Blue Forest Petrified Wood

Desert, sagebrush, rattlesnakes, antelope, these are things that come to my mind when I think Wyoming, but did you know that about 50 million years ago there was a tropical lake in southwest Wyoming? That’s right, apparently there used to be all sorts of palm trees and turtles throughout the area. The world is amazing and nature does some amazing things. Including petrifying wood. Much of the wood that surrounded the area became covered with thick algae. The algae preserved the wood over the years, millions of years, and as spaces were created as the wood dried up or from other types of defects in the wood (birds pecking, wormholes, etc.), water leached minerals that solidified into the gaps of the wood and the gaps between the algae and the wood. This process has created some amazing pieces that are candy to my eyeballs! The areas minerals left behind a beautiful blue deposit on many of the pieces. One should not expect to dig a hole and find an algae cast that has preserved wood into a glorious state in every cast, as I honestly think some of the wood can come out ugly, but there are plenty of amazing pieces and with time and effort, you may just turn up an amazing blue log. You may also be surprised to find a piece that looks ugly at first, but then when cleaned up, becomes a treasure well earned.

So now you are planning an adventure to the Blue Forest of Wyoming. Awesome, that’s what I like to hear! What should you bring and what should you expect? Those are always questions that come to my mind when planning a new adventure. Well, you will definitely want to bring water and depending on the time year, maybe even a cooler or water container that can store ice for a long period of time. Spring to fall is typically very hot and dry, though occasional flash flooding can occur in the area. Here are suggestions of some items I would take specifically for the area (As an Amazon Associate I earn small commissions from qualifying purchases, click on the links for recommended products):

Water- don’t forget water, drink plenty, clean yourself up, clean up the beauty of the wood

Shovel– digging + patience = best finds

Pick Axe– nothing better to get through the ash that can be found just under the surface, and also help get a little deeper when needed to break up the ground before shoveling again

Rock Hammer– helps chip out algae beds, pounds the chisel, etc.

Landscaping probe– this can be very difficult to use in some areas, especially when the ground is hot and dry

Brush/Handbroom– this will help you clear off any cast to help you determine what you are looking at and will help you decide where to excavate

Water- don’t get dehydrated

Bucket- carry your tools or pieces of wood while moving around

Spray bottle– I love to spray down pieces to get the dirt of off them to see the glorious wood that can sometimes sing praises of glory to your eyes

Hand Spade– because sometimes a full size shovel is just too much or too rough

Newspaper- this can be used to wrap your best finds and help prevent them from breaking during transport

Bin/box- store your prized pieces in here for your way home

Prybar– this will give you leverage to break apart algae or lift up stubborn pieces of petrified wood

Masonry chisel– this will help break apart algae casts when the going gets rough

3lb Drilling Hammer (mini sledge hammer)– this help to pound down your probe and stay in control of the probe and hammer

More water- yes, it’s that important

Bug repellant– if the wind isn’t blowing and the days are warming up, expect to have these little flying friends seeking your blood…

Goggles– this can save your eyes on those windy days. 

Neck Gaiter– this can be used a few ways. It can help block the sand on a windy day around your neck and you can cover your mouth and nose with it to prevent the sand getting in your mouth. It does help a little if you don’t like flies crawling around your neck too.

Gloves– I have used nice durable leather gloves to only have them cut up by the end of the day. I would expect your gloves to be worn out after a day or two of digging when you get to some of the algae beds and start removing the algae rocks. The petrified algae, which looks and feels like a rock, can be sharp so it will take a toll on your gloves. I now take a couple pairs of cheaper gloves just in case.

I feel that is about what my list of items to take contains and I usually use all of these items when I am digging my own holes. That leads us to the steps to finding the wood. One can come to the area and expect to find some cool pieces on the surface from other tailings left behind. I have founds full rounds about 4″ wide (not including the algae casing) that were very nice, but I feel this is the exception to the area. You will find blue chalcedony from pieces that were chipped off or left behind, half pieces, quarter pieces, and chipping in all types of sizes. Many of which can be very cool pieces, but I would not expect to find large full rounds without digging, and even when digging, it will usually take a few holes/casings to find some of the best pieces. There really isn’t a scientific method to finding a place to dig, I feel it is mostly luck. I try and find an area that appears less disturbed and start digging a hole about a two to three foot box. If I don’t hit anything, then I fill in the hole and move on to my next hole. The word is about one out of three holes will allow you to find a casing, but this is definitely not always the case. To clarify, a casing or bed of algae is what you are initially looking for when digging. This is different than the ash that you may dig into. The ash can be found within a foot or two of the surface and will be very hard to dig into and will typically look like thin flat slate, hence, this is when I start using my pick axe. The ash is usually in thin layers and can be broken into with a shovel, but I find a pick axe can be quicker in getting through this layer. The digging is not fun for me, but once I find a casing, it starts to get really exciting and the digging doesn’t feel so bad. You will identify the casing by hitting something hard, rock hard. I try to chase the casing by uncovering the rest of the casing so it is exposed. I also brush off the top of the casing to see if I can find any wood that has been exposed. You will then need to work on breaking up the algae layer, which varies in thickness on every piece. Not every algae casing contains wood either, although I feel most have at least a little wood and some casings can have wood that can be very hard to recognize, but with time and patience, you will begin to see what you are looking for when you find it. I suggest going slow when you find the casing as sometimes the petrified wood will be covered with just a thin layer of weather rind. It won’t look like wood from looking at the top of it, but then as you dig around the casing and are able to find the natural breaks along the casing, you may see the wood in the center of the casing or within the casing. If you rush the process, especially as a beginner, you are likely to miss things and it may be too late to preserve or fix a nice piece. Some pieces will come out pretty solid and you will be able to use the prybar to lift them out and other pieces will crumble after hours of digging. Be prepared for heartbreak, but know if you get tired or have little time, you can still find some cool pieces on the surface. It’s a feeling of accomplishment to uncover a nice piece of wood that has not seen light for millions of years, and each piece is unique. If you are planning on digging your own hole, I would expect it to take most of the day so don’t plan on going out there for half a day and have time to dig out a casting. Every once in a while someone will get lucky and run into pieces that someone didn’t have time to get out and most of the work has been done for you, but again, this is a rare exception and can take some time to find the right hole when walking around. There are definitely natural treasures to be found in this area and it’s fun to think of a time when the area was covered by a gigantic lake with gar swimming around. It’s an unreal experience.

I would expect there to be someone else out looking within a couple miles of wherever you are, but be prepared to be alone. There are a lot of oil rigs out there and they do get checked on, but always be prepared for the worst. It can get very windy, which helps with the heat and the bugs, but make sure you have sunscreen and bug repellant with you too. It’s get very annoying to have the little bugs biting and dust in your face and eyes if you are not prepared with spray or goggles. Trust me, I’ve forgotten both and it slows things down. Also be aware that Wyoming dirt roads can be like semi thawed ice cream when it rains, or where it’s wet. You can slide off places or get stuck easily so watch the weather and be aware of the time of year you are out there. I feel that most people go to the Blue Forest for a day trip, but I would recommend, if you have the time, to make it an overnighter. The skies can be spectacular and the stars brilliant. Scattered thunderstorms are amazing to watch from here and you can see for miles in most directions. Camping here feels alone and at times you can hear coyotes in the distance. There is a lot to discover out here. You will find thousands, not kidding, thousands of holes that people have dug up over the decades. As of the time of this writing, you are required to fill in your holes after digging and you are limited to 25lbs of petrified wood plus one piece per day. Please check current regulations before heading out. Desert wildlife is abundant in these parts. The Green River is about 10 miles away so if fishing is your thing and you need a break, go cool off by the river. Fontanelle Reservoir is nearby too, so if you take the family, perhaps you should take a kayak or canoe too, or maybe leave that for another adventure.