John Day Fossil Beds National Monument
I took this ride to eastern Oregon solo, and what I remember is the isolation. The roads stretched on without interruption, the landscape opening wider with every mile. This is a different part of Oregon, far removed from the coastal side that most people know. There is no ocean here, not dense forest.
I stayed in a small town – one I can’t remember the name. It was the kind of a stop that was part of the whole experience
The isolation continued as I explored John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. The first think that I took notice of was the colors, the layered hills, the formations and the quiet terrain. What makes this place different is how it reveals time. The layers of earth are visible in a way you don’t often see.
This landscape was preserved as a national monument in 1975 by Gerald Ford, recognizing both its beauty and its scientific importance.
This trip stays with me not because of what I saw, but the quiet, the distance and the isolation.
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