Exploring A Forest In The Desert?

The petrified woods, what is left today from a magnificent forest in the past.

As I climbed to the top, I could not believe what I saw. I thought I landed on the moon, except I had air and gravity. The colors I saw, the landscape, the immense wind, the soft yet hardened ground that held me up is a place that you need to see to believe.

The Petrified Forest is a unique experience as it is not everyday you get to walk in the past. History is something I like to capture in the lens of my camera and create a story piece by piece. It was summer and that means temps could be warm, very warm. We dressed accordingly, lightly and brought the sunblock. As we arrived at the forest, we were not disappointed.

A very windy place with such beautiful colors to walk around on.

When you think of a forest, you might imagine a large amount of tall trees hovering over you. Something with lots of green fanned out with a refreshing smell of pine. I have something better to show you. Close your eyes for a moment. Imagine a forest that once was brilliant and spread out in front of you. Tall trees, maybe even mammoth size that hug one another. Animals foraging for food, watching for predators on their trails. Bugs flying by without any concern of a fly swatter or pest control. A peaceful scene.

Then, boom! It was all gone. Possibly a volcanic eruption or a meteor fell out of the sky (Meteor Crater is not too far from here). Now what is left are pieces of the trees, petrified over thousands of years. Even though it is not like a typical forest today, it is a land of beauty and exploring that you must try. There are hiking trails, both paved and dirt. The land forms are sometimes called the badlands, as there are interesting rock layers and formations.

A bunch of hoo doos just hanging out below, with many stormy clouds coming in!

It is hard to pick what you want to do first, but I do recommend going to the visitor center. I am including a link here for visiting information, nearby hotels, things to do and hours and pricing. There are two entrances, one on the south end of the park and one at the north end. For those of you that have an America the Beautiful pass, you will get in free. Yeah!

If hiking is your cup of tea, they have trails for you; if you would rather drive, they have roads for you, offering gorgeous views with colors such as red, orange, purple (purple?), green (green?) and your typical desert fare colors. I am serious about the purple and green on a hike, you have to visit this amazing place to see if for yourself.

Rocks neatly piled by each other on this fun and easy walking trail!

There is a nice scenic trail you can drive on, pull over for photos and enjoy the vastness you see. This can be accomplished in less than a day. If you like a view of interesting surroundings, might I encourage you to bring a picnic along?

Try to visit every vista you can. Some do have restrooms and picnic areas and some do not. But what they all offer are spectacular views of what was once and now is a beautiful piece of history for our eyes to gaze at.

Am I on the Moon???