Photos by Makenzie Whittle/The Bulletin
LEFT: The Clarno Palisades, an ancient rock feature formed 54 to 40 million years ago, still
holds fossils of plants from the semi-tropical climate of ancient Oregon. ABOVE: The trail
through the lava fi eld at Hoff man Island.
Continued from Page 28
to many animal and plant fossils some of
which can clearly be seen in the large boul-
ders along the sides of the trail. These are
left from a semi-tropical forest that existed
here 44 million years ago and was swept
up in volcanic mudfl ows, called lahars and
deposited here.
The palisades are eroded lahar deposits
with striking red colorations that deepen in
the rain.
The unit’s Geologic Time Trail has signs
posted beside it that indicate the changing
in time with each food representing 37,000
years which makes a great tool in visualiz-
ing how much time has passed.
Alvord Desert
The playa out in one of the more remote
corners of Oregon sits in the impressive
shadow of the Steens Mountain.
Alvord Desert is only about 20 miles long
and receives most of its rainfall and mois-
ture over the winter, thanks to runoff from
the mountain and can at times become more
of a lake. When it gets wet, it gets muddy so
one can easily get stuck out on the fl ats.
But when things dry out, the ground
hardens and the wind can often howl over
the plain creating the desolate and alien-like
landscape that could be found in the worlds
of Edgar Rice Burroughs.
1960s, a handful of astronauts trained in
these lava fi elds to test their equipment and
maneuverability along the rocky terrain.
If you want a really secluded space-fi lled
hike, Lava Cast Forest is more tucked away
than its neighbors in the monument. Here
you can explore hollowed-out casts of trees
that were burned away when lava came
spewing out of the fi ssure off the side of
Newberry Volcano thousands of years ago.
Even more out of the way is the trail to
Hoffman Island, a kipuka, or an island of
trees surrounded by the jagged lava rock
beyond it.
Lava Cast Forest
Closer to home, though best explored
during the summer after the snow has
melted, the lava rock-fi lled places of the
Newberry National Volcanic Monument
resemble a lot of what could be found out
on other tertiary planets and moons. In
fact, during NASA’s Apollo program of the
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THURSDAY, MARCH 18, 2021 // 29