One Day at Petrified Forest National Park
Petrified Forest National Park is located within the Painted Desert, at the southern edge of the Colorado Plateau, which creates a stunning landscape of shrub land and badlands.
Since the Main Park Road is only 28 miles long, you can visit the majority of the Petrified Forest National Park sites in one day. The north and south sections of the park are divided by I-40, with a number of spur roads and pull outs along the way.
Petrified wood is found in the southern section.
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Park Info
Location: Petrified Forest National Park sits in a remote area of NE Arizona and is about 3 hours from Grand Canyon Village. It is also 3 hours west of Albuquerque and 3.25 hours north-east of Phoenix.
Hours: 8am – 5pm. The park does actually open and close at these times, so no arriving early. The only way to see the park at night is if you are camping in the back country.
Established: Designated first as a National Monument in 1906, then a National Park in 1962
Elevation: Average elevation is 5800′
Lodging/Camping: There are no lodges or campsites. However, back country camping is allowed – be sure to grab a free permit first.
Pets: Pets are welcome at Petrified Forest and there is a dog park near the Painted Desert Visitor Center.
Entrance Fee: $25/vehicle click here to see current fee pricing
Park Maps: Link to park maps
Fun Facts About Petrified Wood at Petrified Forest
• Long, long, long ago downed trees were washed into a large river and buried under huge amounts of sediment and debris. Because of a lack of oxygen, decay slowed way, way down. Over time, minerals absorbed into the wood and crystalized, creating quartz replicas of the original wood.
• Petrified Wood is no longer wood, but a fossil
• The petrified wood in the park is almost solid quartz
• The variety of colors is created by trace minerals, such as iron and manganese
• The petrified wood is a 7 or 8 on Mohs Hardness Scale. Diamonds are a 10.
Things to See in the South End of the Park
Rainbow Forest Museum and Visitor Center
If you enter the park from the south, the Rainbow Forest Museum will likely be your first stop. Stamp your National Park passport, explore the paleontology exhibit, and step out back to find a geocache.
FUN FACT: Petrified Forest National Park preserves some of the earliest known dinosaurs in the world
Giant Logs Trail
I highly recommend strolling along the Giant Logs Trail. It not only has a high concentration of petrified wood, but has an amazing view of the unique landscape.
It’s a short loop, less than half a mile, and is located directly behind the museum.
FUN FACT: Albert Einstein visited the park in 1931
Long Logs Trail and Agate House Trail
If time allows, this 2.6 mile trail is another place to see petrified logs up close. The trailhead is easily accessible from the museum parking area. Take the spur trail to see the Agate House. Built from petrified wood, this building was constructed by ancestral Puebloan people sometime between 1050 and 1300 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Crystal Forest Trail
A .75 mile trail with many opportunities to see crystals within petrified logs.
Jasper Forest
Turn off Main Park Road onto Jasper Forest road and soon you will reach a parking area. From here you can look down into a valley of petrified wood. Or, you can hike down to the fossils and meander along faint trails for a few miles. Ask a park ranger for maps of their Off the Beaten Path hikes.
Blue Mesa
The Blue Mesa Scenic road is definitely worth the added effort of detouring off the main road. The view of the badlands from the parking area is spectacular. I also recommend getting out of your car and walking the Blue Mesa Trail. It’s a one mile paved path that is steep as you descend. But, once you reach the valley floor it is mostly flat. Click here to read my trail review.
Newspaper Rock
Not far off Main Park Road is the Newspaper Rock overlook. The site has over 650 petroglyphs from ancestral Puebloans. Visitors are not able to get up close and personal with the petroglyphs, but there are spotting scopes available to use. Newspaper Rock is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Puerco Pueblo
The trailhead for Puerco Pueblo is right off Main Park Road. There is a short walk to see the what remains of the ancestral Puebloan village near the Puerco River.
Route 66
From Chicago to Santa Monica, Route 66 was 2200 miles of adventure and it went right through the park. Today, there are no neon signs in sight, but a 1932 Studebaker marks the spot where the road was from 1926 until 1958. The pull out is located right off Main Park Road, on the north side of I-40.
FUN FACT: The only National Park with Historic Route 66 within its boundaries is Petrified Forest
Things to See at the North End of the Park
Painted Desert Visitor Center
If you are entering the park from the north, this visitor center will be your first stop. It’s located close to the 1-40 exit. It has a gift shop, exhibits, and is the trailhead for the Tawa Trail.
Painted Desert Rim Trail
This one mile trail is unpaved and goes from the Painted Desert Inn to Tawa Point. It is an easy hike with amazing views of the Painted Desert.
Painted Desert Inn
For 100 years, the Painted Desert Inn has attracted tourists. It was originally constructed of petrified wood and known as Stone Tree House, serving food and drinks. By 1936, the building was showing signs of structural problems and switched from private ownership to being bought by the National Park Service. The Civilian Conservation Corps renovated the building with Puebloan, Spanish, and Navajo styles. The Inn opened in 1940. But, by 1942 it was closed due to WWII. In the late 1940’s it reopened under new management and design changes were made. Major renovations occurred again between 2004 and 2006.
The Painted Desert Inn is listed as a National Historic Landmark.
Optional Items to Bring
North Eastern Arizona Natural and Historic Sites
- Antelope Canyon
- Canyon de Chelly National Monument
- Coconino National Forest and Bell Rock Pathway
- Glen Canyon National Recreation Area
- Grand Canyon National Park
- Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument
- Homolovi State Park
- Horseshoe Bend
- Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site
- Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park
- Navajo National Monument
- Old Spanish National Historic Trail
- Petrified Forest National Park
- Pipe Spring National Monument
- Red Rock Scenic Byway
- Red Rock State Park
- Riordan Mansion State Historic Park
- Slide Rock State Park
- Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument
- Vermillion Cliffs National Monument
- Walnut Canyon National Monument
- Wupatki National Monument
LEAVE NO TRACE
Historic Wigwam Motel
About a half an hour’s drive from Petrified Forest National Park is the town of Holbrook and the Wigwam Motel. Opening in 1950 and originally known as Wigwam Village #6 (as it was the 6th of 7 Wigwam Village’s to open) the motel housed travelers along Route 66. For a little nostalgia, you can sleep in the concrete teepees that have vintage cars in the parking lot.
Wigwam Village Motel #6 is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. It was also the inspiration for Pixar’s Cozy Cone Motel in the Cars movies.
International Dark Sky Park ✬彡
Petrified Forest National Park is a designated International Dark Sky Park.
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