"Petrified Forest and Painted Desert" Petrified Forest National Park by Ewingjr98

Petrified Forest National Park Travel Guide: 119 reviews and 402 photos

Near the crystal forest - Petrified Forest National Park

My dad and I stopped at the Petrified Forest on our way across Arizona in 2006 while heading to California. Before arriving at the Petrified Forest, we drove through New Mexico, then after our time in this park, we spent the night in Holbrook, AZ, just about 20 miles down Interstate 40 from the park entrance.

Crystalized, petrified tree

Petrified Forest and Painted Desert National Park is a relatively small area, covering a narrow north-south corridor about 28 miles in length. Most of the major sites are just off the park's central road, but a few require a short hike from a paved parking area. Some of the main areas we visited were:

Crystal Forest -- large concentration of petrified logs with paths through the area

Jasper Forest -- Overlook of a valley filled with petrified logs that have eroded from a nearby cliff

Newspaper Rock -- Ancient petroglyphs (rock carvings) done by local native people

Blue Mesa -- a 3-mile loop on top of a mesa overlooking badlands and some petrified logs

Puerco Pueblo -- Foundations and petroglyphs of an Indian village

Painted Desert -- a few stops at the northern end of the park offer stunning views of this colorful area

View of the badlands from the Blue Mesa

The entrance fee at the Petrified Forest is $10 per vehicle for a 1-week period, but we paid $50 for the one-year National Parks Pass, and after visiting the Grand Canyon ($25), Zion National Park ($20), Lake Meade ($5), and Death Valley ($20) it quickly paid for itself, and it's good for all National Parks for a full year.

Last visit to Petrified Forest National Park: Sep 2006
Intro Updated Nov 20, 2006
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Reviews (8)

The Tepees - Petrified Forest National Park

The Tepees Things to Do (8)

Nothing overly impressive, the tepees are some cone-shaped (or tepee-shaped) hills caved in the local badlands. This... more travel advice

Painted Desert - Petrified Forest National Park

Painted Desert Things to Do (8)

The Painted Desert surrounds most of the Petrified Forest and Painted Desert National Park, but the northern end of the... more travel advice

Agate Bridge - Petrified Forest National Park

Agate Bridge Things to Do (8)

Another not-so impressive spot, the Agate Bridge used to be a natural bridge formed by a single petrified log stretching... more travel advice

Scattered petrified logs at Jasper Forest - Petrified Forest National Park

Jasper Forest Things to Do (8)

Not one of the most impressive areas of the Park, Jasper Forest is an area of eroding cliffs. These cliffs have embedded... more travel advice

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Comments (2)

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SteveOSF Jan 10, 2010 at 1:21 PM

Nice and informative page. Enjoyed the photos.
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BruceDunning Jul 5, 2009 at 12:52 PM

Thanks for the tips of what to see-I am going there in September and need to plan the time for sites.