Monday, October 8, 2012

JOHN DAY PAINTED HILLS

Hi Everyone!
Well we are settled back in at a home. You know all the things you gather on a trip that you just couldn't live without and then find you could. LOL If you have followed my blog for anytime at all you know that my heart and soul is in the desert. High desert low desert it really doesn't matter I feel more at peace with sun and sage and cactus. OK so there is not any cactus in the high desert but there is sage galore. This was the best trip for me and I would go back just for the sun that shined every minute of the day.
So we headed up to the high country. We have been wanting to see the Fossil Beds near John Day Oregon for some time.  If you are ever up this way be sure to stop there. The painted hills are amazing with over 3,000 acres of sites you will not see any place else. These painted hills are unique to the Pacific Northwest. The colors of yellows, golds, reds, and blacks, greys, and greens change with the movement of the sun.  The Painted Hills are named after the colorful layers of its hills corresponding to various geological eras, formed when the area was an ancient river floodplain. The black soil is lignite that was vegetative matter that grew along the floodplain. The grey coloring is mudstone, siltstone, and shale. The red coloring is laterite soil that formed by floodplain deposits when the area was warm and humid. An abundance of fossil remains of early horses, camels, and rhinoceroses in the Painted Hills unit makes the area particularly important to vertebrate paleontologists.









Honor and Integrity in Life in Art
Nicole/Beadwright

6 comments:

Kokopelli said...

Amazing photos!

Ann said...

Nature's beauty is breathtaking!!!
love these photos!

Regina said...

OMGOSH Nicole..I see why you love the desert...it is breathtaking!!
All those magnificent colors....so much inspiration just singing in the wind.

Double Fingers crossed,
Regi

Healing Woman said...

The painted hills are a wonder. I can see why you love the dessert! Thanks for the great pictures.

Craftymoose Crafts said...

I think you probably already know how much I love cacti and the beautiful colors of the dessert. Thanks for sharing the photos.

Melobeau said...

Really enjoyed seeing your lovely photos. I used to live in Eastern Oregon and seeing the photos of John Day brought back some happy memories. Thanks!
Anita (from the red rock desert of Arizona)