We spent the morning hiking in Theodore Roosevelt NP on the Petrified Forest Trl. Who knew this park has the 3rd largest concentration of petrified wood in the US!
We had a great time despite our plan to do the loop trail changing due to a herd of bison spread across our path. We had to go back to the beginning and head the opposite direction and made it 2 out and backs instead of 1 loop. This was the first time we hiked where the bison were actually roaming and it was awesome! We have now seen over 2 thousand bison in our South and North Dakota travels....very cool!
A lot of the petrified tree trunks sit on pedestals as the dirt erodes from around them
Look at the petrified trunk to the left of the bison on the left. That and those in the background give an idea of the size. This area was a tropical rain forest millions of years ago.
The petrified wood dots the landscape looking like it's been intentionally placed
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| this little guy looks like he is wearing a hood! |
What a beautiful place! The bison were an incredible added bonus! So cool!
ReplyDeleteLisa, can you help me identify the bird with the "hood" I can't find it anywhere on line. Thanks:)
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