Agate House Trail in Petrified Forest National Park

Agate House Trail

This 2-mile roundtrip hike begins at the Rainbow Forest Museum parking area and visits the archeological Agate House structure.

Plan Around Agate House Trail

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Agate House Trail Details

This 2-mile roundtrip hike begins at the Rainbow Forest Museum parking area and visits the historic Agate House. The eight-room pueblo was built of petrified wood and was occupied sometime between 1050 A.D. and 1300 A.D., near what were then agricultural fields and more petrified wood deposits. The size of the building and time that would have gone into building Agate House indicates that it was most likely a year-round residence for one family, and it may have served as a meeting place for the surrounding community. There are few artifacts to be found here, however, which suggests that it was not occupied for long. The first half-mile of the trail is paved and suitable for strollers and wheelchairs; the rest of the trail is composed of a rough surface, but can still be negotiated with assistance. Long Logs and Agate House Trails can be combined for a total of 2.6 miles (4.2 km) round trip.

Difficulty

Low

Distance

2 miles

Estimated time

Region

N/A

Nearby Parks Around Agate House Trail

Compare nearby parks around Agate House Trail when deciding whether to expand the route after this stop.

18.3 mi away

Petrified Forest

National Park · AZ

153.3 mi away

Grand Canyon

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188.5 mi away

Saguaro

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192.5 mi away

Mesa Verde

National Park · CO

234.2 mi away

Bryce Canyon

National Park · UT

240.5 mi away

Zion

National Park · UT

Nearby Points of Interest Around Agate House Trail

Use nearby POIs to quickly expand your options beyond Agate House Trail while the map context is still fresh.

0.3 mi away

Agate House

The Native American Puebloan people who called Petrified Forest National Park home used the park's petrified wood for purposes including as building material for houses.

0.4 mi away

Long Logs Trail

This 1.6-mile loop trail begins at the Rainbow Forest Museum parking area.

0.4 mi away

Jim Camp Wash

The middle Jim Camp Wash beds are made up of of blue, gray, and purple mudstone, and numerous small gray and white sandstone beds.

0.6 mi away

Rainbow Forest Museum

Rainbow Forest Museum near the south entrance of the park offers exhibits of petrified wood, fossils and dioramas of prehistoric animals that lived in the park.

0.6 mi away

Giant Logs Trail

This .4-mile loop trail begins behind Rainbow Forest Museum, where there's a trail guide available.