Posted: 02/09/2007--25/11/2008 || Rate this Article: 3 || Views|| Sign In || Register ||Hello Guest
The Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona isnt the only place where petrified trees can be found. There are several places throughout the United States where petrified forests still exist. Over a half a million people visit The Petrified Forest National Park in any given year, to see the petrified trees which have evolved over millions of years. Although the trees are no longer standing and most are lying on the ground in sections, the colors the trees have obtained throughout the centuries are spectacular. Red, yellow, white, black and blue are typical of the colors of the trees. Fossils of dinosaurs, plants and other animals have been found there, telling partial stories about what used to be and what is now. About 225 million years ago, the land was flooded with freshwater sediments and after thousands of years, the area was then raised above sea level with the wind and water washed away the sediments, leaving the logs as you see them today. Because of these changes, colorful logs lay strewn around the area, taking on the resemblance and feel of rock.
There are different viewpoints at The Petrified Forest, including the Blue Mesa which has hundreds of logs lying in mounds of steel blue clay. There are no available trails in this area for hiking. Jasper Forest is another place where the logs can be glimpsed. Settlers and prospectors long ago removed most of the best log specimens, but hundreds of the petrified trees still remain today. The Jasper Forest area is also excluded from hiking trails. Crystal Forest used to contain especially beautiful logs with crevices that contained quartz and purple amethyst crystals but these were removed by souvenir hunters over the years, before the area became a national monument in 1906 and a national park in 1962. The area with the most petrified wood for sightseeing is Rainbow Forest, near the south park entrance. Here you can visit the museum, see rock samples and read apology letters from people who stole petrified wood pieces but now regret doing so. Each year, hundreds of pieces of the wood are returned either anonymously or accompanied by a letter of apology. From the museum you can go down a small trail to the Giant Forest which has some of the largest logs in the park. Close to the Giant Forest is the Long Log trail with perfect views of hundreds of large, beautiful petrified wood. Be sure and also visit the Agate House which was built entirely out of petrified wood in the 16th century by Indians.
One of the most interesting things about the park are the petroglyphs, or rock carvings, and the pictographs, rock paintings, dating back to 1000 to 1350, A.D. It is said that these were made as some sort of calendar to mark the summer and winter solstices by the Pueblos. It is thought that The Petrified Forest contains the largest concentration of these calendars known to man, about 16. Although natural forces of nature, such as wind and rain have obscured partial drawings, you can still see outlines of humans, animals such as lizards, rabbits, coyote and snakes carved into or drawn onto the stones. You can even see human hand and feet print, bear paw prints and bird tracks.
Other things to see nearby are the Grand Canyon, Canyon de Chelly national monument, The Painted Dessert, where The Petrified Forest is located, Lake Mead and Sunset Crater. Available in the area is hiking, fishing, camping and guided tours. Visiting the southwest will be a vacation youll never forget.
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