Picture of the Day - Blue Basin

As mentioned before, the John Day Fossil Bed National Monument is spread over three locations. The main location is Sheep Rock where park headquarters and a very nice visitor center are located. Two miles north of the visitor center is the trail into Blue Basin. When you walk into the basin, you are stepping back in time into a small, very narrow canyon with steep walls that just keeps going and going until it ends in a box canyon.

The walls, as you can see from the picture, are blue/green in color all the way through the canyon. I did it in mid-day when you are getting pure direct white light. If you do it later in the day, the walls are even bluer. It is quite something to see and experience.

The fossils found here are about 40 million years old. This is long after the days of the dinosaurs and clearly in the early age of mammals. These fossils give a very good idea of what life and the environment were like long ago.

As mentioned in an earlier blog, the John Day Fossil Beds range from 5 to 40 million years ago. So different animals and plants are found, showing that a variety of environments existed over time and different animals and plant life thrived, then became extinct. Fossils are never dug for here. They only are taken from their natural setting when they have risen to the top because of natural erosion. After being exposed to air, sun, and water, they will eventually disappear if not removed by experts. All finds are carefully cataloged and documented to help unravel the puzzle of what life was like all those years ago.

It has been estimated that only 10% of the existing fossils have been found...the rest being buried in over 700 locations that make up the John Day Fossil Beds. Blue Basin is just one of them.

For much more info, visit their Web site.