John Day Fossil Beds National Monument
Large rhino-like brontotheres roam a semitropical forest. Dog-sized, three-toed horses dart between the trees. The cat-like nimravid and bear dogs stalk their prey. The climate cools and forests alter to dryer grasslands. Saber tooth cats and camels get replaced by mountain lions and deer. Paleontologists learn more about the ancient animals and environment with every new fossil they discover.
Alerts
- InformationNo Water Available at the Clarno Unit
There is currently no water available at the Clarno Unit of the park. Please plan accordingly and bring water when visiting.
Fire nearby
- PrescribedStarr 33 Rx
47 mi from the park's reference point · 347 acres
Within 50 miles, as of 2026-10-14. Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge. Check the park's alerts and the managing office before you drive.
Fees & passes
Free. No entrance fee here.
Hours
| Outdoor Recreation Areas | Daily · All Day |
When to go
June draws the most visits here and December the fewest, averaged over 2021 to 2025.
Visitor centers
- Thomas Condon Visitor Center ↗Passport stamp
Located in the Sheep Rock Unit, the Thomas Condon Visitor Center is a National Park Service research facility containing an outstanding paleontology lab dedicated to the John Day Fossil Beds. Picture windows let you view the working laboratory and collections room with over 60,000 specimens.
- Historic Cant Ranch Museum ↗Passport stamp
Enjoy the exhibits on the ground floor of the Historic Cant Ranch Museum located in the Sheep Rock Unit. It features artifacts from some of the Native Americans who inhabited the region and stories from homesteaders describing early ranch life.
Explore
Trails and hikes
These are the walks the Park Service lists for John Day Fossil Beds. Each one opens on the Park Service site.
- John Day Fossil Beds Junior Ranger Program20-120 Minutes
Become a John Day Fossil Beds Junior Ranger
- Layers of Life: Stories of Ancient Oregon20 Minutes
Layers of Life: Stories of Ancient Oregon
- Fossil Gallery10-60 Minutes
Fossil gallery
- Thomas Condon Overlook Trail5-20 Minutes
This 0.25 mi (0.4 km) long trail starts at the far end of the Thomas Condon Visitor Center parking lot and ends at an overlook of the river valley.
- Trail of Fossils10-35 Minutes
The Trail of Fossils is 0.25 mi (0.4 km) long and is the best trail in the monument to see real fossils. Look for leaf imprints and pieces of wood within the boulders that have fallen from the cliffs.
- Story in Stone Trail15-30 Minutes
The mostly level Story in Stone Trail loops through dramatic pillars of blue-green claystone rocks that make up the Turtle Cove formation of John Day Fossil Beds. Before the trail intersection, the walkway is paved for 900 ft (275 m).
Show all 12Hide
- Sheep Rock Overlook Trail10-30 Minutes
Starting at the front gate of the historic Cant home, this 0.5 mi (0.8 km) trail ends at an overlook with a view of the river valley with Sheep Rock high above.
- River Trail10-35 Minutes
Starting at the Cant Ranch parking lot, this 0.6 mi (1 km) long trail passes through historic fields and alongside a historic fruit orchard on its way to the John Day River.
- Painted Cove Trail10-30 Minutes
The Painted Cove Trail is 0.25 mi (0.4 km) roundtrip. The Painted Cove is an amazing color palette of vibrant rocks. A portion of this trail features a level boardwalk to cross over sensitive soils. Please stay on the designated trail.
- Red Scar Knoll Trail15-30 Minutes
This mostly level trail is 0.25 mi (0.4 km) long and leads to a hill of bright yellow and red clays; called Red Hill Trail on road signs. Walking on the exposed soils is strictly prohibited. Please stay on trail.
- Painted Hills Overlook Trail5-30 Minutes
The Painted Hills Overlook Trail is 0.5 mile (0.8 km) roundtrip. This fairly level trail follows an old road and offers further distinctive views of the Painted Hills. Walking on the hills is strictly prohibited.
- Mascall Formation Overlook5-15 Minutes
This 430 ft (131 m) roundtrip trail leads to a scenic view of the Mascall Formation, Picture Gorge, and John Day Valley.
These are named Forest Service trails on National Forest land within 15 miles of John Day Fossil Beds. Each one opens on Trailhead Atlas.
Distance is measured to the nearer end of the trail. Every named Forest Service trail on Trailhead Atlas.
Films
National Park Service productions, public domain.
Webcams
Camera images load live from the National Park Service and partner agencies
News
- John Day Fossil Beds National Monument Reopens After Fires ↗2026-08-06
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument has reopened all three units of the park after multiple wildfires.
- Great American Outdoors Act Funding Restores Historic Cant Ranch Barn and Shearing Shed ↗2026-06-11
The legacy of early European settlers to the John Day Basin is being safeguarded. Supported by the Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund signed by President Donald J.
Map
Interactive map by the National Park Service
Public land nearby
Distances are approximate. Wilderness Atlas publishes a center point and an acreage for each area rather than a boundary, so each area is treated here as a circle of the same size and the figure is the gap to that circle.
Guidebooks for the Pacific Northwest
We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.
Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject.
Reference
Wildlife
Seen this monthBobcat 1× · Pronghorn 1×Research-grade observations within 25 km, last 30 days, via iNaturalist
Full checklist: 168 birds, 56 mammalsHide
Raptors & owlsAmerican Kestrel · Bald Eagle · Barn Owl · Barred Owl · Cooper's Hawk · Flammulated Owl · Golden Eagle · Great Horned Owl · Long-eared Owl · Merlin · Northern Harrier · Osprey · Peregrine Falcon · Prairie Falcon · Red-tailed Hawk · Rough-legged Hawk · Sharp-shinned Hawk · Short-eared Owl · Turkey Vulture · Western Screech-Owl
Waterfowl & wadersAmerican Coot · American White Pelican · American Wigeon · Blue-winged Teal · Bufflehead · Canada Goose · Cinnamon Teal · Common Goldeneye · Common Merganser · Common Teal · Double-crested Cormorant · Great Blue Heron · Great Egret · Lesser Scaup · Northern Pintail · Pied-billed grebe · Ring-necked Duck · Ruddy Duck · Sandhill Crane · Trumpeter Swan · Tundra Swan · Virginia Rail · Western Grebe · Whistling Swan · White-faced ibis · Wood Duck · great egret
Shorebirds & seabirdsCalifornia Gull · Caspian Tern · Common Snipe · Forster's Tern · Killdeer · Least Sandpiper · Long-billed Dowitcher · Ring-billed Gull · Spotted Sandpiper · Western Sandpiper · Wilson's Phalarope
Gamebirds & dovesCalifornia Quail · Mountain Quail · Mourning Dove · Ring-necked Pheasant · Rock Pigeon · Wild Turkey
WoodpeckersDowny Woodpecker · Hairy Woodpecker · Lewis' Woodpecker · Northern Flicker · Red-naped Sapsucker
Hummingbirds & swiftsBlack-chinned Hummingbird · Calliope Hummingbird · Rufous Hummingbird · Vaux's Swift · White-throated Swift
Also on the checklistAmerican Bushtit · American Crow · American Dipper · American Dusky Flycatcher · American Goldfinch · American Grey Flycatcher · American Robin · Ash-throated Flycatcher · Barn Swallow · Belted Kingfisher · Black-billed Magpie · Black-headed Grosbeak · Brewer's Blackbird · Brewer's Sparrow · Brown-headed Cowbird · Canvasback · Canyon Wren · Cassin's Finch · Cedar Waxwing · Chipping Sparrow · Chukar · Clark's Nutcracker · Cliff Swallow · Common Nighthawk · Common Poorwill · Common Raven · Dark-eyed Junco · Eastern Kingbird · European Starling · Evening Grosbeak · Fox Sparrow · Gadwall · Golden-crowned Kinglet · Golden-crowned Sparrow · Gray Catbird · Great Grey Shrike · Green-tailed Towhee · Hermit Thrush · Horned Lark · House Finch · House Sparrow · House Wren · Lapland Longspur · Lark Sparrow · Lazuli Bunting · Least Flycatcher · Lesser Goldfinch · Lincoln's Sparrow · Loggerhead Shrike · Mallard · Marsh Wren · Mountain Bluebird · Northern Goshawk · Northern Mockingbird · Northern Rough-winged Swallow · Northern Shoveler · Oregon Junco · Pine Siskin · Red-breasted Nuthatch · Red-winged Blackbird · Redhead · Rock Wren · Ruby-crowned Kinglet · Sage Thrasher · Sand Martin · Savannah Sparrow · Say's Phoebe · Song Sparrow · Sora · Spotted towhee · Townsend's Solitaire · Tree Swallow · Tricolored Blackbird · Varied Thrush · Vesper Sparrow · Violet-green Swallow · Warbling Vireo · Western Bluebird · Western Kingbird · Western Meadowlark · Western Scrub Jay · Western Tanager · Western Wood Pewee · White-crowned Sparrow · Willow Flycatcher · Winter Wren · Yellow Warbler · Yellow-breasted Chat · Yellow-headed Blackbird · Yellow-rumped Warbler · black-capped chickadee · cliff swallow · mountain chickadee · northern oriole (Bullock's oriole)
Small mammalsAmerican Beaver · Belding's Ground Squirrel · Belding's ground squirrel · Black-tailed Jack Rabbit · Bushy-tailed Woodrat · Canyon Deermouse · Coast Mole · Columbia Plateau Pocket Mouse · Common Muskrat · Coronation Island vole · Deer Mouse · Douglas's Squirrel · Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel · Least Chipmunk · Merriam's Shrew · Montane Vole · Northern Grasshopper Mouse · Northern Pocket Gopher · Ord's Kangaroo Rat · Piñon Deermouse · Sagebrush Vole · Vagrant Shrew · Western Harvest Mouse · Yellow-bellied Marmot · common porcupine · mountain cottontail
PredatorsAmerican Badger · American Mink · Black fox · Bobcat · Common Otter · Coyote · Long-tailed Weasel · Red Fox · Striped Skunk · Western Spotted Skunk · common raccoon
Hoofed mammalsBighorn Sheep · Mule Deer · Pronghorn · Rocky Mountain Elk
BatsBig Brown Bat · Black Bat · California Myotis · Fringed Myotis · Hoary Bat · Little Brown Bat · Long-eared Myotis · Long-legged Myotis · Pallid Bat · Pinto Bat · Small-footed Myotis · Townsend's big-eared bat · Western Pipistrelle · Yuma Myotis
Also on the checklistcougar
Activities
Activity guides for this park Hiking in the national parks
Weather & climate
Weather conditions at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument are highly variable in this semi-arid desert landscape. Summer highs can climb into the 110's. Winters tend to be fairly mild, with occassional snow and ice and lows occasionally dipping into the single digits.
Questions people ask
Does John Day Fossil Beds charge an entrance fee?
No. John Day Fossil Beds is free to enter.
Source: National Park Service
Is John Day Fossil Beds open year-round?
Yes. The grounds are open 24 hours a day, year-round.
Source: National Park Service
Is anything closed at John Day Fossil Beds right now?
1 active alert as of October 14, 2026: No Water Available at the Clarno Unit.
Source: Alerts
How busy is John Day Fossil Beds?
131,119 recreation visits in 2025, number 196 of 387 units that report visitation.
Source: Most visited parks
Is there cell service at John Day Fossil Beds?
At the park's reference point, FCC coverage maps show AT&T 4G LTE. No reported coverage for Verizon and T-Mobile. Coverage inside the park varies by location.
Source: FCC Broadband Map
What is the weather like at John Day Fossil Beds?
Weather conditions at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument are highly variable in this semi-arid desert landscape. Summer highs can climb into the 110's.
Source: Weather & climate
Follow this park
- Alerts feed (RSS)
- Every active Park Service alert for this unit, one item each, rebuilt with the nightly data refresh.
- Add dates to your calendar (.ics file)
- Fee-free entrance days that apply here and each published hours exception, as all-day events.
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