Next day, Tuesday, Sept. 20 we headed northeast to the John Day River area and the John Day fossil fields. We had a nice lunch by the John Day River, stopped at the visitor center at the Fossil Field National Monument and then went on the town of John Day were we camped the night (No. 9 on the map) an a state park just west of town on the banks of the John Day River. The fossil fields are the result of a millenia of volcanic activity as the Pacific plate pushed under the North American plate. Plant and animal fossils dating back 6 million to 54 million years have been well preserved in this area and are found under the various layers of earth (ancient mudlows and volcanic ash) exposed by erosion by the John Day River. Today, the John Day River is small compared to times past, but it flows through beautiful valleys and past dramatic rock formations.