AZ (10-2001, 11-2001)

	Oops! The refridgerator in the RV was set a little too cold and this can of A&W root beer exploded.
	The Painted Desert in the Petrified Forest National Park. The desert is quite large and runs in an arc from the Grand Canyon down to the Petrified Forest. The colors are striking!
	Blue Mesa area of the Petrified Forest. Another colorful, beautiful area of this desert landscape.
	And of course there's a lot of petrified wood in the Petrified Forest. The largest concentration is in an area called the Long Logs Trail. Petrified wood was created when ancient trees were buried under silt in river bottoms. Slowly, over time minerals replaced the wood cell by cell. What is left is an exact replica of the tree except it's made out of stone now. Many of the minerals contained compounds that cause the stone to be different colors as in this piece.
	Another colorful example of petrified wood. The petrified wood is protected in the park. It's a $275 fine if they catch you removing ANYTHING from the park, even small chips of petrified wood. Still they estimate that about a ton of petrified wood is removed every month.
	Here's what a whole petrified tree looks like. How did the pieces become broken like this? Over time earth tremors and movement broke the original solid stone into these pieces.
	Every detail of the original tree is preserved as can be seen by these knots. You'd swear they were real trees until you touch them and feel stone!
	Ross "standin' on the corner in Winslow Arizona." The verse made famous by the Eagles' song "Take it Easy" is now a tourist attraction in Winslow. Sort of fits in on this stretch of the old Route 66.
	Karen "standin' on the corner in Winslow Arizona." Even the cowgirls get their chance.
	The corner in Winslow Arizona is covered with bricks from the Standin' On The Corner Foundation. You can have a 4" X 8" brick put down for a donation of $50, an 8" X 8" for $100, or a 12" X 12" for $250. And all costs are tax deductible. This one was one of the better brick messages we saw.
	Ross and Karen at Meteor Crater in Arizona near Winslow. The crater was formed when a meteor about 150 feet across hit the spot some 50,000 years ago. The crater is 550 feet deep, 4000 feet across, and is 2.4 miles in circumference. It's certainly one BIG hole in the ground! Hollywood has used the crater in several movies the most notable being "Star Man" starring Jeff Bridges and Karen Allen.