Friday, August 29, 2014

Geo 730: August 29, Day 606: Deleted Dike

Photo by Dana Hunter.

This is a photo Dana shot of Aaron Barth and me poking through one of several channels cut through the diorite mass, where dikes of basalt have been preferentially eroded out by floods. During high water, these rocks are entirely submerged, a fact that's difficult to grasp during the dry season when one is more likely to visit. But after the great flood of winter 1996, there were some substantial logs, 2-3 feet in diameter, stranded on the high points of these rocks, which have been since removed by subsequent floods. The erosive power of Quartzville Creek must be formidable during such times, which makes it all the more surprising how little the landscape around the falls has changed in the 30+ years I've been visiting the area.

Photo unaltered. July 9, 2012. FlashEarth Location.

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