John Day Fossil Beds NM Series (3)

Description: This National Monument is composed of three units: The Clarno Unit, the Sheep Rock Unit, and the Painted Hills Unit, each of which are spread out from each other by about 50 miles. I've hidden a letterbox in each of the units, so expect to do quite a bit of driving to complete this series. If you're wondering why it took me two days to hide three letterboxes, that's part of the reason. (Another part is because I didn't start hiding the first one until 8:00 PM on the 26th, and it was completely dark by the time I reached the next unit, so the last two I hid the morning of the 27th.)

Directions: For specific directions, I'll let you look these areas up on a map or in the book mentioned above. Here, I'll just describe where (approximately) everything is and any witty comments I have to make.

The town of Fossil seems to be the major metropolis in the area with a population approaching close to 500. Wow! It boggles the imagination! It's the county seat for the area as well so you can expect some interesting (or pompous, if that's how you see it) looking buildings used for that purpose. You're truly in the middle of nowhere. In fact, I didn't see a single McDonalds for hundreds of miles!

My favorite town, sporting a fairly large population of 35 (*cough snortle*), has to be Shaniko. Stop for an ice cream at the ice cream parlor (especially if it's a hot day!) and walk around the block. It's a hoot. =)

If you're headed to places west when you're done exploring the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, be warned that the first good, quality fast-food joints don't start showing up until you hit Prineville. Sadly, I saw no Taco Bells in the area. (Doesn't mean they aren't there, but I didn't see any in my quick drive through of the town.)

Clues:

Clarno Unit (#1): Alive and well as of April 2004! Don't miss the self-guided tour along the Trail of the Fossils. The guide for it is tucked behind the large message board at the entrance. To look for the box, go for the bird's eye view. When you reach it, sit down. Rest. Stretch your legs. Laugh at all the other people huffing and puffing their way up the hill. Behind you and to the side there's a small bolder separate from the cliff. Look behind and under it. There lays the Clarno letterbox. I've tried to cover it with small rocks in the area to make accidental discovery less likely, so please do the same when you leave.

Sheep Rock Unit (#2): Head to the Blue Basin Area of the Sheep Rock Unit. Once again, head for the hills to get the bird's eye view. (I want to keep you in shape, you know!) Again, you can sit, rest, and admire the view. From there, the letterbox is at 245 degrees. From the nearby post with the inspirational messages, the letterbox will be at 290 degrees. Again, once you're done, please try to hide the letterbox with rocks and other debris to help prevent accidental discovery of the box.

Painted Hills Unit (#3): Can you guess where you'll be headed? Yep, go for the bird's eye view. Again. The birdier, the better. =) You can sit and relax (again!), but this time the letterbox won't be in the immediate vicinity. Head back down the trail. You'll see a mountain ridge towards the south. Find the point on the trail where the highest point on the ridge is at 155 degrees (magnetic). The prominent parking lot below should be at 195. And as a confirmation, you should see another peak at 115 degrees. Good. Now you should see a large bolder next to the trail much larger than anything else near it. You'll find the letterbox tucked away near the bottom, left-hand side of the bolder with rocks covering it from accidental discovery. (In this case, the letterbox WILL be discovered accidentally without the rocks to cover it. Please insure it's covered well before you leave.) This box has been reported as missing, but that hasn't been confirmed

On an unrelated topic, after you've found the Painted Hills letterbox, if you look near the right side of the bolder, you'll find a nest tucked away in it. There was nothing in the nest when I found it, but I don't know if it's used seasonally, if the bird was out feeding, or how long its been there, so I let it be. (That's actually where I wanted to hide the letterbox in the first place since it has a smaller probability of accidental discovery, but decided against it after finding the nest.) If you do find something there when you look, please don't heckle it and let me know. I'll move the letterbox further away the next time I'm in the area if that's the case.

NOTE: Always take adequate precautions (such as prodding with a stick and/or wearing gloves) before reaching into dark crevasses and holes in the wild. Before you set out read the waiver of responsibility and disclaimer.

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