The best camping near John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

Discover the most magical spots to pitch your tent or park your rig on your next John Day Fossil Beds National Monument adventure.

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Top-rated campgrounds near John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

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Haystack Ranch

8 sites · RVs, Tents500 acres · Spray, OR

My family has owned the ranch since 1977. We bought it from my parents a few years ago to keep it in the family. We love living here, and although it is just the two of us working it, we are slowly getting it to what we want it to be. The house we live in is over 100 years old and used to be a stage coach stop back in the late 1800's to early 1900's, You can still see some of the old stage coach roads on the property, and we are trying to preserve those the best we can. Also in the early 1900's this ranch used to be the place to go on the fourth of July. People from all over would bring their prize horses to compete in a horse race for the name of the fastest horses around While others would bring picnic baskets to set back on the knoll in one of our fields to watch. Learn more about this land:We are a 500 Acre working ranch located in Beautiful East Central Oregon, We are Between The stunning Painted Hills, and Umatilla National Forest. Just a few miles away from the Gorgeous John Day River, where Rafting, Tubing, Fishing, Swimming is always a welcome retreat. A few miles above us is Bull Prairie Lake and the wonderful Umatilla National Forest where hiking, sight seeing and wildlife viewing is always available.

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Back Side of Painted Hills Camping

1 site · RV, Tent320 acres · Mitchell, OR

This 320 acre plot of land on which you can hike anywhere has been in our family since 1993. Large, graveled spot for tents or two vehicles with excellent view for miles and miles and night star gazing. Primitive outhouse. Juniper forest with sage brush... basically high desert vegetation. We only allow one reservation per night, although there is lodging (reserved) at the log home almost out of sight up above you. 320 acres to hike and roam. Mitchell is 10 miles away with well stocked grocery and feed store, restaurants, small brewery, and tire shop. We give directions fairly quickly. Road is wide, but steep at top. 4 wheel drive is recommended. Very close to the Painted Hills Unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National monument, Ochoco National Forest is seven miles. John Day River for swimming, rafting about 20 minutes. If you can book, it means you can drive on up with out contacting us. As you drive in if at night, you will see a light on the outhouse.

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Bucking Horse Ranch

54 sites · RVs, Tents600 acres · Mitchell, OR

Come hike and enjoy the beautiful views of cougar mountain!Learn more about this land:Come hike and enjoy the beautiful views of cougar mountain in Mitchell Oregon. There is a lot of a lot of juniper on the property and you can also see john deer river canyonPLEASE CALL me to confirm details 2 days prior to your booking / before you arrive so that I can greet you and show you around.

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Bologna Creek Ranch

9 sites · Lodging, RVs, Tents101 acres · Monument, OR

My grandfather and my dad bought the property as a bank foreclosure in 1987. Our grandfather gave his portion to my brother and I. We have used it primarily for recreation and big game hunting. I have been managing restoration projects on the place for the last 7 years. We have restored over 200 acre of native grasslands and are working on getting the aspens back stronger. We love it when visitors take some time to clip the western junipers smaller than 1 ft tall in our restoration areas!

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Antelope Market Camping

5 sites · RVs, Tents2 acres · Antelope, OR

We are located in the heart of Antelope, a rural (near) Ghost town that is rich in history and culture. This particular property is currently being cleaned up and revitalized. We would like to open it up to dry camping only at this time as we are already seeing a huge influx of cyclists and motorcycles in the area and they have no place to camp. This is dry camping only until the facilities are improved. There is porta potty onsite next to the old Rajneesh bath house (Red and white building). In the image any spot that you can find in the near 2 acres of grass highlighted in orange is the designated areas.

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Justesen Ranches

17 sites · Lodging, RVs, TentsTygh Valley, OR

Justesen Ranches is family owned working cattle, wheat and recreation ranch . Our properties are located in the Columbia River Plateau in North Central Oregon. Enjoy wide open spaces, reservoirs for wildlife watching and clear night skies for star gazing. This is a leave no trace, pack it in, pack it out camping area.The property is located in Tygh Valley and is only a few minutes from the general store and the stunning White River Falls State Park. The Deschutes River whitewater rafting hub of Maupin is just a 10 minute drive away. The lodge two hours from Portland and 30 min from The Dalles.

The best camping near John Day Fossil Beds National Monument guide

Overview

About

Fossil lovers will get their thrill at this national monument. If you're driving through the beauty of the Painted Hills, this is a must-stop. The hike through the fossil beds is well marked, with tons of fossils to look at. Forty million years of mammal fossils (no dinosaurs, sorry) are waiting for you here. Some consider it the most important fossil find anywhere on Earth. It's quite rare to be able to see fossils in the ground like this, as most similar (smaller) sites keep everything covered to prevent looting.

Stop at the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center and Fossil Museum to view the exhibits. The Rangers lead tours and answer questions. This is more than just a museum—paleontologists are hard at work here, and you can watch them in action at their lab.

Hikes range from less than half a mile to about 4 miles. Summertime can get quite warm, so pack water for your hike. Try to get out in the early morning or late afternoon (the colors of the Painted Hills are best then, anyway). Cabins, glamping, tent cabins, and tipis are all available through Hipcamp if you'd like to stay a spell.