How These Trees Turned Into Rocks (Petrified Forest Explained)

Back to the world of geology! This time for an explainer on the process that created the Petrified Forest of Petrified Forest National Park: Petrification. Did I mention that this video is about petrification? Petrification.
Anyway, this is a really cool and unique geological process that gives us unprecedented levels of access to the inner workings of organisms that lived hundreds of millions of years ago and gave rise to the world's largest collection of petrified wood, which is now preserved for us as a wonderful National Park. Enjoy!
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Sources and Resources:
• What is petrified wood...
• Petrified Wood
• How Trees Get Petrified
www.nps.gov/pefo/learn/nature...
• Petrified Forest Natio...
ucmp.berkeley.edu/paleo/fossi...
www.fossilera.com/pages/petri...
powershandcrafted.com/blogs/n...
web.archive.org/web/201509072...
www.arizonahighways.com/blog/...
www.nps.gov/flfo/learn/nature...
Images and Music:
Storyblocks
NPS (Scott T Williams, Andrew Kearns)
Wikimedia Commons (Falconaumanni)

[@naomiezquivel8630]

I visited Petrified Forest National Park last year. Not only is the petrified wood abundant and absolutely stunning, but the landscape is so surreal. Multicolored badlands and striking formations. It definitely exceeded my expectations.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

I've heard so many good things. Can't wait to get out there myself!

[@aff77141]

Absolutely, I was really skeptical but my dad's degree is geology and it was his birthday month so it was an absolute must. my favorite was blue mesa, just spectacular, especially at dusk

[@naomiezquivel8630]

@@aff77141 Blue Mesa was also my favorite hike! I felt like I was on another planet. I've been to Badlands National Park also, but the Blue Mesa formations were so unique and different.

[@andrewbrady3139]

Ya, I went there 30 something years ago when I was a kid. Back when you could still walk around the rim of Meteor crater. When I went back to Meteor crater two years ago and asked about walking around the rim, the lady looked at me like I was crazy. Oh how times have changed. But ya, lots of cool things around the petrified forest.

[@rebeccabilbrey3524]

It used to have even more petrified trees there in the 50s and 60s. For a period of time fossils were stolen from the park. Now the remaining fossils are protected and thieves are prosecuted.

[@charliepetricone8974]

My wife and myself visited the park many years ago and it's stunning. I purchased a piece of petrified wood while there and it sits on my desk at home. It had been cut so you can see the gorgeous colors. I think it's so cool having something hundreds of millions of years old on my desk.

[@mtcynthus]

Retired geologist here. The sequence from 3:18 to 3:28 is not logs or fossils of any kind; it’s showing columnar basalt broken off. I don’t know where this is, but it’s definitely not the Petrified Forest area. Thanks for all your videos!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Ah, good catch, thanks for the correction!

[@lotto88lot]

I am glad for your clarification 😊, cause I aware that , too!

[@scottnorton2633]

Muddfossill university anyone check ✔️ him out ?

[@MasterKenfucius]

So, I have a question for the geologist. The wood is replaced by silica, calcite, and pyrite. There is no wood left, right? Isn't "petrified wood" is a very misleading name? All that happened was that a mold filled up with other stuff. Don't we just have a "filled mold" of what the log used to look like?

[@aaronh1372]

​@@MasterKenfuciusPet wood cannot be anymore definitive. The filled mold concept is fossilization. However, this is more complex than a mere fossil. Petrafaction (petra=rock) is the process that the organic matter has undergone to create these pieces of art we see today. What organic matter was petrified? Wood. Hence, pet wood.

[@meganstahlberger608]

I appreciate the HP reference. I didn't realize that this used to be a rainforest...

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Yeah! Crazy how different these places can look over the course of a few million years...

[@edmartin875]

Yep, climate change in action on a millions of years scale.

[@benmcreynolds8581]

I think crystalized petrified wood is some of the most beautiful & diverse rocks you can find. It's gorgeous. There is a awesome place here in Oregon where you can find it.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

It really is stunning! I love how the different impurities in the water created such spectacular colors and how diverse that distribution is across a given landscape.

[@michaeljdauben]

I did an extended trip to AZ a few years ago. My friend and I hit Petrified Forest, Monument Valley, and Grand Canyon. It was an amazing trip.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Sounds great, glad you had fun!

[@tregonzo]

Take nothing but memories, leave nothing but footprints.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

👆👆👆

[@ZongTaVEVO]

😗

[@TheReelDiehl]

OMG THANK YOU DUDE! Foreal one of my favorite places and to hear it spoke on from one of my favorite channels is so cool! I loved the shout out, so thank you! Again, if you’re ever in Missouri, I have amazing and wonderful things to show you along our National Scenic River ways!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

So glad I could bring you this story - thanks for watching and for the suggestion! I'll be sure to let you know next time I'm in the Show Me State!

[@ElleyKnowsRocks]

Petrified wood is one of my favorite minerals to go find. I’ve been to the petrified forest in Arizona once it was stunning my trip was cut short because it started to downpour and I had to leave. But it is the most amazingly colorful landscape of petrified wood

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Sounds like an awesome experience - can't wait to see it myself one day!

[@TheMrZombified]

Excellent information here.I learned something today.Thanks.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Glad I could help, thanks for watching!

[@johnchedsey1306]

Petrified NPS is easily one of my favorite parks. Now that I live in Arizona, I usually make it a point to visit once a year and picking a different season. The unique desert landscape is just as fascinating as the petrified logs themselves. It's also just a peaceful feeling place, perhaps due to the vastness of the landscape. Now that I've watched this video, I'm already contemplating another weekend trip there to do more exploring.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

I'm jealous I can't visit more often! I also enjoy visiting landscapes at different points throughout the year. I find it's a really great way to get to know a place really intimately and observe subtle changes you wouldn't otherwise get with singular visits. I do this a lot with the deciduous forests I live by here in the East, but I bet the way the light changes over the desert throughout the year is also spectacular. Enjoy your trip!

[@johnchedsey1306]

@@NationalParkDiaries I deliberately choose Arizona for my new home because of the proximity to so many national parks and monuments. I figure as I'm getting older, I better go out and appreciate this stuff as much as possible before they put me in a nursing home! Hope you get more opportunities to visit the western parks!

[@Cheezicows]

I'd like to see you do a video on/trip to the Dry Tortugas

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Ooooooh boy, Dry Tortugas is high on my list. I'd love to do an overnighter there along with a story. I've got a few I could probably make from the studio, but being able to tell one from the field is definitely something I want to do on this channel at some point. I'll probably try and do it with a larger South Florida trip. Thanks for the suggestion!

[@n8dawg640]

I am a geologist and i absolutely loved the park, was there late last year. A few things; 1: as far as I’m aware, it’s unlikely that these were buried by rivers as the rocks are mostly claystone. There are sandstone layers but they are laterally extensive and thus are likely not river deposits. These trees look a lot more like they were deposited within a flood deposit and quickly buried that way. 2: mineralization can be quite quick, with examples of organisms being completely mineralized within 5 years. It doesn’t have to take millions of years to replace the cells with quartz or calcite or opal or whatever else mineralizes. In fact, it’s likely that the process taking that long would still result in the tree mostly decomposing away. These probably didn’t take terribly long at all to mineralize. It’s incredibly cool and a park that a lot of people miss! Also, theft is not as big of a deal as everybody makes it out to be, i highly recommend visiting a museum at the south entrance where they have an exhibit discussing theft and the perseverance of the resources and enjoyment of the park. Take heart! Humanity has not yet been lost

[@gtbkts]

Thanks for the awesome content and amazing videos!!!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thank you for watching!

[@randallg219]

I visited this park last spring, it was incredible.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Very cool, glad you had a good time!

[@curiousworld7912]

I know this is irrelevant to the discussion of how wood petrifies, but I'm struck by the beauty of one things, over time, turning into something equally beautiful and utterly different in composition.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

I couldn't agree more! The changes this planet has seen over the course of millions and billions of years are simply fascinating and the fact that we can see glimpses of them in our lives today is really something special.

[@Steveofthejungle8]

Loved Petrified Forest! Such a unique experience compared to all the other national parks! Plus you have to stop and stand on the corner in Winslow Arizona haha

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Totally agreed! Haven't been myself yet, but I'm fascinated with unique geologic areas like this. Really cool to have in the National Park System.

[@EarthAltar]

It's only worth it if girls in flatbed Fords slow down to take a look at you.

[@kenwells7128]

200 million years ago! Amazing, fantastic, practically unbelievable. Petrified over millions of years!

[@generalleigh7387]

I knew I’d find my people by looking for the comments without hearts 😂

[@keyboardheroism]

Not millions of years..

[@JackFalltrades]

I visited in 2016 or 2017. It's a beautiful place. They do sell pieces of petrified wood found _outside_ the park. The building used to film the 1936 Humphrey Bogart movie, _The Petrified Forest_ is still there. 😊

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Didn't know they shot a Bogart movie there, so cool!

[@paulholleger8538]

I would LOVE a series on some of the Arctic National Parks (and other lands). In particular, I'd love a video on Katmai NP. From the crazy amount of volcanoes in the park, to the catastrophic eruption of Novarupta, to Fat Bear Week, it's a park that's got a lot to talk about! And it's pretty obscure to most people outside Alaska. And like most of the parks up there (besides Denali and maybe Kenai Fjords), it's a bit of a challenge to access. It would be nice to learn about it in depth for those of us who have a slim chance of ever visiting.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

You got it - I'll put these on the list! I'm heading to Alaska later this year and haven't quite decided on a story/stories yet, but it's one of my favorite places and I'm really excited to visit and bring you all a story. I won't be going to Katmai on this trip, but you're right - it's a fascinating park with lots of good topics that are all on my radar to cover at some point. I actually already have a video on Fat Bear Week, but I'll keep the others in mind. Thanks for the suggestions!

[@loboalamo]

Many nations have national parks and geologic oddities that are overlooked by tourists and people who grew up there. Maybe pick one and do a special episode.

[@andycockrum1212]

Petrified forest is an underrated NP

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Agreed!

[@mike-me7om]

I was there about 8 years ago and it was quite an experience. I also have a couple of pieces of petrified wood that I bought from the gift shop there. If you go there, try to see the Barringer meteor crater as well as both can be seen in one day.

[@GemstonePhilosophy]

I've collected petrified wood all over the west US, and petrified national park is not the only place with rainbow wood. You can buy this material from a neighboring ranch to the park, but one very popular spot for rock collectors is in Southern Utah. The wood is very similar and is rightfully named "Yellow Cat" because of its dominantly yellow colors, but may include a wide range of color (this is a public collecting area). Idaho is especially renowned for its petrified wood which is commonly found as precious opal, and there are open areas for collecting and privately owned mines which you can "pay to play". I've also found an incredible location with massive petrified trees scattered across the mesa at Dirty Devil Canyon (a North fork tributary of the Grand Canyon on BLM land), but it's very difficult to get to. Oregon and Washington have tons of petrified wood as well. My collection is saturated with petrified wood, but i would still say my favorite specimens are Arizona rainbow wood. Again, these are purchased at a neighboring ranch legally. I strongly recommend getting some while the getting is good. And yes, it's expensive. You'd be lucky to pay under $15/ pound with the average piece weighing upwards of 5 pounds. Small fragmented pieces might be cheaper, but owning a big chunk or 12 is always cool.

[@BonesJones946]

Petrified Forest NP isn't the easiest park to get to but it is definitely worth the trip! I spent a few days at the park this spring and it is so much more than just the petrified logs, which are amazing! The Blue Badlands are other worldly, there is fantastic wildlife, ancient pueblo villages, and Route 66 history. Such a great park couldn't recommend it enough!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Hearing so many good things about it and can't wait to get out there myself one of these days. So glad you had a good trip!

[@johnchedsey1306]

Considering I-40 goes through a portion of the park, it seems very easy to get to...if you have decided on it as a destination or part of a longer trip. Totally doable as part of a Grand Canyon trip.

[@koslund11]

Didn't have much time to spend at the park but did enjoy it. The volunteer ranger kept an eye on us I asked him if it's alright to pick up small pieces. He said I could that it's illegal to take any. I seen the fence they had to put up around the black obsidian mountain in Yellowstone. One rock at a time, with a million or more people wanting some, it won't be preserved for future generations.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Yep, spot on! It's the thousands of little actions that add up over time that make a big difference. And that goes in the opposite direction as well. The more word spreads about not taking the wood and more people choose not to take any, the more protected these places get over time!

[@flagmichael]

There are plenty of shops around the Petrified Forest that sell legal petrified wood, collected outside the park's boundaries. It isn't even all that expensive. Many of them sell fossils from all over.

[@astrialindah2773]

Yet "they" sell it????

[@edmartin875]

I don't think the Park sells it. There are tons of people interested in that type of thing and willing to start a small business to sell these and other like things to the tourists. I have a former high school classmate (class of 1966) that makes authentic looking Indian pottery that is sold in stores like that. @@astrialindah2773

[@kathieburchett]

I visited the petrified Forrest in 1976. My two young sons were with me. They allowed people to go look as you drove down a winding road. People were prohibited then from collecting any of the petrified wood,but they gave us a few small samples to take-home.

[@wmffmw1854]

I visited the Petrified Forest and close by the Painted Desert in 1982 when living in Las Vegas and working for Carson Broadcasting.

[@craigbrown5359]

I dug out mine fires in Pennsylvania and my coworkers were incredulous about the fact that the Pittsburgh coal seam was formed 20 degrees below the equator!!! Great stuff!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Geology really is incredible sometimes 😱

[@Chichi-sl2mq]

This channel makes me happy.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

You make ME happy. Thanks for watching!

[@picklepotpieofficial]

Wish they'd show this video at the park! Great explanation

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks for watching!

[@chippysteve4524]

Fascinating and beautifully explained. I remember seeing a 6 foot section of a petrified tree with stumps of branches in a museum as a youngster and being very impressed but to see a whole 'forest' of them where they fell must be mind-blowing. Arizona just made my bucket list! Thanks for your hard work and for sharing.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks for watching!

[@whoareyoulookingfor]

Yesterday my mom and I visited the Escalante Petrified Forest State Park! There's not nearly as many petrified trees as the park in Az, which we couldn't get to, so we stopped by Escalante's instead! It was so cool seeing all the colors and how in hollows of the tree there were crystal deposits (maybe quartz? I'm not sure if it's the same exact process as the one you talked about for Az), but what struck me the most was how the bark looked just like regular tree bark until there was a crack, and the insect borings! Absolutely incredible. We didn't see many people at all on the whole short hike up and down, which was nice, as I imagine the one in Az is much more busy too.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

It's crazy just how many locations have Petrified remains! Petrified Forest is probably the most famous, but you can find them all over the place! Glad you enjoyed your trip!

[@wadeadams4263]

Growing up in the 60s and 70s my parents were Rockhounds and we would go to Oklahoma on vacation travelling down old Route 66 and yes I've been to the Petrified Forest many times its awesome and don't forget the Painted Desert which is nearby.

[@ClipsNSnips]

I took my wife here and she didn't know what petrified wood was.... She thought I was crazy walking around taking pictures of chunks of wood! 🤣🤣

[@NationalParkDiaries]

😂😂😂

[@williamleslie4939]

I've been there with my wife and the petrified wood and local landscape are quite striking. We did a backcountry overnight there and we would definitely do it again. This is the first of your videos I've seen and it is really well done. I look forward to more!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thank you and welcome to the community!

[@nofrackingzone7479]

I’ve been there, the park rangers said what you see on the surface is only a fraction of what was, and is, there. Until it was protected millions of tons of the logs were taken. There are many more below the surface. The largest example is outside of the Smithsonian museum of natural history in Washington DC.

[@DaveBennett]

We visited the park in '82 and it was great. Small area back then you had to hike to, but the trees were incredible to see and the landscape was surreal.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Very nice!

[@christophercharleshoward5435]

You did a really good job explaining that process. Thank you for your time and information. We live in pheonix and plan to visit soon.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Glad I could help, thanks for watching!

[@drew-shourd]

Great video, many blessings to you for making and sharing it. I have never been to any Petrified Forest, but I have been to a few forests that I was petrified in!!!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Haha, thanks for watching!

[@richardmoramarco6754]

I drove through the Petrfied forest and the Painted Desert right across the Interstate a tunnel connects them in the early spring of 1989, was quite interesting.

[@elisemiller13]

Yes, I've been their twice and to satisfy that rock/fossil hound instinct and simultaneously support the park, I bought a few small slices from a store where there are rocks and slices with their beauty and mystery and thus preserving for future generations the awe of this place! Thank you for this video and may you have the experience of visiting yourself. SOme very cool photos you've shared of places I did not see, like the area with major amounts of fallen tree rocks atop one another. Well being!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Glad you enjoyed your visit and thanks for watching!

[@TheEnderTaz25]

Any chance you’d be curious about doing a video on why Sedona, AZ ISN’T a national park? With the same type of scenery as Zion and Bryce, I’m curious as to why it never became one, or even a state park for that matter. Anyways, great job on the content as always!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

I can certainly look into it! I never know what I'm going to find when I start a story, but I've been to Sedona and love the scenery in that area. Thanks for the suggestion!

[@naomiezquivel8630]

Sedona is beautiful. It is situated within the Coconino National Forest. Not quite the same as a national park, but at least the land has some protection and people employed to maintain trail systems.

[@ETBrenner]

We went through Sedona on the same trip that took us through Petrified Forest NP - part of a whole loop trip through Arizona and New Mexico. Glorious!

[@pattydelaney1671]

I visited this park a couple years ago. it was beautiful! I was happy to buy some rocks in the gift shop, and private landowners in the surrounding area had signs with it for sale. I hope that minimizes people stealing it

[@tomasquintero1704]

You should do an episode on the Blue Primitive Range on the Arizona/New Mexico border. It's a unique designation and could tie back into conversations about changing values, and preservation vs conservation.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Very interesting! I'll look into it, thanks for the suggestion!

[@ErkanStyle8]

I just returned from Arizona last night. That petrified forest was my favorite hike/observation. Sedona also beautiful to hike. Grand Canyon is just a must see in person for all humans! Page AZ also a must see with HorseshoeBend as well as Antelope Canyon. WoW's across the board!!!!!!!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

It really is a beautiful state! Glad you enjoyed your trip!

[@maryleescott9028]

My grandparents owned property in western Texas and collected lots of petrified wood from it as they built it into a farm. I still own pieces of it. Saw the park just a few yrs ago. It is always amazing to visualize the great change land has made and continues to make far greater than anything man can do to it. It has shifted and continues to shift over time and geologic events.

[@brucemorris6319]

I live in northwest Oklahoma on a farm I find small peace’s of petrified wood all the time .

[@roktman]

Once again an amazing video, for anyone who's interested in geography or nature in general, this channel is a gold mine. I'm a bit late to comment but what you could have mentioned is perhaps the other protected sites with petrified wood. I visited Petrified Forest NP when I was 13 and because we were in a hurry, we rushed the park and I didn't get to see much of it. I have visited other national parks or monuments where petrified wood can be found since, and I would like to mention two of those sites here. First was Theodore Roosevelt NP, which I think deserves its own video especially because of it's interesting history, where on certain trails we had walked past petrified pieces of bark and wood just scattered around, which was pretty unexpected since the northern unit to my knowledge didn't have any petrified forest trails. On the other hand there was I believe two trails that took you through two separate petrified forests with entire preserved stumps in the south unit. Those two trails are pretty remote, the only way to get there is to follow a specific path on gavel roads. The other site that I would like to mention is the Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, which I believe has the largest petrified stumps in the world. In this case the petrified trees are an extinct species of sequoia, specifically Sequoia affinis. I myself am fascinated by big trees so when I visited and saw the petrified stumps for myself, I was honestly blown away. In my opinion it is a completely different experience to what you would see in Petrified Forest NP or other sites and I would definitely recommend it to anyone visiting Colorado.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Great info and thanks for mentioning those other "petrified parks!" So glad you're enjoying the channel as well!

[@ryan49805]

As an AZ native I can vouch that this park is definitely one of a kind. It has its own strange beauty. There is a gift shop that’s more of a museum that I’d highly recommend. It has all kinds of cool fossils along with wood. Also, it IS ILLEGAL to take “souvenirs” from the land, like he said. Definitely worth checking out! 👍

[@ShrekSwag]

The shot at 0:40 is on the Utah side of Monument Valley, not Arizona. Love ur vids

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Haha, fair enough! Thanks for watching!

[@scottrudd3863]

Just visited today. Was looking for more info and poof, here you are. Thanks!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Glad I could help! Hope you enjoyed your visit

[@johnizitchiforalongtime]

Love this video and explanation. Now i know the process.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks for watching!

[@ArcturanMegadonkey]

Really enjoyed this

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks for watching!

[@bfrerck]

Great job. As National Park lover I appreciate your work.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks so much for being here!

[@dshobe720]

Yes I have visited the part that surprised me the most was the size of the trees. Many were average size of 2 ft diameter but a few were nearly double that. Prepare for the heat if going in the summer or escape the winter for some 60-70⁰ F days during January-February. I also enjoyed the many desert lizards skittering along the old forest bones.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Yeah, I couldn't believe that some of those trees were nearly 200 ft tall before they fell! Truly a giant forest

[@alexchristakis4539]

Thank you for this excellent, enjoyable and very informative, pro-grade presentation. Please keep up the excellent work! Many, many thanks.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks so much!!

[@Goodellsam]

The vastness of the forest is incredible. It was mind-blowing to see. I highly recommend a visit.

[@gerryandsteph3703]

I screened this today and will be showing it to my 4th graders in class today. Very well done, thank you for your video.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

So glad to hear that, thanks for watching!!

[@teddwayne]

Great video! Yes,I have been to the petrified forest ,I was in the Navy as a young 19 year old Seabee,driving across country to my next duty station. We stopped the spent some time there,it was an amazing experience. That was 1981. Petrified wood is very interesting to me now. I was living near White Salmon Washington,and hiking and camping in the Lewis River I found a few petrified chunks of rock. It was in the shallow river I was wading in,thought it was a burnt piece of firewood floating,but as I got next to it,it was on the bottom of the riverbed.Amazing find! After that,I started finding more ,possibly volvanic related,as this location in right in the middle of the Cascade mountain range?

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks for watching!

[@braedonschweigert]

Well put together

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thank you!

[@adamhuffman3354]

I love the way it looks! I have some small pieces that have been polished and they are beautiful.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Agreed!

[@Wunderkammerdandy]

Cool video! Live in AZ myself and have been there twice over the last two years; lastly in April this year. Best NP in the world. Such gorgeous scenery overall and the fossilised wood is sooooo amazingly beautiful.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks for watching! Jealous you get something so incredible so close!

[@edmartin875]

I lived in that area in the 1950s. Holbrook, Winslow, Kingman, Flagstaff, and many others. My dad built high pressure natural gas pipelines all over the Southwest, and we followed the pipelines. I may be wrong, but I don't remember it being a National Park back then. My parents allowed each child to have one and only one piece of petrified wood, but we found it locally, not from the area of the park. I think we were limited because we moved a lot, and they didn't want to be hauling around a bunch of rocks.

[@bentleymitchell5979]

Thank you for posting : )

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks for watching!

[@melgillham462]

There are actually online sources and dealers on the side of the highways and interstates that can sell you pieces of petrified wood legally, as in not gathered from the park properties. But from private properties that they own or are in business with. There are even areas where you can see some parts of petrified remains from the highway like around the meteor crater area at winslow. Im a former truck driver and i found these shops and areas semiaccessible from I-40.

[@zalix512]

Logs look all the same age. It happened mostly all at once. The sheer volume points to this.

[@MissShembre]

There's a petrified ginko forest in Washington. The 'trees' are more brown with less red tones. The ones out in the wild are in little concrete and metal cages/coffins like they're zoo animals to prevent theft. But you can touch the ones that are up by the visitor center.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

That actually makes me really sad... I hate that that even has to be a solution for their conservation, but is unfortunately an all too common occurrence when it comes to fossil sites like this. Fossil Cycad National Monument being the ultimate example of what can happen to a place if it's not properly protected

[@nickkuttian4143]

Fantastic information here as well as great editing. Beautiful pictures and well timed transitions

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thank you!

[@blech71]

Pretty much any tree getting this treatment back then….. At first I was afraid, I was petrified Kept thinking I could never live without you by my side But then I spent so many nights thinking how you did me wrong And I grew strong And I learned how to get along And so you're back From outer space I just walked in to find you here with that sad look upon your face I should have changed that stupid lock, I should have made you leave your key If I'd known for just one second you'd be back to bother me Go on now, go, walk out the door Just turn around now 'Cause you're not welcome anymore Weren't you the one who tried to hurt me with goodbye? You think I'd crumble? You think I'd lay down and die? Oh no, not I, I will survive Oh, as long as I know how to love, I know I'll stay alive I've got all my life to live And I've got all my love to give and I'll survive I will survive, hey, hey

[@NationalParkDiaries]

The content we need 🤣

[@codblkops85]

There is also Florissant national monument just outside Colorado Springs that has massive petrified redwood stumps

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Yep! Pretty much every state has petrified wood apparently. Such a cool resource to be preserved in these places!

[@user-ev5og3uj3u]

Very good show and information

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thank you!

[@gordeng4001]

I've been to this one in Arizona, but I've also been to one in the mountains of Colorado near Florissant, CO, which is a national park too. They both are pretty cool!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Agreed! Big fan of the petrified wood!

[@thepretzel2]

Where can we put video suggestions at?

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Right here in the comments!

[@thepretzel2]

@@NationalParkDiaries Cool. Shoot. I had a thought for a video (or maybe a multi-part thing), but I cant remember what it was lol.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

@@thepretzel2 no worries! You can always leave it here if it comes back to you! I store all suggestions in a folder anyway once they come through, so it'll get remembered lol

[@thepretzel2]

@@NationalParkDiaries I remember now: Could you do a video about the various hunting/fishing/ect. laws of each park?

[@edmartin875]

Each Park ??? I would hope you know there are lots and lots of Parks in the US. Just reading off the name of the park and what state it is in could take the entire time of the average video. The research along could take a year or more.@@thepretzel2

[@maxadam6517]

Brilliant little explanation here. Very well put together, great presentation overall. Sub defs earned

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks and welcome to the community!

[@onnalexseeias]

Thank you ❤❤❤❤

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks for watching!

[@ssuyan]

You are a very good teacher!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thank you!!

[@johndaltroff2241]

If you steal any petrified wood from the park, bad luck will follow you. I have a piece that a relative took many years ago, we plan to return it to the park when we visit. Thanks for the explanation of how these trees petrified.🤠

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks for watching!

[@kirkmarshall2853]

Stumbled across your channel in a rabbit hole I took tonight after partaking in both drink and herb and really glad I found it. Subscribed

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Hahaha, welcome!

[@junepearl7993]

Leave only footprints. Take only photos. Protect our national parks. Florissant Fossil beds in Colorado is another place to see fossilized trees. They also have a nice collection of fossilized insects.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Couldn't have said it better myself!

[@ETBrenner]

I visited this park a couple of decades ago - as something of a way amateur armchair geologist, I loved learning about the petrified trees. I also remember thinking how sad it was that the park had to worry about folks making off with the fossils.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

This subject has fascinated me for the longest time also! It's just so cool to learn about processes (and places) like this!

[@Zuxiasunicorn]

If folks wanted a sample instead of stealing there are plenty of roadside stands selling it. Petrified wood can be found all around the area. My parents made my brother and me empty out our pockets before we left the park.

[@astrialindah2773]

​@@Zuxiasunicornso you can buy it... you just can't get it for free?

[@Zuxiasunicorn]

@astrialindah2773 How're you going to get it for free? Steal it from the park or poach on somebody's private property to find it?

[@astrialindah2773]

@@Zuxiasunicorn if you don't see the irony in your question to me I can't help you 🙄

[@ericvulgate]

My property is littered with wonderful examples.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Very cool!

[@CampElk]

I took my 13 year old son there in June of ‘23. You give a far greater explanation of how petrification happens than I was able! Thanks!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Glad I could help, thanks for watching!

[@tompsheridantsheridant7354]

Replying to @CampElk: **IN JUNE OF 2023!!**

[@stevemeehan3288]

I was there in 1980. BEAUTIFUL. I suggest going to the Painted Desert as well.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

🙌🙌🙌

[@chrislong3938]

There are places along I-40 that are not within the park but still have many logs strewn about. I picked up a pair of bookends made from some of those logs (I assume) that are just gorgeous! It's truly an amazing place and simply cruising along the interstate, you can see them without actually entering the park itself.

[@aborch7]

Awesome video!! I visited the petrified forest last year - I’m still dreaming about all the pieces I wouldn’t/couldn’t take 😂

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thank you! I did read that there are collectors who source petrified wood from _private_ land near the park, which they do make available for sale. A nice, legal way to take some of it home if you're interested!

[@aborch7]

@@NationalParkDiaries oh yes, there certainly are! There are actually gift shops directly outside one of the park entrances & they sold some very nice petrified wood, right there!

[@MrRamiste]

These trees might be millions of years old, but it's true that petrification can happen VERY quickly and does not need to take anywhere near that long to happen. Just look up rate of petrification online. In nature it can be a few thousand years, and maybe faster.

[@rogerblack6270]

Great place to visit

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Hoping to make it out there someday!

[@fingerfeller]

Thanks!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks so much for your support!

[@mark-wn5ek]

Who wouldn’t want to pick up a piece of that beautiful petrified wood as a souvenir of their visit there?!!!

[@KeithHoltupthepeak]

I have been there and it is incredible. You can buy small pieces at the gift shop, which is what I did. Great video, really enjoyed it. Inspired me to look at my footage and revisit it.

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks for watching!

[@KeithHoltupthepeak]

@@NationalParkDiaries my pleasure. This channel is a real treat.

[@scottprather5645]

Drove through the park around 10 years ago beautiful interesting place. the museum on the east end of the park had fossils of the prehistoric animals that existed back then. Park had a mysterious vibe of an ancient primitive world. At least that was my perception.🤔 Also good to note the area where petrified wood occurs is much larger than the park boundaries I just viewed a 13-year-old video of a 320 acre parcel for sale with petrified wood everywhere

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Seems accurate! I feel like a lot of these fossil parks give off that vibe.

[@michaelfrancisco2043]

I been there and it's beautiful it's nice to see of Crystal formations and other Minareal

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Very cool! Hoping to get out there myself soon!

[@rbran]

Could you possibly do a video on Ocmulgee Mounds NHP? It’s expected to be upgraded to a national park this year, and I feel like it’s a super cool spot to talk about :)

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Ocmulgee isn't that far from where I live! I could get out there pretty easily for a story, and yeah, with the potential for a new designation, that would be a great one to tell. Thanks for the suggestion!

[@nothanks3236]

It's barely large enough to be a city park, does upgrading it bring some sort of extra protection or something? If they want to make a national park in Georgia they should be looking to create one out of the Cohutta Wilderness up in Blue Ridge, or Okeefenokee.

[@brucemorris6319]

I’ve been there twice. great experience probably go again someday.👍

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Nice!

[@spiritualmafia888]

You ROCK!!!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thank you!

[@Chris-ut6eq]

Bell thing was hit per suggestion!

[@Chris-ut6eq]

I'm interested in a video about theft in this park. And others....

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks so much! And thanks for the suggestion!

[@josefunez397]

I ve been there once few years back i bought some iron wood and petrified wood at the stores there before entering the park❤ i took pictures!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Very nice!

[@kathycondon4734]

Hi i wanted to tell you loved your broadcast about Arizona. It is a great thing to hear about the history of the area. Hey I wanted to let you know that I have only recently just visited this area. The Petrified Forest has some of the prettiest most beautiful wood fossils anywhere. Arizona itself is also covered in all the other fossils that go along with that environment from that time too!! Every kind of little animal from that time period is also just laying there on the ground in so many pieces. Every rock I picked up was a little lizard head or a fish skull or a rib bone or a back vertebrae or a horn or a complete skeleton, or just completely visible imbedded in the rock EVERYWHERE!!! Every rock I looked at was a fossil of some kind. Also on top of being fossilized you can see the scorpions all over them!!(98%) I saw a shark fossil( shark like) the fin was so obvious when you compared it to a live version there was no denying. It was embedded in the same rock as a little Ray(stingray) right together. The shark was small and and the stingray, skate?(10 or 12 inches across the back) was also kinda little but when I saw them there in the same rock, I was really stunned. I didn't have a camera( of course) but they were facing each other and it was the fin on that shark like fish that was undeniable. Just unbelievble!!! I'm 61 and I love to look at all rocks. I don't know if it's just me but I'm from Washington state originally and I swear that I found a little petrified alligator head on Snoqualamie Pass along with some petrified baby turtles all in the same area on one day. Could you maybe tell me if that is, at all, a possibility???? Love this subject matter!!! Thanks!!;)

[@spiritualmafia888]

He, heee😊😅 love your work. Thank you!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks for watching!

[@jerseattle0722]

Subscribed!❤

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Welcome!

[@mixme8655]

new subscriber always watching your video very interesting

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thanks so much and welcome to the community!

[@hobojoe3844]

Good job young sir

[@NationalParkDiaries]

Thank you!