Where to Find Petrified Wood in Nevada

Nevada has 8 mapped collecting spots that report petrified wood, spread across 7 counties. The largest share sits in Humboldt County County with 2 spots. 8 of the spots are on land mapped as publicly accessible.

Spot list checked against source data on April 1, 2026.

Standout petrified wood spots in Nevada

Hand-picked from the full list below, with the reason each one earns a trip.

Virgin Valley
Humboldt County County
Virgin Valley is the United States' classic black-opal district, with USGS and Mindat both placing the opal field near the Oregon line in the Sheldon refuge country. Its strongest geologic feature is opal replacing mid-Miocene wood, including petrified wood and rare plant material, although most precious-opal ground is claimed and any collecting has to respect mining and refuge restrictions.
San Antonio Mountains
Nye County County
The San Antonio Mountains add central Nevada range-scale diversity, with Mindat documenting a large Nye County assemblage that includes quartz, chalcedony, opal, fluorite, rhodochrosite, scheelite, sulfides, and several copper minerals. The dataset's jade, petrified wood, and wonderstone entry makes the area a lapidary contrast to nearby Tonopah and Goldfield metal districts, provided collecting stays on open public ground.
Black Rock Desert
Pershing County County
Black Rock Desert belongs on the list because the collecting context is an enormous BLM-managed volcanic and basin landscape rather than a single small pit. Local rockhounding guidance for Black Rock-High Rock country highlights minerals, common fossils, and petrified wood rules, while BLM documents the area's national conservation status and broad public-land recreation framework.

Best counties for petrified wood in Nevada

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 Nevada

Sorted by county. Coordinates open in Google Maps.

Spot	County	Minerals	Coordinates	Access
Lahontan ReservoirKaren Road	Churchill County	Agate Chalcedony Jasper Petrified Wood	39.4476, -119.0493	Public
Goose CreekGoose Creek Road	Elko County	Petrified Wood	41.9481, -114.0744	Public
Veterans Memorial HighwayVeterans Memorial Highway	Esmeralda County	Agate Petrified Wood Chalcedony	38.0251, -117.7848	Public
Golconda (petrified area)Eden Valley Road	Humboldt County	Chalcedony Petrified Wood	40.9787, -117.4834	Public
Virgin Valley	Humboldt County	Agate Chalcedony Chert Flint Jasper Opal Silicified Lignite Opalized Wood +1 more	41.8302, -119.0002	Public
Walker Lake	Mineral County	Agate Chalcedony Fossils Petrified Wood Turquoise	38.7849, -118.7425	Public
San Antonio Mountains	Nye County	Jade Petrified Wood Wonderstone	38.2519, -117.1974	Public
Black Rock Desert	Pershing County	Opalized Wood Petrified Wood Agate Fire Opal Geode Gypsum Obsidian Tourmaline +4 more	40.8859, -119.0567	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 Nevada FAQ

Where can you find petrified wood in Nevada?+

The mapped spots concentrate in Humboldt County County, Churchill County County, and Elko County County. Every spot on this page appears on the map above with coordinates and access notes.

How many petrified wood spots are mapped in Nevada?+

8 spots across 7 counties. The RockHoundR app keeps the same spots on an offline map with public land overlays, geology layers, and your saved finds.

Is it legal to collect petrified wood in Nevada?+

Hand collecting of common rocks and minerals in small amounts for personal use is generally allowed on BLM and U.S. Forest Service land, with limits set by the local field office. National parks, most state parks, and tribal land are closed to collecting. 8 of the 8 mapped spots here sit on land marked public. Always confirm current rules with the managing agency before you dig.

Where else to find petrified wood

More minerals to hunt in Nevada

Hunt petrified wood in Nevada 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.