Petrified Forest National Park

We left Mesa Verde early Thursday morning…well we tried to leave early but first has to clear 1/2” of snow off of the RV slide. (Seems like the snow has been following us…first snow/hail at Glacier’s Logan Pass, then snow/ sleet at the Continental Divide in Yellowstone, then our snowy hike in Rocky Mountain, now snow overnight in Mesa Verde. Hopefully no more until we get home…we didn’t pack snow gear!)

We took a quick tour through the Painted Desert of Arizona and the Petrified Forest National Park. It is so strange to look at a tree or what looks like a tree and find out that it is actually a rock…or a petrified tree. Some of the trees as they were hardened actually stayed looking like trees (even though they were actually quartz rock) but others formed beautiful colors based on iron or manganese that was near the trees as they changed chemical composition. I had to touch the ones that still looked like trees just to make sure there were actually petrified.

The Painted Desert was beautiful. So many different colors, purple, blue, red, green...just about every color and shade you could imagine, all perfectly layered on top of each other. It was a quick stop, no real hiking but well worth it anyways.


Right now we are in Flagstaff Arizona. Some of Keith's family met up with us out here, his sister Jen, her husband Paul and Keith's mom & dad. K & I are taking a day off today. We're planning on a hike tomorrow and then Keith's dad schedule us for a rafting expedition down the Grand Canyon...followed by a helicopter ride on Sunday. Should be eventful pack days to come. Stay posted and hope you are all enjoying yourselves as well.
Taryn