Desert Messenger

14 www.DesertMessenger.com ADVENTURES WITH ROCKS Digging for Rainbows By Jenn Jedidiah Free While on the road recently, we traveled through Winslow and Holbrook, AZ, home of the world famous "Rainbow" petrified wood like that preserved in Petrified Forest National Park located just east of Holbrook. While traveling through the vast expanse of desert, it is difficult to imagine a landscape covered with dense forest. But in reality, around 250 million years ago, the desert southwest was a full of trees- mostly conifers and palm trees. The environment was similar to a modern tropical environment, and it was because of that tropical, forested environment that Arizona has its state fossil. Petrified wood was designated the state fossil of Arizona in 1988. Yes, petrified wood is a fossil. It is wood that has been changed to stone through processes known as permineralization and replacement. Two specific conditions must exist in order for a fallen tree to turn into petrified wood. First, the fallen tree or limb must get buried in an environment devoid of oxygen, like mud or heavy sediments. In an anaerobic environment, the organic matter will not decompose. The second condition is that there must be mineral-rich water flowing through the sediments and the wood. Permineralization occurs as minerals flow into the original tissues of the wood and replace the organic matter molecule by molecule. Empty spaces in cells are filled with crystals. The original shape and structure of the wood is retained, though all organic matter has been replaced by minerals. This process can take anywhere from hundreds to thousands of years. Petrified wood is found throughout the world. Here in Arizona, the area around Petrified Forest National Park Vacation Bible Camp I WANT YOU! for BOOTCAMP When: June 24 - 28 Where: Alliance Church Van Rides Available SIGN UP TODAY! Time: 3:30-5pm Who: Preschool - 5th Grade Call Marika Holcombe 928-916-9570 is the most well known location for petrified wood. Referred to as "Rainbow", the famous specimens from this area are clearly some of the most beautiful petrified wood in the world. The final composition of petrified wood will depend on what minerals are present when it is forming. Typically it is some form of quartz or chalcedony with various other minerals found in trace amounts. In the Holbrook area, a silica solution produces specimens with varieties of quartz such as agate, jasper, and sometimes opal, or even pockets of clear quartz crystals or purple amethyst. The colors in petrified wood are the result of the trace minerals in the solution. Copper, cobalt, or chromium produce a green or blue color for example. Iron oxides create reds, browns, and yellows. Manganese produces pink and orange, while blackish/yellow comes from manganese oxides. Black is the result of an abundance of carbon, and white is created by an excess of silica. While collecting specimens of petrified wood is illegal in Petrified Forest National Park, there are several locations in the Winslow and Holbrook area east of the park where collecting is open to the public. One area that we visited was located just south of Winslow. To get to it, take highway 87 south for about a mile and then turn on Hwy 99. Head east and then south about 6 miles until you arrive at a gravel road heading east to Holbrook. Turn onto that road and travel east about a half mile up the road. At that point, for DEADLINE IS WED. JULY 10 for JULY 17TH issue of the Desert Messenger Email: editor@DesertMessenger.com Phone: 928-916-4235 www.DesertMessenger.com June 12, 2013 the next 20 miles or so there are many opportunities for collecting some nice specimens of petrified wood and nicely colored jaspers. There are some scenic buttes and nice parking areas along the road, but be careful not to venture too far off the road as some of the land is privately owned. We spent the entire day collecting along the side of the road for several miles. Another area that produced beautiful specimens for us was near Holbrook. Head south on Hwy 77 for about 6 ½ miles to an intersection with a road that goes to Woodruff. About 4 miles down that road, there will be ample opportunities for collecting. The collecting area stretches some 20 miles south of Holbrook along the road to Woodruff and along Silver Creek. Our collecting adventure here rewarded us with some gorgeous red, yellow, and white specimens and even some with purples. Many of the pieces found here are smaller, and will make for great tumbling or shaping into cabs without much waste, though we did find some larger ones and a few with "bark" on them. While in the area, don't forget to visit Petrified Forest National Park. The multicolored buttes and hills of the Painted Desert are amazing, and there are several hikes that allow a person to explore the beauty of this amazing landscape up close. Visit our blog for maps, photos, and more information about the Winslow and Homer collecting areas, links to Petrified Forest National Park, and more. Access our blog "Adventures With Rocks" through the Media Link on the top tool bar of our website www.RocksInMyHead.biz. We have rainbow petrified wood for sale, as well as books, maps, tools, supplies and more. We will be open in Quartzsite in the beginning of November at A37 in Rice Ranch, but meanwhile call 605-3768754, or email Jenn@RocksInMyHead. biz. Have a great summer and we'll see

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