Oregon's Wonderland of the Past - The John Day

Clear comprehension of the story of the past life of the earth as revealed in any one region often depends upon a succession of favorable circumstances. While it is commonplace to say that the ravages of time leave their impress on things material, they are probably never so much in evidence as in that organic record of the past scrutinized by the student of the earth sciences. Indeed, the chance occurrence of a geologic event is often responsible for those tantalizing uncertainties in paleontology which in themselves serve as incentives to read and interpret earth history.