Painted Desert
 A
27 mile road runs through the Park, from I-40 exit 311 to US 180; the closest
town is Holbrook, 25 miles to the west. The visitor center is at the north end
and there is a small museum at the south entrance.
Eight overlooks along the rim give sweeping views of portions of the Painted
Desert. Also, the Painted
Desert Rim Trail is an easy, unpaved 1.2-mile round trip that winds along
the Painted Desert rim between Tawa and Kachina Points. The vivid colors of
the desert are especially striking at sunset.
The Painted Desert Inn Museum at Kachina Point was built in the 1920's and
was rebuilt by Civilian Conservation Corps in the late 1930's. In 1987, it was
designated as a National Historic Landmark. Access to the Painted Desert Wilderness
is behind the inn; wilderness camping begins beyond the washes.
Blue Mesa
 Blue
Mesa is reached by a short loop road, and has many logs lying around an area
of undulating blue-grey mounds of clay. Often the logs lie partially buried
in the clay, and erosion gradually but continuously exposes more of them. There
is no backcountry hiking in this region, as the ground is covered with a very
delicate, crust-like plant life, and even a footprint can cause destruction
that will take years to grow back.
The best way to see the area is via the Blue
Mesa Trail, a 1 mile steep, paved loop that leads from the top of the mesa
down into the blue badlands, a colorful area of cone-shaped hills in Chinle
Shale.
Jasper Forest
The Jasper Forest overlook shows the area's topography, with petrified logs
strewn below. Logs with root systems show that some of the trees grew nearby.
Crystal Forest
 Further
south, the Crystal
Forest Trail leads through the trees of Crystal Forest.
This area was once strewn with especially beautiful logs, which had crevices
containing clear quartz and purple amethyst crystals, but all the best specimens
were removed by souvenir hunters long ago.
It was this theft that prompted local citizens to petition for the creation
of the then National Monument, which was established in 1906 - National Park
status was not achieved until 1962. A few small crystalline specimens can still
be seen, amongst other more typical logs.
Rainbow Forest
 The
area with the most densely-scattered petrified wood is Rainbow Forest, near
the south park entrance. There is a museum, which amongst other exhibits has
a large collection of apologetic letters sent by visitors who have taken rock
samples and later regretted their actions. Hundreds of pieces of petrified wood
are returned each year.
Through the museum, a short foot trail winds through the Giant Forest area
which has some of the biggest logs in the park. Nearby, the Long
Logs Trail gives perhaps the most impressive views - the path passes hundreds
of large beautifully coloured examples, often several metres in length. There
is also the Agate House
Trail, which leads to a partially restored pueblo constructed entirely of
petrified wood by Indians in the 16th century. |
