Canyon de Chelly NP vs Petrified Forest
 

Driving from ABQ to Sedona in mid-August and want to make worthwhile stop(s). Looking at Canyon de Chelly, Hubbell Trading Post (little more out of way) versus Petrified Forest and the Navajo Indian Reservation along RT. 40. Can anyone offer insight? Open to other suggestions. Just want to make it a one day drive since vacationing in Sedona.

You can zip thru the Petrified Forest and see the basics pretty quickly. Hard to justify too much time there though.

Spending the night near Canyon de Chelly (Thunderbird Lodge or Holiday Inn Express are good), especially if you can wedge in enough time to do at least a half-day tour of the canyon, is a better stop-over, I feel. The canyon is pretty special and the history of the Navajo who live there is interesting.

Bill

My vote is for Canyon de Chelly NP to which I long to return.

Petrified Forest is a one-hour stop, if that.

I just returned in May from the Southwest. Do see Canyon de Chelly. Continue on 40 to Winslow where Meter Crater is, fascinating, from there you can go up to the Grand Canyon, marvelous, down to Flagstaff, Sedona, Jerome and Prescott. These are all charming little towns and not that far apart. A lot of Red dirt in Sedona. Prescott has a great antique shopping area and Jerome is an old ghost town that used to be sliding down the hill very interesting.

I would go for CDC. Although, different, if you have been to Mesa Verde, you might skip it. I do think PF is worth seeing, but like others say, you can see it pretty fast. I think even less of the painted desert. I have seen it three times, and it is much better at sunset, and probably would be the same at sunrise. Perhaps you could spend a couple of hours in Petrified Forest and then a day in CDC. PF is super easy access from I40. if timing ws right you could eat a picnic there and see the park and have a meal all at the same time, and really not have cost yourself much time. I think xantera offers some sort of food there, but not sure. I haven't stay at Thunderbird Lodge, but that would be something I would want to do if possible. Metoer Crater is pretty cool and doesn't take much time either. My parents are going to Bandelier next month, so I am anxious to hear how that compares with Mesa Verde, Hoovenweep, and CDC.

Sounds like you basically just want to drive rather than take any hikes. Only way to see the large groups of petrified logs is to walk to them. In Canyon de Chelly you can only drive the park road which has a number of viewpoints which look down into the canyon. Other than that there is only one hike you can take without a Navajo guide-White House Ruin. If you want to drive through the bottom of the canyon you have to go with a guide.

If you like prehistoric rock art there are a couple of places near Sedona you might want to check into. V Bar V Ranch and Palatki Ruins.