Drive the Blue Mesa Scenic Road in Petrified Forest National Park

Apache County, Arizona

4.3/5

based on 4 reviews

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Distance

3 miles

Route Type

Loop

Description

Added by Crystal Sibson

This is a short but beautiful drive in the Petrified Forest National Park.

This is probably one of the most scenic drives in the Petrified Forest National Park. From the main road, the loop is only three miles long. There are many pullouts along the loop where you can get out of your vehicle to snap some photos. You will see many large pieces of petrified wood strewn across the landscape. You will also find information signs posted along the loop explaining the history of the landscape. Halfway around the loop you will find the Blue Mesa trailhead. This is a short 1 mile loop hike that will allow you to see the pedestal logs and badlands up close. The hike will take you down into a wide ravine where you will be surrounded by the vibrant blue hills.

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Explorer

Jared Blitz

Explorer

Drive the Blue Mesa Scenic Road in Petrified Forest National Park

11/22/20

These are definitely Arizona's badlands. Easy and beautiful drive. If you're coming into Phoenix from northern New Mexico you should always take your time to make this drive since it's on your way.

5.0

Crystal Sibson

Drive the Blue Mesa Scenic Road in Petrified Forest National Park

10/20/20

This is a good way to see the park if you're short on time. I stopped on my way home from a camping trip so I didn't do a lot of the longer hikes in the park.

5.0

Tori Barden

Drive the Blue Mesa Scenic Road in Petrified Forest National Park

09/29/20

This whole park was kind of lame. I hate leaving negativity on reviews, but the lady at the gate was not nice and $25 to enter the park with construction delays and not so great thing to see made this my least favorite National Park in all my travels. I’ve been on the road for 3 weeks hitting all the National Parks possible.

2.0

PRO

Lucas Bremer

PRO

Drive the Blue Mesa Scenic Road in Petrified Forest National Park

09/22/20

If youre only driving through the park and not hiking, make sure to add this great side road to the trip.

5.0

Leave No Trace

Always practice Leave No Trace ethics on your adventures and follow local regulations. Please explore responsibly!

Nearby

Blue Mesa Trail

The easiest route is to drive from the southern entrance to the Petrified Forest National Park and head north toward the 3.5 mile Blue Mesa Scenic Drive. The drive itself is nice and offers other hikes depending on what pullout you stop your car. For the Blue Mesa Trail look for the 3rd or 4th pullout - the one with the covered picnic table. The hike itself is easy and flat. You'll notice...

Blue Forest Trail

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Photograph the Agate Bridge

For centuries the Agate Bridge, a 110 ft stone log, has laid across an arrow withstanding corrosion from the elements. The stone log is harder than the surrounding sandstone that it's perched upon. The sandstone is slowly eroding away around this natural bridge. making it vulnerable to collapse. In 1911 a group of conservationists felt that the Agate Bridge needed architectural support and i...

Crystal Forest Loop

There really isn't much to this hike beyond exploring all the different types of petrified wood deposits. It's named after the wood that has formed in the petrified logs. I felt like it was the best place to go in the park to have an opportunity to see a diverse array of petrified wood in one place. If you go in the summer just make sure you carry water because you're completely exposed. ...

Hike the Giant Logs and Long Logs trail to the Agate House

Both trails begin from the Rainbow Forest Museum located at the southern entrance of the National Park. Start with the Giant Logs trail which will take you on a short .4 mi paved loop through magnificently colored wood. Make sure to stop at the top of the trail by "Old Faithful" which is almost 10' wide. From there, travel NE on Petrified Forest Road to the Long Logs trailhead. Only the first h...

Drive the Blue Mesa Scenic Road in Petrified Forest National Park

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Blue Mesa Trail

Blue Forest Trail

Photograph the Agate Bridge

Crystal Forest Loop

Hike the Giant Logs and Long Logs trail to the Agate House

Painted Desert Rim Trail

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