Hello,
I joined this forum to see what I found today in Elizabeth, CO. I was walking around a job site today and found what I think is petrified wood. The other guys there said I was crazy, so I kept walking around and found a rather symmetrical rock. This may be common but I thought it was neat.
The other rocks seemed to have some sort of crystallization, could I cut these open or just a common rock to the wonderful rocky mountains?

Hey Jay welcome to the forum! I'm not a rockhound but those are awesome finds! Just wanted to welcone you!

Hi Jay,
Welcome to the forum!

The top photos look like the petrified wood I've found from Calhan north to Franktown and Elizabeth. I've read that in the past, kids used to set up tables and sell pieces of petrified wood along Elbert Hwy and Hwy 24.

Interesting - a couple of years ago I found a perfectly round piece of granite, around 3" dia, on Pikes Peak which looks like your 4th/5th photos. I took it to a rock shop in the Springs and asked the same question about cutting it. I was advised that it was just a tumbled piece of Pikes Peak granite and cutting it would be a waste of time. Never was sure whether to completely believe that... (makes a nice paperweight, though.)

Cheers!
RhodoRose

Hello, and welcome to the forums! The first piece does indeed look like petrified wood, but I would take it to a rock shop to be sure. The others look like tumbled granite just as RhodoRose says. Nice finds!

Welcome to the forums Jay!
The first rock looks like it its petrified wood that has been replaced with Chalcedony (a form of Quartz). It has very beautiful color!
The second rock looks like some common river rock here in Denver. I want to say Dolomite but I'm not sure if that's correct.
#3 and #4 appear to be Quartz with Pink Feldspar.
The last rock appears to be Quartz.
Some of those rocks with crystals you mentioned may lend more clues to the types of rock you are finding.
Nice Finds!

thanks everyone,
when I tap what looks like petrified wood, it sounds like porcelain or glass. If it is petrified wood, how old could something like that be?
How is petrified wood made?
I knew the round rock was just a rock, but I have never seen one so symmetrically round. I wish i had a way to measure it.
What kind of blade would I need to cut the other two in half or just a waste of time?

Petrified wood is made by other minerals slowly moving in and replacing the organic tissue as it decays over a long time. There is not likely any actual wood left in that piece. The other minerals take on the shape and even the grain of the wood (seen in picture #3) In this case it appears that a form of Quartz called Chalcedony has replaced the organic tissue and has very glass like properties.
As far as cutting the rocks you are likely to see more of whats outside. But if you decide you want to check I recommend finding a rock shop with the proper saw that is willing to do it. I do not recommend trying to cut these hard stones yourself without a proper saw which can be quite pricey especially the larger the pieces you want to cut.
It may be hard to tell the age of the petrified wood without some in depth research but I would wager it is in the 100's of millions of years old range.
The Granite that I am finding crystals in is over a billion years old!

That petrified wood looks really neat! Nice