Friday, August 8, 2014

Petrified Forest National Park & Painted Desert

Before heading down to Sedona we decided to stop off at the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest National Park, located just off of Highway 40 near the AZ and NM border.

Painted Desert



The lovely Painted Desert Inn,  renovated by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 30's.


 
This old car marks where Old Route 66 used to run, close to the north part of the Petrified Forest National Park



Puerco Pueblo- A partially stabilized 100 room village built between 1250 and 1380 and may have housed nearly 200 people. A short paved trail through the site offers wayside exhibits and views of petroglyphs


Look closely and you can see some of the petroglyphs.





Grant attempts to catch a desert lizard!


The 'Teepees'- layered blues, purples and grays created by iron, carbon, manganese and other minerals standing in a cone-formation.

They created an almost other-world landscape

Breathtaking!

 
 
Flood waters washed out the arroyo, or gully, beneath this 110-foot petrified log to form Agate Bridge. The stone log, harder than the sandstone around it, resisted erosion and remained suspended as the softer rock beneath it washed away.

The kids examine the end of the petrified log
 
Enjoying one last viewpoint

Along our way, we have found many free campsites which, although usually lacking hookups, has provided a much more cost efficient trip for us.

Since returning to the States, the kids have managed to find bikes for all the kids. It has proved to be quite a task finding room to store them while travelling but all in all it has been such a blessing for them to have!
 
Mandy poses by this teepee with her new beach cruiser!
 
 
 
 
 

 

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