First Impressions

First Impressions. Petrified Forest.

Nowhere else has so large and beautiful and in every way wonderful [a] section of the ancient…forests been discovered, and, after it is cared for by the Nation and made easily accessible, it will, I am sure, become one of the most attractive and famous places in all our Western Wonderland. , , John Muir , September 12, 1906

, Jasper Forest contains one of the largest accumulations of petrified wood in the world. Originally called the “First Forest,” this site was the first petrified wood site available to railroad travelers in the early 1900s. Looking down you can see pieces of logs that were once encased in the sandstone ledge at your feet. A visitor in 1917 wrote, "It was 6 miles to Forest #1. It was well worth the trip tho [sic] for it is a wonderful sight…The ground was covered with broken pieces…of the high and bright colored stuff.” Although Jasper Forest is no longer a visitor’s first stop, you can still behold the same impressive sights, wonder at the vast deposits of colorful wood, and retrace the steps of those bygone travelers. What is your impression of this place?,

I hardly dare write the words, but truthfulness compels me to say that in the Petrified Forest, the Grand Canyon, on the score of interest, has a rival. Horace E. Wood Furness, 1906

, [Captions:] , In 1883, photographer Ben Wittick extensively photographed petrified wood deposits in this area. Amazingly, more than 130 years later the landscape remains almost completely unaltered., A 1905 photograph of the great naturalist John Muir and party (above) superimposed over the same view today shows little has changed in over 100 years., Eagle Rock (right, 1930s), first described by John Muir, was a prominent sandstone pinnacle in the Jasper Forest area. A touring road brought visitors into the valley, circling the formation. The pinnacle collapsed in 1940 due to erosion, but you can still walk along the traces of the old road where the pinnacle once stood.