<Return to
listing
|
The Journey Through Time Scenic Byway
The Journey Through Time Scenic Byway stretches 286 miles through north
central to eastern Oregon. Beginning in the community of Biggs and ending
in Baker City, this Byway meanders through ghost towns and small farming
communities that bring the Old West to life. The Wild and Scenic John
Day River - North America's second longest undammed river - parallels
much of the route, offering excellent rafting, fishing and camping. Geology
buffs — and anyone who's curious about fossils — will take
great pleasure in the interpretive trails at the John Day Fossil Beds.
Historic commemorations of more recent times, such as the Sherman County
Museum in Moro, the Kam Wah Chung Museum in John Day, the gold mining
remnants in Sumpter and the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center near Baker
City offer telling windows into Oregon pioneer life.
A. Leaving the Columbia
Your Journey Through Time begins in the town of Biggs, 17 miles east
of The Dalles on I-84. You'll move south from Native American salmon-harvesting
spots on the Columbia toward Wasco, site of the original Columbia Southern
Railway depot which still stands and dates back to 1898. Be sure to visit
the Sherman County Historical Museum in Moro. The museum includes over
15,000 artifacts and exhibits on Native American life, Oregon Trail—migration,
rural living, and wheat farming.
B. Shaniko to Antelope
With Mount Hood and Mount Jefferson looming in the west, you'll reach
Shaniko — the Wool Shipping Center of the World in the 1880s, and
now a "living" ghost town. The recently renovated Shaniko Hotel
is open for business, and listed on the National Register of Historic
places. From here, take Route 218 to Antelope. The hills of this region
provide habitat for the town's prong-horned namesake, and were the site
of Rajneeshpuram, a religious community that briefly flourished and disbanded
in the early 1980s.
C. Fossil and Fossils
East of Antelope, you'll come to the Clarno Unit of the John Day Fossil
Beds National Monument. The three units of the Monument comprise a well-preserved
fossil record of plants and animals dating back 6 to 54 million years
- The Cenozoic Era, or Age of Mammals and Flowering Plants. The Clarno
Unit consists primarily of hardened mudflows or lahars, which captured
fossilized plants and animals in their wake. Visitors can walk several
interpretive trails. Eighteen miles farther east, you'll come upon the
town of Fossil, established in the 1880s - and named for a fossilized
mammoth bone found in the vicinity. Fossil offers amateur archeologists
a chance to do some free prospecting for leaf imprints at the public fossil-collecting
site in town. A few motels and restaurants are available.
D. Service Creek to Kimberly
 Heading
south from Fossil, the Journey Through Time Scenic Byway joins the Wild
and Scenic John Day River at Service Creek, an old stagecoach stop; the
river skirts the Byway for the next 100 miles. Next, you'll reach Spray,
site of a key turn-of-the-century ferry crossing that allowed travelers
to reach The Dalles Military Road farther west. The North Fork of the
John Day joins the mainstem of the river at Kimberley, which is known
for its bountiful orchards of cherries, apricots, peaches, nectarines,
apples and pears.
Cant Ranch National Historic District, across the highway from the Thomas
Condon Visitor Center (currently under construction) , features displays
of old farm equipment plus descriptions of sheep and cattle ranching in
the early 1900s.
E. Kimberley to John Day
The stretch of Highway 19 from Kimberley to Dayville showcases the beauty
of the John Day Canyon. Rimrock flanks the roadway, and the river winds
below while raptors glide in the thermals overhead. Several interpretive
hikes are easily accessed from the Byway, including the Foree Trailhead,
which features basalt flows dated at 16 million years, and Blue Basin,
which includes casts of turtle and saber-toothed cat fossils harvested
from the site. Two noteworthy formations, Cathedral Rock and Mascall Overlook,
can be viewed from the road. The John Day National Monument's main headquarters
is located at the Visitor Center at the Sheep Rock Unit. Passing through
rich cattle country, you'll soon reach John Day, the largest town along
the route. John Day is famous for the annual cattle drive that goes through
town. It's also home to the Kam Wah Chung Museum, which honors the culture
of the Chinese railroad workers and miners who settled here in the 1880s.
F. Strawberries and Blues
 Pushing
east from John Day you soon reach Prairie City, home of the DeWit Depot
Museum, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Strawberry
Mountain overlooks the town, creating one of the most photogenic vistas
on this Byway. The Byway now heads in a northeasterly direction on Oregon
Route 7, leaving the John Day River and climbing through the foothills
of the Blue Mountains. On a clear day, it seems you can see forever. You'll
pass through Whitney, one of Oregon's more accessible ghost towns, and
then reach Sumpter.
G. Sumpter to Baker City
Sumpter was a major gold mining center in Eastern Oregon. Gold was extracted
from the valleys of the Blue Mountains with a 1,240-ton dredge. Long piles
of gravel tailings are still visible along the Byway, and the dredge has
been restored. Train buffs will want to visit the original narrow gauge
steam train of the renamed Sumpter Valley Railway. The train runs Memorial
Day through September. East of Sumpter, the Journey Through Time Scenic
Byway joins the Elkhorn Drive Scenic Byway and offers breathtaking vistas
of the Blue Mountains and Elkhorn Range. You'll make a gradual descent
to Baker City, with its historic downtown. Just east of Baker City is
the National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center.
|
