May 5, 2007

May 5, 2007

We got a surprise when we woke today in Flagstaff, AZ. Our car has a layer of icy snow on it. It is amazing how different the weather is here from Phoenix two hours to the south. Our first stop today is Walnut Canyon National Monument, a few miles to the east. Thinking it to be another Indian ruin like Wupatki, we are planning on a quick stop. We are very pleasantly surprised. The park is a small picturesque canyon with brick huts built under overhangs halfway down the canyon walls. We take a very pleasant hike that loops around the canyon. Unlike Sunset Crater, signs are plentiful and informative. Aimee also spots some hummingbirds on the walk.

Back on the highway we continue our drive east. The terrain has turned flat and barren, more like what you would expect in northern Arizona. Shortly we come to Meteor Crater. I have wanted to come here since seeing it in the closing sequences of the movie, Starman. The crater is privately owned and charges a hefty entrance fee, but where else can you go to see a real live moon-like crater? Aimee calls it a big hole in the ground. On first glance it looks smaller than I expected and somewhat eroded. But I guess it is in surprisingly good shape for 50,000 years old. The size is also very deceiving. It is big enough to hold 20 football games, with two million fans sitting around the sides. After hiking along the side and taking pictures, we head in to see the museum. It is quite well done and according to my expert wife has an outstanding gift shop.

Around noon we continue our drive east. Aimee puts in a CD of the Eagles Greatest Hits and the first song is Take it Easy. On hearing the lyrics, “standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona”, we exit the highway and eat lunch at a little diner in Winslow.

After lunch we drive to the Petrified Forest National Park. We stop at the Painted Desert Visitor Center at the north entrance. Here we watch an interesting film about the park. 225 millions years ago during the Triassic Period this area was a tropical forest. Because of volcanic activity, the trees here were buried in volcanic ash. The silica in the ash penetrated the tree cells and replaced them with rock. Impurities in the ash gave the tree mineral deposits and the surrounding soil unusual colors. The ground then eroded exposing the colorful sandstone and the mineralized tree trunks.

From the Visitor Center we drive south thru the park. The northern half of the park has the Painted Desert vistas. To me the terrain looks almost identical to the Badlands of South Dakota. Adding to my relative disinterest is the wind. It is getting ridiculously strong, making it difficult to keep the camera steady. Farther south are most of the Petrified Forest stops. The best is the Crystal Forest where we walk a short loop thru a field of rock logs. I am amazed how big they are. Most are at least two feet in diameter and some much bigger. Interestingly there are no small or medium-size trees or branches. Some of the logs are vivid shades of red, blue and yellow. And some are wood-colored looking like they were just cut down. The park makes a big point about not taking samples home. They believe two tons disappear with visitors every month. There is still a lot left.

At the Rainbow Forest Visitor Center at the south entrance, they have displays of reptile bones found buried with the trees in the park. Being from the Triassic Period, most are pre-dinosaur reptiles. Archaeologists have made important finds of an early dinosaur relative here.

Tonight we stay in Holbrook, AZ and celebrate Cinco de Mayo at a local Mexican restaurant. Aimee says I had one too many margaritas. I will let you know tomorrow.