Located near Holbrook, Arizona, and a stop along Route 66, Petrified Forest National Park offers a unique and fascinating glimpse into prehistoric times and is renowned for its extensive deposits of petrified wood.
The park spans over 200,000 acres and is home to one of the largest and most colorful concentrations of petrified wood in the world. The park’s origins date back over 200 million years to the Late Triassic Period when the area was a lush, subtropical forest. Over time, fallen trees were buried under layers of sediment and volcanic ash, causing the organic material to be replaced by minerals, primarily quartz, transforming some of the wood into stone.
Planning Your Visit
Important! Unlike many other National Parks, Petrified Forest National Park closes its gates! This is apparently because there is a serious problem with the theft of petrified wood. And there are no overnight accommodations in the park so they do not need to leave the gate open around the clock.
The Visitor Center is open until 5 pm and the main gate is open until 6 pm. As long as you are in before 6 pm you can get out as the gates will automatically open for you as you exit the park. There are signs at each outlook asking you to be back to your car by 7:30 pm and the rangers will come around to check.
The park road is 28 miles long and will take about an hour with minimal stops. We spent about three hours total in the park and would have spent a bit longer had we not arrived late in the afternoon. You can plan less time than we did and still see the park – this one is not a multi-day park by any stretch of the imagination.
What to See and Do
There is one main road going through the park from north to south with a visitor center on each end. We entered from the north so the stops listed below are in order from north to south.
Painted Desert – The northern section of the park is home to the Painted Desert, a vast expanse of colorful badlands that stretch to the horizon. If you would like to do some hiking in this area, The Painted Desert Rim Trail provides an easy walk along the edge of the mesas. As you drive along the main road, you will see several overlooks, including Tiponi Point and Whipple Point. This is also where you will find the Painted Desert Inn if you would like to stop in the museum there (closes at 4 pm). Be sure to check out its mini (and better-looking) version after you leave the park.
Historic Route 66 – After you complete the drive through the badlands section, you will come across a pullout that features the remains of an old car and a commemorative plaque, marking the alignment of the iconic Route 66 highway that once brought travelers through the area.
Newspaper Rock – As you continue driving south, pull off at Newspaper Rock, a site that overlooks two large boulders with over 650 petroglyphs etched into their dark lower sides. These ancient carvings, created by the ancestral Puebloan people, date back over 2,000 years and depict a variety of symbols, animals, and human figures.
Originally, a trail with steps led to a platform next to Newspaper Rock. After a partial cliff collapse in the 1980s, the trail was closed. Now, to view the petroglyphs, walk the short path from the parking area that will lead you to an overlook. There, you can use the spotting scope to locate and view the intricate designs.
Blue Mesa – Next, make sure to take the road on the right to the Blue Mesa area. It’s filled with potholes but worth the drive. Blue Mesa is known for its striking badlands, featuring bluish clay and colorful, layered rock formations. The Blue Mesa Trail is a 1-mile loop that takes you through the heart of the landscape, offering views of petrified wood embedded in the hillsides and dramatic vistas of the surrounding terrain. We decided against doing the loop since it was late in the evening when we got to it, but we almost went back the next morning just to do this trail. It’s worth the stop!
Agate Bridge – Agate Bridge is a 110-foot long petrified log that forms a natural bridge. Over 200 million years ago, the tree fell and was buried by sediment, eventually transforming into solid quartz. Over time, erosion washed away the surrounding sandstone, leaving the log suspended like a bridge. To preserve the tree, a concrete support was added in 1917. Seeing it in person was…meh.
Jasper Forest – This part of the park was one of the first areas to be discovered and studied by early explorers and scientists. The name “Jasper Forest” comes from the brilliant jasper and agate hues found in the petrified wood, which include vibrant reds, oranges, yellows, and purples. The overlook provides a view of this fossilized forest. (You can skip this and see similar on the Giant Logs Trail).
Rainbow Forest Museum and Visitor Center – The main park road is not a loop but runs north-south. If you start your visit at the south entrance the Rainbow Forest Museum is a great first stop. The museum offers exhibits on the park’s geology, paleontology, and archaeology, providing a comprehensive overview of its natural history.
Giant Logs Trail – This trail is located behind the Rainbow Forest Museum and Visitor Center and offers an up-close encounter with some of the largest and most colorful petrified logs in the park. It’s a 0.4-mile loop trail that is currently being updated (so it may be longer or shorter when you go) and takes you past massive fossilized trees, including “Old Faithful,” a log measuring nearly 10 feet in diameter. The vibrant colors of the petrified wood, ranging from deep reds and purples to bright oranges and yellows, are a result of mineralization over millions of years.
Final Note:
We skipped a few things along the drive for the sake of time and simply because we didn’t care to see them. You could skip Jasper Forest and Agate Bridge and be none-the-wiser. The stops we skipped include:
Puerco Pueblo – This is a paved 0.3-mile walk you can take to see the remains of a hundred-room pueblo occupied by the ancestral Puebloan people over 600 years ago. We saw plenty of other ruins in the area and decided against this stop.
Crystal Forest – The Crystal Forest is one of the park’s most popular trails, offering a close-up view of petrified logs that sparkle with quartz crystals. It’s an easy 0.75-mile loop trail you can take to wander among the vibrant and well-preserved petrified wood. We opted against it in favor of the Giant Logs Trail.
Long Logs Trail – This is a 1.6-mile loop trail that offers one of the best opportunities to see some of the largest and most impressive petrified logs in the park. Many of the logs measure over 100 feet in length, and some are nearly 10 feet in diameter. The trail provides interpretive signs along the way, explaining the geology and history of the petrified wood and how it came to be fossilized over millions of years. The Long Logs Trail is also connected to the Agate House Trail, which leads to a reconstructed Puebloan structure made entirely of petrified wood. We skipped this due to time.
