Painted Hills - John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

Less than 2 hours out of Bend is the Painted Hills unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument (1 of 3 units). I had seen pictures of this seemingly beautiful place, but hadn't visited myself until this weekend. When you arrive, you see different beautiful shades of red, orange, gold, and even some black mixed in. The hills really do look painted - how else would they look like that? ;)
Really though, the unique colors and patterns were formed by volcanic eruptions and climate change over the past 35 million years. There are signs everywhere explaining in more detail, but honestly it's a little hard for me to grasp the whole story.
At painted hills there are multiple viewpoints, trails (about 2.75 miles total), and picnic areas. One of the most important things they stress is to stay off the exposed hills, because it takes a long time for the area to repair itself.

The colors of the hills change a lot with with time of day and moisture (I've heard the colors are very rich after some rain), but it's a stunning sight, no matter when you visit!