Fort Rock Basin

End of June and it is HOT HOT HOT.  Hard to believe  that here in Western Oregon we are staying indoors because of heat and not rain.  Grateful we have air-conditioning.  Because of our usual moderate climate, many people do not.  Happy too that we traveled to the other part of our State earlier this month when the weather was still more moderate.  I would still be blogging about that trip anyway because we saw and learned so much, but it is especially good not to have to dig into the photo archives, because we're sure not outside getting new pictures this week.    

 

 

Today is about the Fort Rock basin,  the first area we explored along Oregon's National Outback Scenic Highway.  We stayed (and parked our travel trailer) in an RV Park in LaPine for the first three days of our trip.  

 

 

Fort Rock was created during the last ice age when  magma exploded beneath a prehistoric Lake. Back then, immense lakes covered much of this region.

 

 

Today, the hills and valleys of Oregon's Outback are austere and dry.  But during the Pleistocene Epoch (1.8 million to 10,000 years ago), the interior northwest received more precipitation than it does now.    As the climate dried, the lakes evaporated.  Lake beds have evolved into broad, flat deserts and sand dunes.    (A million years ago, this picture would have been a Lake -- or maybe underwater. )

 

 

The Fort Rock Basin is one of most significant Pleistocene fossil sites in North America.

Paleontologists have found  bones from small animals and fish from that era.  Among their finds have been giant beavers (over 7 feet in length), North American camels, giant sloths, and wooly mammoths.    Those species are long gone, but some species. such as chipmunks and jays. survived the transition from wet to dry climate.

 

(click to enlarge this portion of informational sign)

Archeologists have found evidence of  thousands of years of Native American settlement.  For at least 13,000 years Paiute, Klamath, and Modoc people and their ancestors lived and camped along the area's lakeshores and rivers.  Many of their traditional gathering places are visible along the Byway.   On a later day, we found petroglyphs while exploring a backroad (future post).   

Much, much later -- in the 19th Century --  an expedition led by explorer John C. Fremont brought changes to the Great Basin. 

 

 

 In the Fort Rock area, as in the rest of the Basin, the expedition marked the beginning of transformation from desert, grassland and forest to ranch land, farms, sawmills and towns. 

We visited the Fort Rock Homestead Village, where  a schoolhouse, church, several homes, and various artifacts such as the water well drilling rig (above)  have been gathered in one place to preserve the history and legacy of these more recent pioneers in this area.  

 

 

The little homes look quite lonely out there in the desert as they are now, but when people actually lived here, their homes would have been miles and miles apart rather than within walking distance of each other.   I'm glad the town of Fort Rock has preserved these remaining structures -- had they been left in situ, they would have disintegrated with very few people ever getting this glimpse of what their lives were like back then.

This was kind of a long post -- but after all it was covering over a million years of history.  I hope that writing about our visit will help me to remember some of it.   Information about the Fort Rock monument was taken from National and State Park signs in the area -- any errors are my mis-interpretation.  I'm linking this week to the following sharing opportunities:  Thank you to the hosts.

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS;   TRAVEL PHOTO SOUVENIRS; OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY; TUESDAY TREASURES;    MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; SIGNS SIGNS;  THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY; and  FRIDAY  BLISS.

Comments

[carver]

Interesting post and as always I enjoyed your photographs. I was thinking about you when the heat wave made it to the national news. It may have been cooler in FL than Oregon during that period but hopefully the rest of your time in Oregon won't be so hot.

[Michelle Keltner]

I love reading about these pioneers, but cannot imagine living that life, in real time. Hot here in Kentucky, but not as hot as other places, for sure. We have our air con running but set on 77 degrees! I think that is a little bit warm for the inside of the house, but my husband is sitting here with a blanket on him. *sigh* Thanks for linking up.

[Amy Franks]

wow I don't envy you in the Summer heat, I'm wondering where the people got their water from though when they lived there.

[riitta k]

Sow, impressive landscapes and history of these pioneers! Happy weekend.

[My Corner of the World]

What a great trip! I love your scenery and the historic places and machinery.

Your link this week at 'My Corner of the World' is appreciated!

[JM Illinois U.S.A.]

Greetings and Salutations! Interesting blog.

[Gaelyn]

A great trip loaded with natural and cultural history. Glad you sent before the heat wave.

[Carol]

I enjoyed the history and fossil information. A great post - thank you.

[Peter B.]

I'm intrigued by Native American artifacts. Those sagebrush sandals are amazing! Can you even imagine being out on a hike and coming across these!!? Looking forward to seeing your petroglyphs.

[Michelle Banks]

My late father's best friend would go out on digs. I remember his stories so well.....

[Jim, Sydney, Australia]

Great shots.

[Yvonne]

Interesting post. Many of the photos remind me of where I grew up in Nevada.

[Jim, Sydney, Australia]

Interesting post.

[tomthebackroadstraveller]

...this sure is a drier view of Oregon than I'm used to seeing. We have had a string of 90+ day with just a few brief showers. Could this be the global warming that the Republicans say is a hoax?

[beatrice]

As you may know from reading some of my blog posts, we also enjoy sharing the history and photos of interesting places. Even though you said you visited during a cooler time, Fort Rock Basin still looked like it would be a hot and dry area and those homes stretched far apart would surely have looked even lonlier. Glad you are keeping cool and indoors during this hot weather, here as well in NH.

[klara]

that was a gorgeous trip.

[Lady Fi]

Great post - full of history and cool landscapes!

[Little Wandering Wren]

Hello Sallie - good news you have air-con, the hot weather in the USA was reported on the BBC this week, you know how the Brits like all sorts of weather news! What an interesting place for some hiking, I'm so attracted to the RV life, you go to such interesting places! Fort Rock looks amazing

[Rajani singh]

Mind blowing post

[Angie]

Sallie - a terrific post! In the "old" days, the land where our house sits was under a massive glacier ... I read with interest your comment about the homes of the settlers and how far apart they were. When I first came to Montana, I read some histories of homesteaders, and it was the same situation. But occasionally, they would still transport a piano on the back of a wagon to someone's house so they could have a party! Thanks for linking to Mosaic Monday!

[bill burke]

What a wonder tour. I have never been there but it definitely is a great place to explore. I hope you are staying cool. My daughter is experiencing to heat up there in Portland and she's not one for extreme heat, who is. Stay cool and enjoy your week.

[Bob Bushell]

It was hot, hotter, but, the scenery was beautiful. Love them.

[DeniseinVA]

Sounds like a wonderful trip. Thank you for the great photos and all the interesting information. Thoroughly enjoyed :)

[Veronica Lee]

Thank you, Sallie for that most fascinating tour! I hope it cools down there soon.

Ironically, we are having cold (by our standard) temps here in our supposedly very hot and humid climate!

[mae]

Hearing about the extraordinary heat dome over the Northwest is horrifying -- it's hard to face the fact that it might happen more often in the future. I hope you get over it soon.

best... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

[Penelope Notes]

Interesting evolution over time. There is a wasteland feel to these scenes that befit the current dryness we are experiencing in the Northwest. Barren lakes and deserts are on my mind during this terrible heatwave we are having and I miss the rain.

[Sondra]

Hi Sallie, been hearing about the heat on the tv evening news hope it returns to more normal soon, we are having a record wet summer so far rain nearly every day. I really enjoyed seeing that chuck wagon in your photos that embodies the adventurous spirit of the people who founded this country. I just wish they could have done it without the fighting with the native population. I would love to see a 7 ft beaver and I keep hoping they will clone and bring the mammoth. I noticed that window AC units are now $56 more than last year. Trumps legacy. TC

[Heidrun]

What a wonderful Post, I enjoyed reading. I love such reports of travel.

Happy MosaicMonday

[NatureFootstep]

I agree, it has been a little too hot to handle. :)
Fort Rock Basin seem to have a lot of things that I like. To bad there is never enough time adn money to visit all great places. At least we can learn baout them from others. Like you :)
Thanks!

[Linda W]

Interesting. I'm trying to picture a seven-foot beaver!

[Photo Cache]

There's so much to see and experience in Oregon. Stay safe and hydrated during the heatwave. It's weird that your temps are higher than ours.

Worth a Thousand Words

[Fun60]

It is good that those homes have been preserved. Incredible to think you might be walking over fossils from hundreds of thousands of years ago.

[ellen b.]

Such an interesting side of Oregon. Such a contrast from the coastal areas that we've been in. I guess Washington state is a quite a contrast from the west and the east, too. Stay cool. We are enjoying our A/C, too!!

[Alan]

What an interesting and isolated place yet home for over 10,000 years to people.
I'm a city guy, I knew that when I was just a little kid living in ranger stations in New Mexico and Arizona. I could not stand the isolation of living so remotely from other people.

[Eileen]

Hello Sallie,

What a interesting place and tour. I can imagine what the first explorers thought finding the bones and fossils of these giant animals. The landscapes and homestead views remind me of an old western movie. Take care, enjoy your day! Have a great new week ahead.

[Annie]

Thank you, Sallie for that very interesting tour ! Have a nice and I hope, not to hot week !

[handmade by amalia]

Very hot here as well. And humid. Glad to be travelling with you from the comfort of home.
Amalia
xo

[Pat]

Hi Sallie
Fort Rock Monument sounds like a place I'd love to visit. I really enjoy learning about geology and the past climates and life forms. So fascinating!
I hope the excessive heat won't come our way. We had enough 90 to 100 degree days already. The past few days have been rainy and cool--I'm so much happier about that!
Stay cool!

[Martha]

Thank you for sharing your adventure and photos with us. Can you even imagine giant seven foot beavers?! I hope it cools down there soon. I feel horrible for those who don't have air conditioning out there!

[Lorrie]

You've condensed millions of years of history well! Thanks for sharing some of the interesting things of your trip.

This heat is incredible. I am currently sitting in our travel trailer on the driveway, with the air conditioning going, as we don't have it in the house.

[Wiiliam Kendall]

Stark but beautiful landscapes.

[Rain Frances]

What a lovely trip! Thank you for sharing! :) Oh the air conditioning...well, we've decided to go without this summer to save on our energy bill, and I am ready to throw in the towel some days!!