The Petrified Forest National Park is bisected by the historic route 66 and is the eastern edge of the Painted Desert. The Painted Desert is 93,500 acres of badlands stretching 160 miles from the east end of the Grand Canyon National Park to the Petrified Forest. The various colors, which range from lavender to red, are from stratified sediment layers containing iron and manganese. In addition to the geological features, the park also boasts archeological objects from the first inhabitants 13700 years ago and historical landmarks from much more recent times.
The best time to visit this park is in the winter so of course we ended up there in August. We do drive by this park every December on our way to Gallup, New Mexico but never have the time to stop on that trip. Why August when the temperatures are well above 100? We were headed home from our usual summer haunts in Idaho, Wyoming and Utah when the trailer brakes decided to stop working. We decided to take a flatter route south which meant lots of desert driving. But it finally gave us enough time stop and see the park and discover that it is totally dog friendly. Well, as long as you clean up after them; one of the rangers threatened to burn our house down if we didn’t. We’re sure he was joking about the house but not about picking up poop.
4-paw park
All 7 trails and the 2 wilderness areas are open to dogs. Overnight hiking and camping is allowed in the wilderness areas with a free permit. The trails range from 0.3-2.6 miles and many are paved. During theTriassic Period (also known as 225 million years ago), the area was a hot, humid and lush river system. Now it is a mix of badlands and grasslands with the remnants of the ancient forest in the form of petrified wood. The minerals, volcanic silica and water soaked up by the wood during the fossilization process creates the many colors in what is now quartz. Since this is now a desert keep an eye on how hot the ground is if your dog is barefoot. There also are the usual venomous desert dwellers to watch out for. Don’t forget to carry water!
What you will see
- The Painted Desert Inn built in the 1920s out of petrified wood.
- A 1932 Studebaker marking historic Route 66
- The remains of a 100+ room pueblo
- Petroglyphs
- Lots of petrified wood
The colorful landscape is at its best at sunrise or sunset. The park doesn’t open till 7AM so sunset is your best bet. The rangers will eventually start moving everyone out to lock the gates, we were one road stop ahead of the ranger but she wasn’t ever rushing us along.
B.A.R.K. ranger program
Petrified Forest National Park is part of the growing list of parks to offer the BARK ranger program. They hadn’t started it when K’Ehleyr visited the park but we plan to participate in the future. Look for a future post about it.
