The Big Back Yard is closed for the season and will re-open in May 2009.

The Big Back Yard's hands-on exhibits and miniature golf course illustrate landscape evolution, river dynamics, and biodiversity. In addition, this outdoor gallery features a prairie maze, gardens, a camera obscura, and an award-winning solar-powered building.

GALLERY HIGHLIGHTS

• In 9 holes of EarthScapes Mini-Golf, learn about the theme of 'source to sink'—how landscapes erode, how rivers transport sediment, and what happens to sediment when it reaches the ocean.
• Walk into the Camera Obscura (Latin for "dark room"), and see an image of the outside world projected on the opposite wall.
• Learn how water and land can affect each other.
• Pan for gemstones and fossils in the giant sluice
• Walk through a maze of prairie plants native to Minnesota.
• Admire our Native American gardens and check out the Big Back Yard plant guide.
• Enjoy lunch at a picnic table.

TICKETS

Viewing the Big Back Yard is free with museum admission any time during your visit. Mini-golf is an additional charge: $3.00 for children ages 4-12, or $4.50 for adults and seniors. Members discount on mini-golf: 10%.

PANNING FOR GEMS AND FOSSILS

There are three bags available: Small Gems - $5.00, Large Gems (double the small size) - $7.50, and the Fossil Bag - $10.00