John Day Fossil National Monument, OR


It was so quiet here, that I heard the drone of the universe. And not a single individual for miles around. Whoa.

I arrived at John Day Fossil National Monument, Painted Hills. It was about a hour's easy drive this morning. This whole area reminds me of Arizona, and the painted desert. This was a smaller more intimate version, with equally stunning colors of maroon, butterscotch, lilac, and shades of orange to green. I walked a couple of small hikes, and spoke to a younger couple who were enamored with the Sylver Gypsy. I gave them a tour, and later on in the day, I would give yet another tour to Diane and Dick. I seriously think I should be on the payroll with Winnebago, as a sales representative, as I am doing my part to sell these units.

Miss Google gave me an option of two different routes to my next destination. I chose the shorter route, however it was the same time line, and I realized this was about an hour on a dirt road. I'm okay with driving dirt roads, but I never quite know if the road deteriorates into something horrific. So that anticipation is a bit stressful. I have to remind myself, that if I get stuck, I have all the resources that I need. I have water, food, a comfortable living space and I will be okay. I got lucky this time, other than a few wash board areas, and cows in the road, it was incredible to see such a really huge and vast portion of central Oregon.

When I arrived in the town of Fossil, Oregon, what else would you do here, except search for fossils? Behind the high school was an area for digging on a rather steep hillside. It was soft sandstone like shale, where I found a few samples of leaves and plant life embedded in the rock. There were light sprinkles on and off, which was okay, since the sun was out, and it was in the low 80's. It took me quite a while to find the smaller samples, focusing on what was laying on the ground, which is where I found my pieces. My digs were full of dust and dirt, and eventhough I wiped them off, it was rather difficult to see any treasures. After giving a tour to Diane and Dick, from Portland Oregon, who are borrowing a similar rv, we met up, yet again, at the other location: John Day Fossil National Memorial at the Clarno Unit. 

This was a tropical forest, turned into mountains, turned into erosion, leaving hoo doos, and fossils. There was an narrow trail along the edge of the eroded cliffside. For most of it, I had to pick up Jo Jo. It was pretty warm and he looked worn out. The cliffs were a multi textual experience, showing many layers, and colors of rock. There was also a fossil leaf or two embedded in the rock for viewing.

I had my eye open for where to spend the night on this entire travel today, as I always do. I was able to find BLM land. Bureau of Land Management, in a small portion right near by this park. I pulled off the road, and have the most incredible stunning view of the John Day River, along with the mountains, in the distance, with puffy clouds, and blue sky. There are bull frogs singing. It maybe the most heavenly serene view that I've had, so far, on this entire journey!








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