Claude Bell's Dinosaurs

Cabazon, California

Many a traveler on Interstate 10 in Southern California has been startled to see two colossal dinosaurs looming by the roadside. Those who pull off the road to take a closer look will learn that the cretaceous creatures were built years ago by Claude Bell, proprietor of the adjacent Wheel Inn diner. Bell had plans for a whole group of prehistoric creatures, but only managed to build this apatosaurus and tyrannosaurus before he died in 1989. The dinosaurs went on to make an appearance in the 1985 movie Pee-wee's Big Adventure. At the time of my last visit (November 1995) visitors were allowed into the belly of the apatosaurus; the photo below shows the gift shop / museum inside.

Unfortunately, since my visit the site has been taken over by fundamentalist religious individuals who are using it to push a Creationist agenda, claiming that humans and dinosaurs coexisted. This is a shame, since Claude Bell went to great effort to make the dinosaurs as authentic as possible, and intended them to be used to teach the real science of prehistory.

Update: Reportedly, the Creationist misinformation was removed after the dinosaurs were bought by new owners circa 2015. Visitors can now pay to take a staircase up to the T-Rex's mouth.

Directions: North side of Interstate 10 at the Cabazon exit (Exit 106).

Last visited: November 1995.

Standard disclaimer: Sites are described for entertainment purposes only, as they were at the time of my last visit. I can not vouch for the current condition of the site or its accessibility.