It was my first time visiting Taylor, Arizona and I had a pretty good idea of what to expect up North about three hours from Phoenix. We booked an outstanding AirBnB cabin to spend Christmas up north and fell in love with the place almost instantly. There were chickens in a coup for fresh eggs and a little greenhouse on the grounds for fresh tomatoes. Homemade jam and honey were in the fridge for our use. The owner who lived in the main house was a retired teacher who taught Native American children and his decor reflected the many beautiful hand-woven and intricate pieces of art. It was visually stunning and the fresh made cinnamon buns in the morning were a warm, delicious touch. A sprinkle of snow on Christmas added a nice touch too!
The sunset view from our AirBnb cabin in Taylor, Arizona.The view in the other direction wasn’t too shabby either and the private porch was a nice although crisp and cold outdoor escape in Taylor, Arizona.
One of the plans of this visit was to go explore the Petrified Forest National Park in northeastern Arizona. I wasn’t really sure what to expect or what petrified wood even meant really but a deep dive down this rabbit hole was pretty interesting.
We started out by viewing some fossils at the Petrified Forest.
We payed the $20 per car fee and made our way to the Rainbow Forest Museum, full of paleontology exhibits and trail access points right out the back door. If you see everything they have, it can take you all day or more as the park itself is almost 230 miles total and plenty of walking paths to take to delve deeper.
My first view of a petrified piece of wood.
According to Geology.com, petrified wood is a fossil that forms when plant material is buried by sediment and protected from decay due to oxygen and organisms. Groundwater rich in dissolved solids flows through the sediment, replacing the original plant material with silica, calcite, pyrite, or another inorganic material such as opal or quartz.
We ventured out the back door and it was a bone-chilling windy and slightly rainy day at Petrified Forest.Amazing array of stone which was once wood at Petrified Forest.A view of the vast desert and museum at Petrified Forest.Finding more amazing works of nature’s art at Petrified Forest.The storm was rolling in on us at Petrified Forest.It’s amazing that some logs stay in tact at Petrified Forest.But most break apart as they become like glass at Petrified Forest.This has a heavy quartz growing over the log at Petrified Forest.Kind of cool to be in the same place as Albert Einstein at Petrified Forest.
South in the park, the Rainbow Forest is full of colorful petrified wood where the museum is located. In the park’s center are the petroglyphs of Newspaper Rock and the ruined village of Puerco Pueblo. To the north, the Painted Desert Inn, a 1930s adobe building, is a museum with Hopi murals. We hit what we could in the limited amount of time we had there and my stomach was a grumbling mess. I assumed it was the high altitude (minimum 5,240 and maximum 6,230) or perhaps the greasy Mexican food the previous night.
We went to the Crystal Forest first and there are pull off spots along the way to get out and walkabout at Petrified Forest.Looking beautiful and majestic at Petrified Forest. Those squares are logs.Getting a move on that trail, my first stop was whitewashed with sand at Petrified Forest.Then I found this beauty that has that perfect sunset orange Arizona color at Petrified Forest.Driving to the next stop, the photo does not do this justice.Moody clouds moving in at Petrified Forest.Every direction is interesting and fascinating at Petrified Forest.Starting to see some peaks of sunset colors coming in at Petrified Forest.The log bridge at Petrified Forest has a support system so it doesn’t fall and no, you can’t climb on it either.Just breathtaking at the next stop at Petrified Forest.It makes you wonder what a blue sky day looks like at Petrified Forest.There are a ton of ravens in the Petrified Forest and they are much like seagulls at the beach. Don’t feed them! This guy was not afraid of the humans nor were most of them.I hauled ass out on this path that went for miles at Petrified Forest.The further you went, the more you went into the canyons at Petrified Forest.Amazing gradients of nature’s colors at Petrified Forest. It soon began to drizzle cold rain.Getting deeper in the canyons at Petrified Forest. The walking path goes all the way down and winds around.I soon turned back but that would be a great workout with wonderful views at Petrified Forest.A view to the left of the Petrified Forest looking gorgeous.Back on the road again at Petrified Forest.These ravens wanted to spend time with us at Petrified Forest and kept talking to us.At this stop you can see some hieroglyphics at Petrified Forest.Some more hieroglyphics that are centuries old at Petrified Forest.Getting into some red rocks at Petrified Forest.We barely made the cutoff closing time to explore the Painted Desert Inn which used to house guests at Petrified Forest.Walking inside was like stepping back in time at the Painted Desert Inn.A little cafe offers guests snacks at the Painted Desert Inn.Even the ceiling was adorned with pieces of the past at Painted Desert Inn.Stepping outside on one of the patios offered a framed view at Painted Desert Inn.The colors of the Painted Desert Inn match the desert landscape from inside the space.Views in either direction inspire awe at Painted Desert Inn.We wish this hotspot was still open to book at Painted Desert Inn.Back inside we learn about the many movies made on location at Painted Desert Inn.We made our way back to the car right before the sky opened up at Painted Desert Inn.
One of the many stops along the way, we learned about the curse of the Petrified Forest from people leaving letters of woe and bad luck they had removing rocks (which is illegal). Stealing petrified wood can result in a fine and many return stolen goods after their trail of bad luck haunts them. (Read more about cursed experiences on the Legends of America website). Piles of “conscience” rocks are returned and scattered throughout the park beginning with the Southern entrance. The “Mystery of the Conscience Wood” is displayed inside the Rainbow Forest Museum with more stories of misfortune to warn curious travelers.
When you pull into the park, there is a souvenir store that sells legally gathered rocks from private land and many others around the surrounding towns… even the gas stations sell them. Spare yourself the curse by spending a few dollars and explore on safely… trust me on this one!
