name: Tambatitanis amicitiae), have been discovered in places close to where people live.

The Field Museum is designed to be fun and educational for people of all ages, from various angles, including the facilities, scenery, and experiences in the area.

The key to this is the QR codes displayed throughout the museum. By holding your smartphone or tablet over the code, you can easily and easily obtain information and explanations about the area. Now, let's move forward through the Field Museum from Higashi to west.

Learn about the Mount Sasa Group at the Tamba Sasayama City Museum of Ancient Creatures

The Tamba Sasayama City Museum of Ancient Creatures is an experiential facility where you can learn about the Mount Sasa Formation. Inside the facility is the Ancient Creatures Citizens' Research Institute, where you can see fossils being cleaned in the exhibition room, which is free to enter.

There is also a fossil excavation experience space.

On the left slope between the general information board and the facility, you can see the Mount Sasa Group of rocks right in front of you. Try looking for traces of animal burrows.

basic information

Tamba Sasayama City Museum of Ancient Creatures

Address: 90-1 Nishikosa, Hyogo Prefecture Tanba-sasayama City, Tamba Hyogo Tanba Namiki Do Chuo

Phone number: 079-556-7666

Opening hours: 9:00-16:30

Closed: Mondays (or the following weekday if Monday is a national holiday), New Year's holiday (December 29th to January 3rd)

Access: 10 minutes on foot from JR Fukuchiyama"Tamba Daisen Station" 5 minutes northwest from Maizuru Wakasa Expressway "Tannan Sasayamaguchi IC"

Parking: Available (115 spaces / Hyogo Prefectural Tamba Namikimichi Chuo )

HP: https://tamba-fieldmuseum.com/map/ikimonokan

Play with dinosaurs at Tamba Hyogo Tanba Namikimichi Chuo

The Hyogo Prefectural Tamba Namikimichi Chuo , where the Tamba Sasayama City Museum of Ancient Creatures is located, is a large park covering 70.9 hectares (about 18 times the size of Koshien Stadium) that was developed based on the " Tamba Mori Concept." The park features thatched roof houses and a space for hands-on activities using thinned wood, allowing you to fully enjoy the Mori space.

The park is also packed with facilities where visitors can have fun while reminiscing about ancient times, such as the Bone-Bone Fossil Square and Exciting Dinosaur Square, which even small children can enjoy, and the Moving Dinosaurs, which feature two dinosaur models that move when they make sounds.

basic information

Hyogo Prefectural Tamba Namikimichi Chuo

Address: 90 Nishikosa , Tanba-sasayama City, Hyogo Prefecture

Phone number: 079-594-0990 (Management office 9:30-16:30)

Access: 10 minutes on foot from JR Fukuchiyama"Tamba Daisen Station" 5 minutes northwest from Maizuru Wakasa Expressway "Tannan Sasayamaguchi IC"

Parking: Available (110 spaces for regular cars / 5 spaces for large vehicles)

HP: https://namikimichi-park.com/

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Look for rocks from the suspension bridge! "Kawashiro Park"

About 7km west from Hyogo Prefectural Tamba Namikimichi Chuo, Kawashiro Park is a gorge on the Mount Sasa where you can enjoy nature with cherry blossoms in spring, camping in summer, and autumn leaves in fall. You can enjoy the formations of the rocks and other natural features while playing in nature.

The monument that serves as the gate of the suspension bridge is a unique Japanese roofing method, a traditional Tamba craft called "cypress bark roofing." From the top of the suspension bridge that passes under here, you can take a peek at the bedrock where dinosaurs may be sleeping.

basic information

Kawashiro Park

Address: Hyogo Prefecture -cho , Tanba City, Hyogo Prefecture

Phone number: 0795-88-5115 (Tanba City Tourism Division)

*Please note that the use of campsites, barbecue sites, etc.

Permission to use must be obtained 5 days in advance (not available during the winter season from mid-December to mid-March of the following year)

Access: 30 minutes on foot from Shimotaki Station on the JR Fukuchiyama

・Approximately 15 minutes from the Tannan Sasayamaguchi Interchange on the Maizuru Wakasa Expressway

Parking: Available (34 spaces)

At "Tamba Village Park," you will be overwhelmed by the size of the Tamba.

About 500m west of Kawashiro Park is Tamba Village Park. This park is at the entrance to Genki Village Kamikuge. The life-size monument of the Tamba(approximately 15m long and 7m high) is impressive!

The athletic slides are also designed with dinosaur skeletons as a motif. There are also benches where you can sit with the dinosaurs, so you can enjoy taking photos.

Try your hand at fossil excavation! "Genki Village Kamikuge"

Genki Village Kamikuge, where you can experience fossil excavation, is located near the site where the Tamba fossil was discovered. The shop (Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays only) sells light meals such as yakisoba (fried noodles) (400 yen) and dinosaur-related goods. The specialty dinosaur yaki (150 yen), which comes in two flavors, is recommended for snack time.

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Fossil excavation experience held on Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays

Time: ①10:00~10:50 ②11:10~12:00 ③12:50~13:40 ④14:00~14:50 ⑤15:10~16:00

*From December to February, only ① to ④ are allowed. Please gather 3 minutes before the start. Fossils discovered cannot be taken home.

Cost: 500 yen per session (purchase a ticket for the "Excavation Experience" at your desired time at the cafeteria)

Capacity: 20 people per session (complete rotation system)

Contact: 0795-78-0001 (Kamikuge Community Development Center / Closed Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays)

basic information

Kamikuge Village

Address: 1913-1 Kamitaki, Sannan-cho, Tanba-shi , Tanba City Hyogo Prefecture

Phone number: 0795-78-0001 (Kamikuge Community Development Center / Closed on Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays)

Business hours: 10:00-16:00 (December-February: until 15:00)

Closed: Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays)

Access: ・20 minutes on foot from Shimotaki Station on the JR Fukuchiyama Line to the fossil discovery site ・15 minutes west on the general road from the Maizuru Interchange on the Kinki Mount Sasa Expressway

Parking: Available (40 regular cars, 3 large buses)

HP: http://www.kamikuge.com/osirase.html

Experience the romance of ancient times at the "Tamba Fossil Discovery Site"

From "Genki Village Kamikuge", walk along the Mount Sasa for about 500m. There is a pink dinosaur painting on the rocks along the river. This is the "Tamba fossil discovery site". The "world's smallest dinosaur egg fossil" was also discovered nearby.

The discovery site has been covered with concrete to protect the bedrock after the excavation work, but there is a replica of the Tamba fossil's location along the promenade behind it, so please take a look. You can get a real sense of how large it was.

Watching over the dinosaurs: The Nationally Registered Tangible Cultural Property "Tanba City Former Kamikuge Village Kamitaki Power Station Memorial Hall"

Located right next to the "Tamba fossil discovery site" is the "Tanba City Former Kamikuge Village Kamitaki Power Station Memorial Hall," which is a nationally registered tangible cultural property.

The brick-built hydroelectric power plant began operation in 1923 and continued to operate until Showa. It currently serves as a power plant memorial museum, where exhibits include information on how the plant works, documents from the time of construction, and even information on dinosaur fossils.

basic information

Tanba City Former Kamitaki Power Station Memorial Museum

Address: 1312-2, Hyogo Prefecture , Kamitaki, Sannan-cho, Tanba-shi , Tanba City(next to the dinosaur fossil discovery site)

Phone number: 0795-77-1887 (Tamba City Hall, Dinosaur Division)

Hall hours: 10:00-16:00

Closed: Mondays and Tuesdays (or the following weekday if the Monday or Tuesday falls on a public holiday), New Year's holiday (December 29th to January 3rd)

*Other events and activities may cause changes. Admission is free.

Access: 20 minutes on foot from Shimotaki Station on the JR Fukuchiyama 20 minutes from Tannan Sasayamaguchi IC on the Maizuru Wakasa Expressway

Parking: None (general vehicles cannot pass on this farm road)

Deepen your knowledge of dinosaurs at the "Tamba Fossil Workshop Chiitan's House"

About 8km further west from the "Tamba Fossil Discovery Site" is the "Tamba Fossil Workshop Chiitan's House." Here, a full-body skeleton (replica) of the Tamba and other dinosaurs are on permanent display, and you can also try your hand at making a simple fossil replica.

For more information about "Tamba Fossil Workshop Chiitan's House," click here.

A major discovery! Come deepen your knowledge of dinosaurs with your children in Sannan, where the fossil of the "Tamba" was excavated.

basic information

Tamba Fossil Workshop Chitan's House

Address: 1110 Hyogo Prefecture cho, Tanba-shi, Hyogo Tanba City(next to the Sannan branch office of Tamba City Hall)

Phone number: 0795-77-1887 (Tanba City Dinosaur Division)

Opening hours: 10:00-16:00 (17:00 from April 1st to October 31st)

Closed: Mondays (or the following weekday if Monday is a public holiday), New Year's holiday (December 29th to January 3rd)

*The museum may be closed temporarily due to special exhibitions, etc.

*Due to renovation work at the Tamba Fossil Workshop, the museum will be closed from late September 2024 to early July 2025. Admission fee: 210 yen for adults (high school students and above), 100 yen for elementary and junior high school students, free for preschoolers

* Elementary and junior high school students in Hyogo Prefecture are admitted free of charge when they present their Cocoron Card.

Access: 10 minutes on foot from JR Kakogawa"Kugemura Station" 5 minutes by taxi (20 minutes on foot) from JR Fukuchiyama Line "Tanigawa Station" or 5 minutes by Wing Shinki Bus 30 minutes from Maizuru Wakasa Expressway "Tannan Sasayamaguchi IC" 30 minutes from Kitakinki Toyooka Expressway "Hikami IC"

Parking: Available (193 spaces)

HP: https://www.tambaryu.com/

For those traveling by car, the fun is still on!

About 20km northeast from "Tamba Fossil Workshop Chiitan's House" is the "Roadside Station Tamba Obaachan no Sato." Here you can find a wide selection of delicious Tamba foods!

The outdoor playground equipment is reminiscent of dinosaurs, making it the perfect place to take a break during your drive to the Field Museum. There are also benches here where you can sit with the dinosaurs.

At the "Tamba Obaachan no Sato Roadside Station" you will also find the " Tamba Eetoko Navi Tourist Information Center," so you can stop by there first and gather information about the "Field Museum."

There is also a dinosaur bench where you can sit with a Tyrannosaurus at the Maizuru Wakasa Expressway Nishiki SA (outbound), which is a car ride from Roadside Tamba Tanba Maizuru no Sato towards Osaka . There are four dinosaur benches in total (Nishiki SA (outbound), Nishiki SA (outbound), Tamba no Sato Park, and Roadside Station Obaachan no Sato). If you forgot to take a commemorative photo, please come and take one.

The Tamba Region Dinosaur Fossil Field Museum is an open-air museum set in the Mount Sasa Formation and the surrounding area. There is too much to explore in just one day. You can visit multiple times, or stay at a campsite or inn and concentrate on touring the area, so why not enjoy it in your own way?

(Writer: Toshi/West Plan)

*This article is current as of November 2023. Prices include tax. Product contents and prices may change. Please check the official website for the latest information.

basic information

Tamba Region Dinosaur Fossil Field Museum

Phone number: 0795-78-9961

HP: https://tamba-fieldmuseum.com/

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