Friday March 9, 2018
Friday morning we left Albuquerque and headed for the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest National Park after making loose plans to meet up with Mary and Chuck somewhere in the park later in the day. While interstate highways aren't necessarily my first choice when sightseeing, I 40 was the only route to Arizona from Albuquerque. The I 40 replaced Route 66 which replaced a stage route where the railroad, opening the west, was built. Both the I 40 and RR still carry a lot of traffic. We were surprised to see frequent long trains, some with double stacked shipping containers, and wondered how many more semis would be on the road without the RR. There was a steady stream of semis in both directions.
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| Yellowhorse |
We considered stopping in Gallop, but decided our time would be better spent at the park. After stopping at the rest stop at the border, we drove the short distance back to check out Yellowhorse, a few Native American craft stores and a gas station, before crossing into Arizona.
Once in the National Park we took our time - the northern portion of the park, N of old Route 66/I 40, is the Painted Desert, while the larger, southern part is the Petrified Forest. We stopped at most of the vistas taking photos and enjoying the spectacular view. The colors in the Painted Desert were amazing with layers of subtle, but distinct variations.
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| Subtle colors in the Painted Desert |
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| More Painted Desert |
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| Checking out the 1932 Studebaker permanently parked where Old Rout 66 crosses the park road |
We made the obligatory photo stop at the 1932 Studebaker, permanently parked by the the park road where it crosses old Route 66. After we finished a short walk at the ancestral ruins and petroglyphs at Puerco Pueblo, Mary and Chuck caught up with us.
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| Puerco Pueblo ruins |
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| Puerco Pueblo petroglyphs |
With the park closing at 1700 - in 1 1/2 hours, and more than half the park to go, the Finns suggested we drive to Blue Mesa and hike the 1 mile trail down into the badlands dotted with petrified wood. The trail was steep, but paved, and worth the effort. Back at the top, we had just enough time to drive to the South entrance and take a short walk at the Rainbow Forest. When asked what happens when people don't leave at 1700, the volunteer at the desk said if they were north of Puerto Pueblo, they would be told to leave the park at the northern entrance and if south to drive to the south exit with no stops! The Finns having toured the park before, planned to continue toward Prescott in the morning, while we planned to return to explore some of the park that we'd missed.
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| Layers of colors deposited over eons |
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| A huge piece of petrified wood on the hike at Blue Mesa |
We had a one night stay at an Airbnb on a ranch about 20 miles south of the park. Our host had called that morning to apologize, explaining she had to make an unscheduled trip out of town, but giving us excellent directions and inviting us to explore the property and to pick up some petrified wood, or take some from the table on the porch. Taking anything from the park is 'strongly' discouraged, and the gift shop prices are high.
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| Our Chaco Airbnb |
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| Range for us to explore - with lots of petrified wood |
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| Sunset at Concho |
We arrived with enough daylight for a short walk and find several nice pieces of petrified wood and watch the sunset. The place was great - we arrived to find the table set for dinner and a small box of welcoming chocolates. It was a very quiet, chilly, starlit night - we went out briefly to gaze at the heavens.
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