Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park

Parks Directory of the United States / State Parks / Washington

Location:29 miles east of Ellensburg, on the Columbia River.
Facilities:50 utility campsites, picnic sites, shoreline, boat launch, museum, gift shop, interpretive center, hiking trails.
Activities:Camping, boating, fishing, swimming, water-skiing, hiking.
Special Features:Park was set aside as a historic preserve when remains of a fossil forest were unearthed during construction in the 1930s. Petrified wood from many different trees is common, but specimens of petrified Ginkgo are rare. Park is a National Natural Landmark, and is regarded as one of the most unusual fossil forests in the world.
Address:PO Box 1203
Vantage, WA 98950
Phone:509-856-2700
Web: www.parks.wa.gov/alpha.asp
Size: 7,470 acres.

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References in periodicals archive

Their elegant leaves eventually fossilized in places like Washington's Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park. Today only one species survives--Ginkgo biloba, or maidenhair tree--the sole representative of its genus, family, and order.

Autumn gold: brighten your garden with shimmery yellow Ginkgo trees

But before you cross the river, turn off at Vantage and go north on the access road to Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park. In this 7,469-acre park, you'll see the trunks of ginkgo trees that grew in the area 10 million years ago.

Day-tripping from Seattle to Spokane

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