This summer, Lopez Island kids and families have an extraordinary opportunity to journey through 540 million years of Earth’s history — no time machine required. The BurkeMobile is making a special stop on Lopez as part of Lopez Island Family Resource Center’s summer programs, offering a hands-on, high-energy experience that brings science, fossils and geology to life.

Led by educators from Seattle’s renowned Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, this free community event invites participants to explore Earth’s deep past right from their hometowns. Through interactive exhibits and guided activities, Lopez families will learn how the three types of rocks are formed from minerals, uncover the secrets of shifting tectonic plates and discover how paleontologists read the fossil record in order to understand what life looked like millions of years ago.

But this isn’t just a science lesson, it’s a chance to become a paleontologist for the day. Kids will get to excavate real fossils from dig pits, study fossil replicas up close, and engage with dynamic exhibits representing ancient life from the Paleozoic (sea creatures!), Mesozoic (dinosaurs!) and Cenozoic (mammals!) eras.

Whether your child dreams of digging up dinosaur bones or just loves learning about the natural world, this exhibit offers an unforgettable summer adventure right here on Lopez. And best of all? It’s completely free and no pre-registration is required.

We hope you’ll join us Friday, July 18, from 1-3 p.m. at the Lopez School Multipurpose Room (entrance at 86 School Road) for this rare chance to touch the prehistoric past, explore our ever-changing planet and spark a love of science and discovery.

For more information, contact the Lopez Island Family Resource Center at 360-468-4117 or visit our website at lifrc.org.