Description
Petrified wood is formed when dead trees are buried by layers of sediment. The logs soak up groundwater and silica from volcanic ash and over time are crystallized into quartz. Different minerals create the colors seen in the logs. This petrified log is standing atop a "pedestal" of softer rock. Eventually the softer bentonite will erode and the log will fall. This picture was taken at Blue Mesa in Petrified Forest National Park near Holbrook, Arizona, USA.