John Day Fossil Beds NM

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Geo: 44.4683, -119.535

Checking out of the motel on Sunday, we
drove back through Redmond and on to the
Painted Hills, one of three units of the John
Day Fossil Beds National Monument. We hiked
on several short trails of one mile or less through
picturesque multicolored hills that apparently
contained fossils of various types, though we
saw none at this unit.

After seeing all we could of the Painted Hills, we
drove on to our lodging for the next night, the
Fish House Inn and RV Park in the town of Dayville, OR.
The Fish House Inn is named more for the decor than
any other reason. It was a nice place with all we
needed for one night though we had to rush to get
dinner that evening. We arrived around 3:30 PM and
were told the only place to eat nearby would close
at 4:00 PM. So we hotfooted it over to the Dayville
Cafe where we had a nice, if early meal, then back
to the Inn for the evening.


The next morning we drove a short way
back to the Sheep Rock Unit of the Fossil Beds where stopped at the
museum at around 8:30 AM only to find that it did not open until
10:00. We drove on to the Blue Basin area of the park where we
hiked the Blue Basin Overlook Trail. At a little over 4.5 miles
with around 800 feet in elevation gain, this was the longest and most
scenic trail we found in the three units of the monument.
After completing that hike, we drove on to the third unit, the Clarno
unit. At the Clarno unit, the smallest of the three units, we hiked
all three of the available trails for a grand total of 1.25 miles.
However, it was here that we actually were able to see some of the
real fossils embedded in the boulders and cliff face along some of
the trails.

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Photos

From Painted Hills Overlook
That ridge line in the distance is Carroll hill. There is a two mile trail to the top of that ridge and an overlook at the left end of the ridge. The trail that we later took is visible angling up from left to right then back to the left to the end of the ridge.

The Painted Hills
The water in the distance is a reservoir, not part of the national monument.

The Painted Hills
Taken from the overlook on Carroll Hill.

The Painted Hills
Taken from the summit of Carroll Hill

From the Blue Butte Trail
Part of the Sheep Rock Unit of John Day Fossil Beds NM. This trail was the best one we found in the Fossil Beds NM. About a 4 mile loop with around 800 feet of elevation gain.

From the Blue Butte Trail
Part of the Sheep Rock Unit of John Day Fossil Beds NM.

From the Blue Butte Trail
Part of the Sheep Rock Unit of John Day Fossil Beds NM.

From the Blue Butte Trail
Part of the Sheep Rock Unit of John Day Fossil Beds NM.

From the Blue Butte Trail
Part of the Sheep Rock Unit of John Day Fossil Beds NM.

From the Blue Butte Trail
Part of the Sheep Rock Unit of John Day Fossil Beds NM.

From the Blue Butte Trail
Part of the Sheep Rock Unit of John Day Fossil Beds NM.

From The Carno unit
The Clarno unit was the third and smallest unit of John Day Fossil Beds NM. We did see a few actual fossils here though they weren't particularly impressive. Saw where several leaves and a few sticks of wood had been fossilized and embedded in the boulders along the trail.

The Palisades
Located in the Clarno unit.

A fossil - at the Clarno unit
Just to prove that we actually did see a fossil - here is a fossilized leaf embedded in the surface of a boulder

And another - at the Clarno unit
And another of a fossilized stick of wood embedded in the surface of another boulder.