[Day 2] Blue Basin is part of the Sheep Rock Unit. Some
significant fossils were
found here, such as a tortoise and a saber-tooth cat. The
campers took the
shorter of two hikes to view the uniquely eroded basin up
close.
[Day 4] At
the Clarno Unit, a large rock on the 1/4 mile palisades
trail revealed large
leaf fossil imprints. This was the campers first true
fossil sighting during the camp.
[Day 4] In
the town of Fossil, OR, the campers relished finding leaf
fossils on a
hill behind the high school athletic field. A fairly
large number of good specimens
was obtained during a two hour period.
[Day 4] Each
day required significant driving. The campers lived out
of the minivan
for these long outings. Here, the campers take a break
along the John Day River
in Spray, OR, where they learned about rock skipping.
[Day 2]
During the long drives, the campers would either read to
themselves (as
shown here) or a book would be read aloud to the whole
group. This photo is one
of the better examples taken by a cheap digital camera.
[Day 6] The
campers were given a unique opportunity to scramble on
rocks along
the John Day River in order to get a close-up view of
actual petroglyphs found in
Picture Gorge, just south of the Sheep Rock Unit.
[Day 3] Prior
to hiking the Smith Rock formation, the campers found it
necessary
to first scale the heights of the state park sign.
[Day 3]
Clarissa inches along an interesting erosion pattern near
the base of the
"Monkey Face" rock formation. The campers were
delighted to find many small
"caves" (hideouts) in the rocks along the trail.
[Day 3] After 4 hours of circling the Smith Rock
formation, the campers show how
much energy they have left. Daniel (far left), the
youngest camper, stated he would
have been willing to do another lap around the park right
then.
[Day 5] It
snowed! It was fun to play in, but it also took away a
chance for the
campers to explore a reputable fossil site not far from
this pass.
[Day 3] Even
before the big snow on day 5, there was plenty of snow to
be found
in the Ochoco Mountains. Vivian lets one fly past the
photographer. They took
the snow play break on the way to the Smith Rock State
Park 140 miles away.
[Day 4] The
Clarno palisades were beautiful as viewed from the river
valley below,
and magnificent as viewed from right next to them. The
campers rest after a
short, steep hike up to the highest point allowed, more
than half the vertical height
of the palisades. Note the arch formation at the top of
the photo.
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