The second half of our vacation took us through the heart of the Oregon high desert, to Painted Hills, an outpost of the John Day Fossil Bed National Monument, a solid 2+ hrs drive from Bend, OR. I was totally unprepared for the color & beauty of the area--with accentuated coloring if you're lucky to see it during the sunset hours. A similar area that we didn't make it to (but it's on my bucket list) is the Blue Basin area, another hour east. From there it was a 3-hr drive north to the Dalles (who knew that there were so many windmills in Central Oregon?), and across the Gorge to the Columbia Hills State Park in Washington. We were fortunate to be signed up to see their famous petroglyph, "She who watches" overlooking the river. Available only during Friday & Saturday tours (due to petroglyph vandals in the area), she was stunning to see in person. Our trip ended with quick stops to the Maryhill Museum sculpture garden (and Korean War Memorial Stonehenge a few miles down the road) and a quick wine tasting at the Maryhill Winery.