Where to Find Petrified Wood in Washington
Washington petrified wood is the state's official gem. Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park in Kittitas County preserves the type locality of a Miocene-age forest buried by Columbia River Basalt flows, with logs and stumps permineralized by silica and chalcedony. The park itself is closed to collecting, but the surrounding Saddle Mountain, Yakima Canyon, and Frenchman Hills areas (much of it BLM and DNR ground) yield collectable petrified wood. The colors run yellow, red, brown, and rare blue, and the wood often shows preserved cell structure under cut surfaces. Most pieces are float weathered out of basalt slope wash.
Spot list checked against source data on April 1, 2026.
Map of 12 petrified wood collecting spots in Washington
Standout petrified wood spots in Washington
Hand-picked from the full list below, with the reason each one earns a trip.
Columbia River
Kittitas County County
The Saddle Mountains expose a petrified forest preserved between Wanapum Basalt flows roughly 14 to 15 million years old, and the area is one of the few places where collectors can legally gather Washington's state gem on public land. On BLM-managed ground near Beverly, surface collection of petrified and opalized wood is allowed under federal personal-use rules of 25 pounds plus one piece per day. Agate, jasper, and chalcedony turn up alongside the wood.
Pe Ell
Lewis County County
The Washington Geological Survey's gemstone report records that hundreds of pounds of agate have been taken between Adna and Pe Ell, in the heart of Lewis County's carnelian-agate country. Carnelian, the local red-orange chalcedony, occurs with agate, jasper, and dark petrified wood in the stream gravels. Most of the surrounding Willapa Hills is gated private timberland.
Best counties for petrified wood in Washington
Ranked by the number of mapped petrified wood spots. County links open the full rockhounding page for that county.
Every petrified wood spot we track in Washington
Sorted by county. Coordinates open in Google Maps.
| Spot | County | Minerals | Coordinates | Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rattlesnake Mt. | Benton County | 46.3957, -119.6131 | Public | |
| Columbia RiverBeverly Railroad Bridge | Kittitas County | 46.8349, -119.9497 | Public | |
| Petrified Forest State ParkRecreation Drive | Kittitas County | 46.9602, -119.9884 | Public | |
| Klickitat RiverState Route 142 | Klickitat County | 45.7532, -121.2085 | Public | |
| LyleHenderson Road | Klickitat County | 45.6954, -121.2423 | Public | |
| CentraliaEast Carson Street | Lewis County | 46.7461, -122.9415 | Public | |
| DotyDoty Street | Lewis County | 46.6425, -123.2800 | Public | |
| Lucas CreekSenn Road | Lewis County | 46.6389, -122.7723 | Public | |
| McCoy Farm near AdnaCeres Hill Road | Lewis County | 46.6171, -123.1414 | Public | |
| Pe EllJones Road | Lewis County | 46.5737, -123.3035 | Public | |
| Cairn Hope Peak | Yakima County | 46.5661, -119.9769 | Public | |
| Mabton | Yakima County | 46.1631, -119.9807 | Public |
Before you go
Read the petrified wood identification guide so you know what a keeper looks like in the field: Petrified Wood in the encyclopedia.
Petrified Wood in Washington FAQ
Where can you find petrified wood in Washington?+
How many petrified wood spots are mapped in Washington?+
Is it legal to collect petrified wood in Washington?+
Where else to find petrified wood
More minerals to hunt in Washington
Hunt petrified wood in Washington with the map in your pocket
RockHoundR puts these spots on an offline map with BLM and Forest Service overlays, geology layers, and a log for your finds.
