Holbrook is historic for its location on Route 66. It is also central to several places of interest like the Meteor Crater Natural Landmark and the Petrified Forest National Park as well as the township of Winslow, Arizona. It was now Saturday, November 2nd and so we decided to take a peek at some of these. The Petrified Forest won out so by 9:30 am we were on the road. Passing by some more strange rock forms and a couple of dinosaurs we arrived at the National Park by 10 am. Once in the door of the visitor centre it becomes obvious why this whole region seems to have a preoccupation with prehistoric reptiles. You are immediately confronted by a 5.3 metre, 1 ton croc. Makes me feel like being back in Darwin. This is not the only skeleton though. This region around “4 Corners” is rich in fossils, particularly dinosaur fossils.
Knock, Knock, Knock on Wood
Dinosaurs aren’t the only fossil here either. Strewn all around us in the park are prehistoric trees that are no longer made of timber but have been turned to stone by the forces of nature. We expected the occasional stump here and there but in the ancient forest areas there are hundreds of logs and millions of pieces. They have kept their timber appearance so exactly that you find yourself needing to touch them to reassure yourself that they are indeed made of stone. The main give-away to their rock strata is that over time the earth beneath them has been eroded removing the support they relied on causing them to break into pieces. There is one location where this hasn’t yet happened due to earlier attempts to support the log with cement. The Agate Bridge still stands but after witnessing some stupid locals climbing on it to get that elusive ‘selfie’ I don’t believe it will last long (and hopefully it will take one or two of these fools with it.
A Sign of the Times
I have included a photo of a sign that explains the process of how the trees are converted by silica over millions of years. In several photos I have tried to zoom right in to show where crystals are readily visible. One section of the park is known as “The Crystal Forest”. As for the colours they range through the spectrum depending on the minerals available where the particular log fell. I could have included many more photos just highlighting the colours if I desired. They were endless.
A Geological Rainbow
But the colours are not restricted to the petrified logs. The surrounding environment is a geological rainbow and it is like a wonderland driving through the hills and valleys of the park. It was this geological diversity that probably led to its’ exploration by early palaeontologists. This exploration is the reason for the exposure of so many fossils and no doubt many more to be found. It also exposed the links between the park and the natives of this area.
Read All About It
Newspaper Rock is an area that was frequented by the natives and where they left their mark in a language known only to themselves. It is a narrow strip of rock face along the edge of a low plateau and it too has been included under the protection of the National Park. Because we couldn’t get too close to these ancient scripts we managed to get several shots through the eye-piece of a telescope while some were ‘reachable’ with our phone/camera zoom at max.
What Day Is It?
We’ve seen many Petroglyphs in our travels but this is the first time we had actually had the ‘solar calendar’ visibly demonstrated. You will see a photo of a sign labelled “Summer Solstice Marker”. This and the following photo shows how the sun beams down between the crack in the two rocks to the left of the pic. Over the years the natives deduced that on a particular day each year the sun shone through that crack at a particular angle. On the rock opposite they chipped a spiral design into the rock exactly where the ‘needle of light’ shone on that day. This day was the “Summer Solstice”. (I will show this phenomena again in a few posts time about Mesa Verde.)
Why Here?
Not far from Newspaper Rock is the remains of a village on the Rio Puerco. This was a decent sized village by the standards of the day and is more evidence of the complex relationships and lives of the local natives over hundreds of years. This was a multi-roomed pueblo inhabited over 800 years ago and it is no coincidence that it is so close to modern day Route 66. Ancient animal trails were followed by Indians needing food. These Indian trails were followed by more modern day explorers. So when today’s developments expand away from early cities they naturally follow these established trails.
One Last Thing
I have bemoaned several times about how the camera seems to diminish the power of the live scene so I have included 3 photos to show this sleight of lens once and for all. In the pics with the sign “The Big Picture” and the one following you will see the signs point to the San Francisco Peaks 108 miles (173.8 kms) away on the left of sign. In the third photo we could actually see those peaks yet in the photo you can barely make out the shape of the peaks just to the right of Turkey Track Butte. The SF Peaks are so light in the photo they are almost invisible but be assured in real life they were clearly visible. The last 3 photos are of the historic Route 66 Inn.
More Geologic Marvels
After the Petrified Forest we went the next day to see The Meteor Crater just west of Winslow, Arizona but the first stop was at Jim Gray’s Rock Shop. https://shop.jimgrayspetrifiedwoodco.com/ Here you can legally buy petrified logs and other rocks and gems from the size of a dime to many tons. Once inside you are easily overwhelmed at the size and variety of items for sale. Not just gems, rocks and minerals but souvenirs of all types but it is the actual fossil of a 4m prehistoric croc that gets you in. That and the other fossils on display with it really are incredible to see. And many items are for sale.
A Visitor From Outer Space
Moving on westward it wasn’t long and we turned off the highway to go to the Meteor Crater. https://www.meteorcrater.com/ Surprisingly it is barely visible until you are almost upon it. Set on the flat plains of northern Arizona the rim is not that high from the outside but once on the rim the story changes. We decided to take advantage of the free guided tour where we left the comfort of the cool air conditioning to the Arizona heat up on the rim. The walk was about half a mile each way but luckily it was a flat walk along the rim. At 1.2 kms in diameter and 170 mtrs deep we had no intentions to walk to the bottom of this 50,000 year old hole even if allowed to. It was a good experience to visit and we were done by lunch time.
Takin’ it Easy
Heading home we couldn’t not stop and catch another famous yet much more recent location nearby. So there we were, standing on a corner in Winslow Arizona, when a girl, my Lord in a flat bed Ford slowed down to take a look at me. I have no idea how but it shows the power of music by one of the greatest bands in history when a plain intersection in a non-descript town in the USA should become an iconic sign of the age. Obligatory photos taken we grabbed a coffee at the café across the road then hopped back in the car to get back to our rig. It was another good day (and another bucket list item ticked off the list).
Cheers for now
Garry and Shane
It is so tempting………….Sunday morning might supply an opportunity…lol,lol…..
Soon as I read the heading I was humming away as I read and admired the pictures, the tune is still hanging around, truly a great song……………….. At my old place I had petrified wood logs laying just under the surface made for interesting garden bed surrounds…………………..Travel safe.
Thanks Ian. BTW – We will be back in Aust from Mid December to about Jun/July. The rig will be in storage till then. If you and Chris decide you want a holiday let me know and we can work something out. (P.S. even though we’re due back in the USA June/July we might not pick up the van for a month or two while we do some other travels from America. EG Carribean cruises here are dirt cheap as are South American breaks.)