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Petrified Forest National Park

Visitors On A Ranger-Led Hike Of Red Basin, Petrified Forest National Park

A ranger-guided hike over the badlands of Red Basin at Petrified Forest National Park

Visitors can take a ranger-led 8.5-mile roundtrip hike over Red Basin, "a fossil-rich area part of the land within the 2004 boundary expansion of Petrified Forest National Park. Along this hike you will see petrified wood, petroglyphs, unique erosional formations such as hoodoos, vibrantly colored badlands deposited over 215 million years ago, and fossil clam beds."

National Park Service

Painted Desert As Far As The Eye Can See, Petrified Forest National Park

A view of the orange, red, and beige dunes of Painted Desert above a blue sky with puffy clouds at Petrified Forest National Park.

Quite a few units of the National Park System have a "Painted" something-or-other. In Petrified Forest National Park, it's the Painted Desert, with saturated desert colors of orange, red, rust, pink and beige. This Painted Desert can be accessed just off of Interstate 40 through Arizona.

Rebecca Latson

Walkway To The Blue Mesa Overlook, Petrified Forest National Park

a leading line image of a paved walkway toward a panoramic overlook at Blue Mesa, Petrified Forest National Park

"Blue Mesa is a significant landform located on a spur road halfway through Petrified Forest National Park. The road (~5 miles round trip) goes on top of the mesa with scenic overlooks of the landscape, badlands, trail, and hoodoos. The trailhead for Blue Mesa Trail is located halfway around the loop road at a sunshelter. The mesa consists of the Blue Mesa and Sonsela Members with petrified wood deposits. Spectacular views of blue, purple, gray, and peach banded badlands."

Rebecca Latson

INN Member

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