"I'm lost in a painted desert..."

On the way to the Petrified Forest National Park, we passed through Holbrook, a route 66 town, which still retains much of its character.







We went on the "Long Logs" walk in the park, a 3 mile hike that got us well away from the crowds and out into a dense field of petrified logs, which they believe were preserved when they were washed there via a river system, back when this part of Arizona was tropical.



Cool critters of the day were a Jackrabbit, and this very bright Collared Lizard, perched on some petrified wood.



It was interesting how the logs split into chunks, as if sawed apart.



Further up the road, we stopped at Blue Mesa, and hiked down into the badlands, where bits of petrified wood had eroded from layers of sediment and tumbled down the hills.








Last stop of the day was a very scenic drive along the painted desert.


Click me to see where we went.