We chose to head inland on Tuesday morning, to the Painted
Hills section of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument in central Oregon. You
won't find many fossils there, as the rocks revealed are less than 30 million
years old. The beauty which can be seen resulted from volcanic ash from
the Cascade mountains along the western edges of Washington and Oregon erupting
and sending clouds east.
The rapid deposits of ash preserved the remains of plants
and animals living in the region. Because ash and other debris fell during
varied climatic and volcanic conditions, the sediment layers in the fossil beds
vary in their chemical composition and color. Fossils found in
the area include a wide variety of plants and more than 100 species of mammals,
including dogs, cats, saber-toothed tigers, horses, camels, and rodents.
To see the photos we took on Tuesday, click on Tuesday, Sep 3rd. Our journey ended on
Tuesday in Bend, Oregon at the CrownVilla RV Resort.
On Wednesday, we drove northeast
from Bend up into the mountains around the Sisters and Brothers, local pair of
mountains which have also been volcanically active in the past 60 million
years. Lava flows interrupt the highway, and recent fires and re-growth
of trees amidst them create an eerie environment.
Tomorrow, we've chosen to end the
day somewhere around Weed, in northern California. It's supposed to rain,
so we aren't planning on many outings during the day. We'll have an easy
trip home from there on Friday or Saturday.
Gregory
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