Sight · Yellowstone National Park
One ancient redwood, best as a quick add-on near Lost Lake.
Overview
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Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Yellowstone Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Yellowstone National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Yellowstone audio tourRecorded for this place
Petrified Tree“You're approaching the Petrified Tree, a single upright fossil redwood reached by a short uphill walk. Stop if you're curious about fossils, but expect just one trunk behind an iron fence.”
Plays as you drive up to Petrified Tree in the Parkwolf Yellowstone Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“First time driving through a national park. We used the Yellowstone tour on grand loop Road and it’s just like having a tour guide in your car with you.”
Guide
Petrified Tree is a single upright fossil redwood on a grassy slope near the Lost Lake trailhead in Yellowstone's Tower–Roosevelt area. A short, mildly uphill walk brings you to the trunk behind an iron fence. It's a brief natural-history stop, best folded into a Tower–Roosevelt visit or the Lost Lake loop; if you're expecting an expansive fossil forest or a big view, this one may feel slight. The fence keeps you back, so frame the full trunk with some hillside rather than expecting a close-up from the path.
Around 45–50 million years ago, volcanic deposits and mudflows buried trees here quickly, limiting decay. Silica-rich groundwater later filled spaces within the wood's cells, turning the buried redwood to stone. Look for the stacked, blocky grain still outlining the trunk.
The single trunk here gives you an easy look at Yellowstone's fossil past, but Specimen Ridge to the east is a much larger story. It holds the world's largest concentration of petrified trees, along with fossil leaves, conifer needles, and microscopic pollen from plants that no longer grow in the park. Specimen Ridge and this fenced roadside stop are distinct places.
The Lost Lake Trail makes a moderate 2.8-mile loop and passes the Petrified Tree parking lot. If you want more than a few minutes at the tree, combine the stop with the loop; the tree itself is only a short uphill walk from its lot. Road access is seasonal: most Yellowstone roads close to regular vehicles from early November into late April, so check the route before planning an off-season visit.
Wildlife
713 sightingsGrizzly BearMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
743 sightingsWolfMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
5,273 sightingsBisonMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
3,258 sightingsElkMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
397 sightingsMooseMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
1,494 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Yellowstone. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateLost Lake Trail2.8 mi · 1.5 hr · 1.1 mi awayA 2.8-mile loop pairs Lost Lake with sagebrush meadow views.
EasyLost Creek Falls Trail0.5 mi · 30 min · 1.1 mi awayA short creekside climb to a waterfall behind Roosevelt Lodge.
ModerateGarnet Hill Loop Trail8.1 mi · 4.5 hr · 1.2 mi awayA stagecoach road leads into Elk Creek canyon and river views.
ModerateYellowstone River Picnic Area Trail3.7 mi · 2.5 hr · 1.9 mi awayA steep climb opens a view into the Yellowstone Narrows.
ChallengingBuffalo Plateau Trail18.8 mi · 11 hr · 2.3 mi awayCross the river, climb through sagebrush to two wide valleys.
ChallengingCoyote Creek Trail14.3 mi · 8.5 hr · 2.3 mi awayA long meadow climb to a remote northern boundary.
ModerateHellroaring Creek Trail6.2 mi · 4 hr · 2.3 mi awayA bridge and creek confluence reward a steep climb back out.
ChallengingSpecimen Ridge Trail17.7 mi · 11 hr · 2.6 mi away17.7-mile one-way ridge traverse over Amethyst Mountain.
Gas station · 1.1 mi awayTower-Roosevelt Junction Gas StationFuel, ice, and a small store at Tower Junction.
Lodging · 1.1 mi awayRoosevelt Lodge CabinsRustic cabins near Lamar Valley, with a 1920s lodge and porch.
Sight · 1.3 mi awayRoosevelt Corral and Old West Dinner CookoutA covered-wagon steak supper in Pleasant Valley.
Picnic area · 1.9 mi awayYellowstone River Picnic AreaA picnic stop that doubles as a steep start to canyon views.
Sight · 2.5 mi awayCalcite Springs OverlookRiver cliffs, basalt columns, and a hot-spring story in minutes.
Store · 3.1 mi awayTower Fall General StoreIce cream, trail snacks and souvenirs beside the Tower Fall trailhead.
Campground · 3.1 mi awayTower Fall CampgroundA quiet base camp with a short walk to Tower Fall.
Sight · 3.1 mi awayTower Fall Overlook132 feet of falling water framed by the towers that named it.Parkwolf’s Yellowstone ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
