Dinosaurs live on, at least outside this retired teacher’s Nevada home

Nevada man decorates front yard with dinosaurs

Steve Springer decorates his yard every year for Halloween. (Credit: KVVU)

HENDERSON, Nev. - For the past 16 years, dinosaurs have roamed a retired middle school teacher's front yard.

When you drive up to Steve Springer’s home in Henderson, Nevada, you will notice dinosaurs of all shapes and sizes: a velociraptor triceratops, a blue brontosaurus, and a tyrannosaurus rex.

Springer’s display attracts nearly 40,000 people a year to come to see it. After photos of his yard went viral, some visitors have come from other parts of the world, including Japan.

"We started with one dinosaur and now we have 62. It’s taken on a life of its own," Springer told KVVU.

He said it’s a way for children to learn about what used to roam the earth.

"I taught school around the corner for 30 years and I missed the kids so much I wanted to do something that would put a smile on their faces and make their day better, so I thought I am going to create a park that is one-of-a-kind… and it won’t cost you anything," he continued.

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For this year’s Halloween, Springer said he has added skulls, dismembered body parts, spiders, and a giant blow-up dragon.

Visitors also get a chance to pick a dinosaur egg from a wall in his garage. The egg contains a number with corresponds to a prize. Springer said he does take donations but the majority of his setup is paid out of pocket.

"I will keep going as long as I can physically do it," he said.

The display is free and operates every day of the year except for Halloween. It closes during the day to get ready to receive up to 6,000 visitors on Halloween night.

This story was reported from Los Angeles.