Best time to visit John Day Fossil Beds National Monument
March and October are the best balance at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument: mild and dry for the park (average highs 56° to 66°F), with moderate crowds. June is busiest, with about 23,000 visitors. January is the quietest, with highs near 45°F.
- Quiet
- Moderate
- Busy
- Very busy
- Few or no visits (may be closed)
- Best months
Month by month
- Station
- John Day 35 WNW, OR USW00004125
- Lat / lon
- 44.56, -119.65
- Elevation
- 2,245 ft
- From park center
- 1.2 mi
- Normals
- 1991–2020
- Visits
- 2023–2025
| Field | Jan | Feb | Marbest | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Octbest | Nov | Dec | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High, °F | 45° | 50° | 56° | 62° | 71° | 80° | 91° | 90° | 81° | 66° | 51° | 43° | 65° |
| Low, °F | 29° | 29° | 34° | 37° | 44° | 50° | 55° | 54° | 48° | 40° | 32° | 28° | 40° |
| Precipitation, in | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.9 | 1.1 | 1.4 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 9.8 |
| Snow, in | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Daylight, h:mm | 9:10 | 10:22 | 11:46 | 13:24 | 14:46 | 15:32 | 15:14 | 14:02 | 12:28 | 10:54 | 9:31 | 8:50 | |
| Visitors, thousands | 2 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 20 | 23 | 20 | 20 | 15 | 11 | 5 | 2 | 141 |
| Crowds | Quiet | Quiet | Moderate | Moderate | Very busy | Very busy | Very busy | Very busy | Busy | Moderate | Quiet | Quiet | |
| Weather | Cool | Cool | Mild | Mild, wet | Mild, wet | Mild, wet | Very hot | Very hot | Hot | Mild | Cool | Cool |
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip., in | Snow, in | Daylight | Visitors | Crowds | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 45° | 29° | 1.0 | – | 9:10 | 2,100 | Quiet | Cool |
| February | 50° | 29° | 0.6 | – | 10:22 | 2,700 | Quiet | Cool |
| Marchbest | 56° | 34° | 0.9 | – | 11:46 | 8,400 | Moderate | Mild |
| April | 62° | 37° | 1.1 | – | 13:24 | 11,000 | Moderate | Mild, wet |
| May | 71° | 44° | 1.4 | – | 14:46 | 20,000 | Very busy | Mild, wet |
| June | 80° | 50° | 0.9 | – | 15:32 | 23,000 | Very busy | Mild, wet |
| July | 91° | 55° | 0.5 | – | 15:14 | 20,000 | Very busy | Very hot |
| August | 90° | 54° | 0.4 | – | 14:02 | 20,000 | Very busy | Very hot |
| September | 81° | 48° | 0.3 | – | 12:28 | 15,000 | Busy | Hot |
| Octoberbest | 66° | 40° | 0.8 | – | 10:54 | 11,000 | Moderate | Mild |
| November | 51° | 32° | 1.0 | – | 9:31 | 4,900 | Quiet | Cool |
| December | 43° | 28° | 1.0 | – | 8:50 | 2,500 | Quiet | Cool |
| Year | 65° | 40° | 9.8 | – | 141,000 | |||
Year: average high and low, total precipitation and snowfall, total visitors. T = trace (under 0.05 in). – = not measured at this station. Updated .
- Hottest July, average high 91°F
- Coldest nights December, average low 28°F
- Source NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information; National Park Service
- Visitors a year about 141,000 (2023–2025 average)
- State Oregon
Closures, reservations and alerts: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument on nps.gov
Nearby
- Whitman Mission National Historic SiteBest: Jun and Oct · Washington
- Fort Vancouver National Historic SiteBest: Apr, Jun and Sep · Washington
- Crater Lake National ParkBest: Jun, Aug and Sep · Oregon
- Nez Perce National Historical ParkBest: Sep · Idaho