May 22, 2022. Petrified Forest

 

The Petrified Forest National Park straddles I-40 and there is one road that goes through the park. We enter at the north end and stop at the visitor center to get information about the park.

Our first view of the park is the Painted Desert, an area that has eroded over past millennia and reveals various colors in the rocks. So we take a half-mile walk along the rim and back to get a better view. There are reds, whites, pinks, grays, and blues. In this part of the park there are no petrified trees.

The Blue Mesa Trail is a one-mile trail that descends into an area that has more blue and white colors. There we begin to see pieces of petrified wood scattered through the gullies. In the south end of the park there are many petrified logs and pieces of logs.

We exit the park and continue on to Payson, where we stay with Paul and Suzanne Yoder, a first cousin. They receive us warmly and we have a really good time visiting and talking about many things. Their house is on a steep hillside and backs up to a wildlife refuge. They tell us it is not unusual for elk and other wildlife to come to their back yard, and birds to the feeders.

Paul and Suzanne Yoder