Our Oregon Stay-cation Part I

A year ago, some friends of ours told us about going to Fossil, OR with their kids, and what a grand time they had. Fossil, OR is known worldwide for their amazing layers of fossils, from different eras spanning millions of years. We were also told how we could actually go dig our own fossils! Apparently, small town life exists! Behind Fossil's high school is a hill where the public can dig for fossils because they are so abundant, they just trust you to take only three per person and drop a donation in a box. We have wanted to go for awhile as you can imagine. When we ended our school year and had some free time for a few days, we made some calls to a Fossil, OR bed and breakfast, packed the van, and off we were! I hope you enjoy our adventures as much as we did, and I hope you think about going!

So let me give you some geographical layout. Fossil, OR sits right in the middle of a three part national monument, John Day National Monument. We did manage to squeeze traveling to all three. Our first day was to the Clarno Unit, which is marked by magnificent castle-like rock formations that are full of fossils called The Palisades. All the locations at every stop has a short hiking trail that we took the kids on and saw amazing things. Each stop had a small parking area, some great markers that gave a nice learning tour, and walking trails with great markers. All free.

We left home and drove to Fossil, OR and the Clarno Unit was on the way. It was perfect to stop and then head to our B & B waiting for us.

Hiking up close to the rock formations called The Palisades.
The kids were not happy. This was a long, upward hike
and it was warm and muggy.
The view from the top made it worth it.

Whew! That was a bit of a hike!

Then we look up and see the amazing little corner we are in.

That little cove in the middle is the final stop. You get to turn around and look out over the valley. You also can look up and see the huge formations above you.

After looking up in the cove, the view of the valley was so peaceful.

A panoramic distant view of the breathtaking Palisades.

Great educational markers along the way explaining the fossils embedded in The Palisades, the era of The Palisades and the volcanic activity that created the beautiful rock formations.

After a little drive past the Clarno Unit, we headed to our evening's final destination......


......to be continued.......