John Day Fossil Beds Travel Information
In the 1860s, northeastern Oregon's John Day Basin was prime "gold country," and many towns were founded on the quest for the valuable mineral. Self-taught geologist John Condon also soon discovered settlers were in a treasure trove of Earth history, with what came to be called the John Day Fossil Beds holding a record of the last 50 million years of the planet's development. Split into three separate units, the monument showcases a variety of fascinating fossils among striking landscapes and scenic trails. An interpretive center in the Sheep Rock Unit has a number of interesting exhibits about the ancient animals and geology of the area. Many visitors choose to stop near the town of Fossil (the closest to the protected areas) to collect fossils and petrified wood, as collection is prohibited within the monument. The "Ochoco country" in which the monument appears is also prime territory for rockhounds, especially those in search of jasper and thunder eggs (the state rock). John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is located in north central Oregon, about 145 miles southeast of Portland. To learn more about the monument, please select an area of interest from the navigation bar on the left.
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