western science center

For the $8.00 admission, it was a good experience. Lots of dinosaur fossils and exhibits. The only problem was that 2 of the panoramic projectors were broken so you could not experience the full affect of the 180 degree movies.

The children loved the hands-on elements of some of the exhibits, (however, we did get lucky and chanced to visit just when the "Tree House" exhibit was there - I'm not sure it's a permanent part of the Center). The life-size reconstructions of the dinosaurs and other pre-historic specimens were just as interesting to we adults as they were to the kids. Indeed, they were probably more educational to us big guys than we cared to admit. Loved all the fossil exhibits - had no idea our local area was such a trove of fossil treasures. The short (10 mins) movie featuring mammoths etc kept the children well interested. All in all, well worth the visit and the $8 (adults), $6 (kids) price of admission. Allow about two hours in there (if your kids are aged between 6 - 13) before they become bored. If you visit without children in tow, you might want to allow a little longer if you're at all interested in archaeological history and stuff.

This was an amazing, surprise discovery when trying to find the visitors center on my way to visit Diamond Lake. I could not imagine what the two huge buildings were used for!The large complex houses a modest sized museum that tells the history of the area and displays fossils that were found while building the Diamond Lake Reservoir. The movie theater was cool with rock seats and the artifacts were very interesting. It could be a bit pricey for a family at $8 for adults, $6.50 for seniors and $6 for kids 5 to 12. Kids under five are free. The hills around the area are verdant green and hopefully the wildflowers will be prolific this spring. There are several hiking trails around the lake, but not much else.Diamond lake is the largest reservoir in California but has no camping or day use, family-friendly facilities. It's basically a boater or fisherman's place. Sad.

It doesn't take long to see all that there is here, but if you have patience and the time, there's lots to discover. It probably won't be crowded so just take the time to really see what they have to offer. It's Hemet history and very interesting. It's not Los Angeles type of attraction, it's more humble.

This gourgeus museum displaying historical artifacts found while digging one of the largest reservoirs in the USA is remarkable.

This museum is next to the Diamond Valley Lake Visitors Center and has the dinosaur bones that were unearthed during the digging of the lake. It gives you how they were discovered and has a lot of education facilities on the grounds. Contains history on how the region was formed and what animals roamed it. It has a special temporary display section that changes every couple of months. The display we saw was The Beatles. It had all of their trips, records, shows and you could listen to their music. It was well done. The guide has great knowledge. The fees are high for the space. Adults-$8, Seniors-$6.50 and Children $6. Military are free with active ID. The complex is very huge but houses mostly education facilities so the museum is small. The movies could have better sound. It is however very informative and worth a trip.

This place is great! Full of interesting artifacts, history and Ice-Age Giants! Too bad it is in some disrepair. It was disappointing to go into a 270-degree screening room to view a film and 1/3 of it wasn't working! Even some of the interactive exhibits were broken and missing parts. TOO BAD, SO SAD, because the place could be super awesome if they would just put a little money into fixing the small stuff. Our grandson was able to "create" a fossil - he chose the sabre-toothed cat. The volunteers are fabulous and full of energy!According to their website www.westercentermuseum.org, the museum was designed to provide world-class facilities for the research, curation, and presentation of the nearly 1,000,000 specimens discovered during the development of the Diamond Valley Lake in Hemet, California. Maybe Metropolitan Water District in LA could provide some funding to keep this place operating at the level it should be operated. The museum does accept donations, and there is a modest admission fee to see the exhibit(s). Perhaps the new executive director will do a better job at fundraising to provide the necessary upkeep and ongoing maintenance it takes to run a first class operation. It would be a shame to see this museum shut its doors. Call ahead before you head out there to see if they have fixed the broken screen and some exhibits.....definitely worth the trip.

The museum has artifacts from the excavation for Diamond Valley Dam. It holds community programs, and provides information to the public.

Explained how the Diamond Valley dam was built. Also showed relics of dinosaurs found in area as well as local history. Beautiful desert surroundings

This a great place to see the way the damn was built and to see the fossils they found. the time frame to collect the fossils was very short, The Science Center shows how they delveloped a new way to collect them.

Western Center is home to a collection of Native American artifacts and Ice Age fossils that were unearthed during the construction of neighboring Diamond Valley Lake. The fossil collection also includes "Max", the largest mastodon found in the western United States.The Center has community programming events scheduled throughout the year that will be of interest to all. There is also a self-guided tour through the galleries including an option to add a Discovery Lab that gives visitors a hands-on experience with real fossils.

Very interesting yet small museum of the local dinosaurs digs just before they flooded the valley to make the Diamond Valley Lake.

It is interesting Hemet history of how Diamond Lake came to Hemet, people who have lived here and the interesting animal bones found when the Lake was unconstruction. However, I have lived in Hemet all my life and so I'm sure that is part of why it is so interesting to me, I don't really know how interesting out of towners will find it.

Valleywide recreation and Park District has a swim park right across the street from this museum. What a great place to play. Highly recommend both venues

This museum is a little out of the way and if you weren't looking specifically for it you would miss it. I would recommend this more for children, especially between 8-10 yrs of age. There is one section that is free with a lot of hands on for the kids to try and the other side there is a nominal fee with dinosaur artifacts. Good way for a family to spend a Sunday afternoon going thru.