How To Get There

Bruneau Woodpile area as seen from Highway 51

Our Rock Picks Report

  The area known as the Bruneau Woodpile is quite easy to find and the petrified wood found there is just as easily found.  Smaller pieces can be found all over the ground and larger pieces can be found if you don't mind working for them.  The larger pieces are found by digging in and below the gray ash layer at a depth of about 4 feet.  Even though the layer is made of ash, it is nearly rock hard and takes a bit of work to find any good wood.  The petrified wood found here is approximately 14,000 years old and was originally growing on the shores of ancient Lake Bonneville.  During this trip, we didn't have a lot of time to spend digging so we focused on collecting surface wood.  Collecting in this location is not limited to the "woodpile" area since good but smaller pieces can be found in many areas along this stretch of Highway 51 wherever the white volcanic tuff is seen. 

Additional Photos

The photo above shows an exposed area of volcanic tuff layers containing petrified wood that has been previously dug.

Above and below are photos of the petrified wood "in situ"  that is quite plentiful on the surface in this area.  Though found all over this area, the woodpile specimens showed much more character in the graining and a wider range of color.

Here is shown an example of several pieces of wood found that have been tumbled and polished.  Below, you will see several other samples of the Bruneau Petrified wood that I have tumbled.