Petrified Forest
Colorful badlands of the Painted Desert and fields of 200-million-year-old petrified logs
- Hours
- Daily 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Entry
- $25 per car
- Reservations
- Not required
- Size
- About 221,000 acres
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About 218 million years ago this area was a lush floodplain with tall conifer trees, which were buried by mud and volcanic ash. Silica-rich water seeped into the logs and slowly replaced the wood with quartz, colored red, yellow and purple by iron and other minerals. Erosion has since uncovered the logs, along with fossils of early dinosaurs and other Triassic animals. The area was protected as a national monument in 1906 and became a national park in 1962.
A 28-mile road connects I-40 in the north with US 180 in the south, so most visitors see the park in a single drive with short walks at each stop. The north end overlooks the Painted Desert, and the south end holds the densest fields of petrified wood. It is the only national park that protects a section of historic Route 66, marked by a 1932 Studebaker at the old roadway. People have lived here for more than 13,000 years, and the park holds hundreds of archeological sites and petroglyph panels.
The park and surrounding area
- Park boundary
- Other parks
- Major highway
- Road
- Rivers and lakes
- Town
Plan your trip
- Best time to go
- April, May, September and October bring mild days, while summer is hot with afternoon monsoon storms.
- How long to stay
- Half a day covers the main stops; a full day lets you add longer hikes.
- Getting there
- Flagstaff (FLG) is about 2 hours away, Albuquerque (ABQ) about 3.5 hours, and Phoenix (PHX) about 3.5 to 4 hours by car.
- Wildlife
- Look for pronghorn, coyotes, Gunnison's prairie dogs, ravens, collared lizards and golden eagles.
Plan and book
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Where to stay
- Hotels in Holbrook (opens in a new tab)Arizona
- Hotels in Winslow (opens in a new tab)Arizona
- Hotels in Gallup (opens in a new tab)New Mexico
- No lodging inside the park. The towns above are the closest bases.
Tours and activities
- Guided tours on Viator (opens in a new tab)Day trips, wildlife, photography
- Tours on GetYourGuide (opens in a new tab)Compare options and reviews
- Campsites on Recreation.gov (opens in a new tab)Official federal booking site
What to pack for Petrified Forest
- Large water bottleWater is limited to the visitor centers, and the dry, sunny air dehydrates you fast.
- Wide-brim sun hatThere is almost no shade on the trails or at the overlooks.
- WindbreakerStrong winds are common on the open plateau, especially in spring.
- Hiking shoes with good treadBadland clay is slick when wet and loose when dry.
- Polarized sunglassesGlare off the pale badlands is intense at midday.
A first day, start to finish
- Painted Desert Visitor Center and Tawa Point
- Painted Desert Inn and Kachina Point
- Route 66 marker and Newspaper Rock
- Blue Mesa loop trail
- Crystal Forest and Giant Logs
Don't miss
- Painted Desert Inn and Kachina PointA 1930s adobe inn and National Historic Landmark with Fred Kabotie murals, perched on the rim above sweeping red and purple badlands.
- Blue MesaA 3.5-mile side road and a 1-mile paved loop trail that drops into banded blue, gray and purple badlands scattered with petrified logs.
- Crystal ForestA 0.75-mile paved loop through logs whose cracks glitter with quartz and amethyst crystals.
- Puerco Pueblo and Newspaper RockA short 0.3-mile loop past a 100-room pueblo and petroglyphs, plus an overlook of more than 650 petroglyphs at Newspaper Rock.
- Giant Logs and Rainbow Forest MuseumA 0.4-mile loop behind the museum near the south entrance with some of the park's biggest logs, including Old Faithful.
Know before you go
Do
- Watch the clock, since the gates close at 5 p.m. and the drive through the park is 28 miles.
- Carry plenty of water and a hat; there is little shade at about 5,800 feet.
- Buy petrified wood souvenirs at shops outside the park, which sell wood collected from private land.
Don't
- Take any petrified wood, even a small chip; it is illegal and carries heavy fines.
- Climb or stand on the petrified logs.
- Hike in the badlands during summer thunderstorms, when washes can flash flood.
The park road and gates are open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mountain Standard Time every day except Thanksgiving and Christmas, and you need to be out of the park when the gates close. The Painted Desert Visitor Center and Rainbow Forest Museum are open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the Painted Desert Inn is open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Snow or ice can delay the morning opening in winter, and Arizona does not use daylight saving time.
Enter at one end and drive straight through to the other, so you see the whole park without backtracking and can continue on I-40 or US 180.Trekker's tip