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| Long Logs Trail |
The 2.38 miles round trip combines the Long Logs Trail-Agate House Trail into a single hike. Leashed dogs are allowed.
To reach the trailhead, from Interstate 40, exit north onto Park Road and enter the park. After passing through the entrance station, continue along the road past several overlooks. Drive under the freeway. Turn right/west into the parking lot for the Rainbow Forest Museum and Visitor Center. Cross Petrified Forest Road and as approaching the gift shop, take the sidewalk in front of it left/east. Walk alongside the road across Jim Camp Wash. Once on the other side of it, the Long Logs Trail splits to the right/south into the desert.
Petrified logs
Initially, the trail appears to be going nowhere, for there's a dearth of petrified wood and certainly no Painted Desert badlands. Be patient, though – soon petrified logs appear off the side of the trail, looking like tree stumps in the desert brush.
Some 218 million years ago, flood waters drove fallen trees – some of them 200 feet high – downstream. The tree trunks piled up in a log jam where they later were covered by silt and petrified. All of these eons later, erosion has exposed the now stone trees.
At 0.4 miles, the access trail reaches a small loop that curls back on itself. Continue left/northeast. In a few yards is a spur to the right; stay on the main trail.
The large coniferous trees that making up the petrified logs were felled by age, wind, disease or insects. Nine different extinct trees have been fossilized in the park with Araucarioxylon arizonicum the most common and what you’ll find along this trail.
The logs now sit at the base of a badlands, their buttes purple and gray. It is some of the largest concentration of petrified logs in the park.
Near the end of the Long Logs Loop is a shade shelter. This marks a good place to rest.
Agate House
At 1.1 miles, you’ll reach the Agate House Trail again. Go left/southwest onto it.
The Agate House sits on a knoll on the horizon, so you’ll see it in the distance. The trail ends at the sight around 1.48 miles into the hike.
Agate House, a pueblo consisting of eight rooms, was lived in between 1050 and 1300 CE. The structure was built using medium to large pieces of petrified wood held together by mud mortar and chinked with smaller pieces of petrified wood. Similar to other Puebloan buildings, access to Agate House was through the roof by ladder. The size and complexity of the construction indicate that it may have served as a year-round residence for a single family or as a communal meeting place for the community.
Today, Agate House stands prominently on a small hill in Rainbow Forest, although the current structure is a partial reconstruction and may not be entirely accurate. The historical significance of Agate House led to its inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. Do not sit, stand, lean or climb on the structure to preserve its integrity for future generations.
After taking in the sight, head back on the Agate House Trail. Ignore the turn onto the Long Logs Loop. Instead, go left/northwest onto the Long Loops access trail at 1.98 miles.
Follow the access trail back to the parking lot.
There's no natural shade at all on the trail, so be sure to don sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat. Be aware of stormy skies; lightning strikes are common here, particularly during the August monsoons.
TOPO MAP
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