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Greeting Tree at the Petrified Redwood Forest.

To appease those who have not seen one of my nature posts in a week or so, and have been asking me to not stop writing about nature, this is post is dedicated to you. Honestly, I thought you might have been bored with them since some of you had challenged me to write about other subject matters.

Some people may not be aware of the lovely Petrified Redwood Forest, that can be found in Calistoga, California so allow me to share with you the loveliness that only nature can provide.

The Petrified Redwood Forest

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Remnants of a Petrified Redwood Tree on Trail.

As you can see from the map, the forest is located a very short 10 minute drive from the town of Calistoga, California.

In scientific terms the word petrified means a natural material that is slowly replaced by minerals. The cell change is a miraculous one that transforms dead material into life. The petrification of the tree is now a living stone.

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Dated Redwood Tree from 1912 by Luther Burbank.

The petrified forest found in Calistoga, California is unique in that is the largest redwood petrified forest in the world, and home to the now extinct Sequoia langsdorfii. The forest is filled with fossils made up of plants, animals, and trees that are over 10,000 years old.

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Concretion of Iron.

Scientists have calculated that a volcanic eruption occurred approximately 3.4 million years ago that changed this areas geological structure to its present day condition. An interested concept is that if the earth were created within a 24-hour timeframe, the volcanic activity would have struck a minute before midnight.

For some reason Google Maps did not have a drive time, but did have a bicycle timeframe and although there are many bicyclists in California, you will not catch me doing this trip on a bicycle. Hopefully, the map gives you an idea of the general distance it took to create the petrified forest from the approximate volcanic eruption.

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Well Protected and Dated Redwood Fossil.

The research that geologists have done calculate the the volcanic crater to have been within one mile of the current Mt. Saint Helena location. The description of the current state of Mt. Saint Helena is an uplifted, folded, and eroded remnant of her activity from millions of years ago.

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Stump of Redwood Fossil, Never Moved or Touched.

The volcanic eruption from that time period is explained as one of high silica content with high volatile gases accumulating until it burst. The explosion that took place was so massive that pyroclastic flows came streaming down the volcano. The flows were hundreds of miles per hour carrying debris. The temperature was approximately 100 degrees celsius. At that moment, ash from the volcano covered the entire countryside.

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The Cross Trees with Light.

The wonder of the volcanic ash was the preservation of everything it touched at that moment, including the redwood forest and its inhabitants. Throughout time, approximately tens of thousands of years water that was laden with minerals popped up from the soil and fed the ash laden trees, the common mineral was silica.

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Look at the Rings On this Stump.

When walking through the petrified forest you will see small sparkles glistening off the sunlight. Make sure you are there during the time of day where you will catch this lovely sight. The sparkles are the quartz that were petrified during the volcanic eruption and created a fine layer of druzy quartz.

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Chunks of Petrified Wood with Quartz.

The petrified wood has overgrown replacements, but we are still able to see the details of the redwood trees. The growth rings are spectacular to study and if you choose to bring a microscope the individual cell life is fantastic.

The fossil formation of the petrified trees are mostly made up of quartz and very hard in mass. The trees are as hard as steel and due to their content will remain for many more centuries to come.

The Caretakers

An interesting fact about this location is that it is privately owned and funded by donations with an entrance fee of $12 USD. The property was initially purchased in 1870 by a Swedish homesteader who allowed scientists into the area for research. The famous paleontologist O.C. Marsh, extrapolated pieces of wood and took them back to his laboratory at Yale University and wrote a book about his findings. The research continued throughout the years and confirming that this area is a historical landmark of ancient redwood trees and fossils.

The park has had visitors such as writer Robert Louis Stevenson and horticulturist Luther Burbank who have featured the park in their work. The property changed hands a few times but the current family owners purchased the property in 1914 and the park has remained in the family since.

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Old Bending Fossilized Trees.

Redwood Trail

The trail within the park will take approximately two hours and is nearly one mile in distance. The difficulty of the hike is moderately strenuous and no pets are allowed. At the time of this writing, the park is closed due to forest fires. An updated message stated the trees are unharmed but there was damage to some of the building structures.

If you would like to donate to the park their information is as follows:

The Petrified Forest
4100 Petrified Forest Road
Calistoga, California 94515
Phone: 707.942.6667
Email: [email protected].

The park is a small family operation, so if you happen to love historical preservation and you have the means, please feel free to contact the family. The owners are very nice people and are true pioneers in preserving Mother Earth. Peace.

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All photos are the property of @eaglespirit, do not use without permission.

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