Route 66 Logo Lapel Pin

Petrified Forest National Park was established in 1906 to protect one of the world’s largest and most colorful deposits of petrified wood. The fossil record contained in this 225 million-year-old geologic layer called the “Chinle Formation” allows a fascinating look at the fauna and flora of the late Triassic Period.

This colorful sediment, also known as the Painted Desert, spans the 28-mile journey through the park. Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona is the only National Park which Route 66 ran through.

A portion of the highway still remains in the park, a silent testament to all those who traveled it during its heyday before it was replaced and bypassed by Interstate 40.