There are many more flowing wells in the area, including a smaller one located on the hill directly behind this one. An observant eye will find approximately a half-dozen others between Alanson and Conway on Highway 31. Some of these are on private property so please respect them as such.
In artesian wells, water rises within the well to a point above the top of the aquifer. If the water also rises above the ground surface, the well is called a “flowing well,” or “flowing artesian well.” All flowing wells are artesian, but not all artesian wells are flowing wells. These flowing artesian wells have intrigued mankind for centuries.
Flowing artesian wells are created when the pressure in a confined aquifer (water-
bearing geologic formation) forces ground water above the ground surface so that the well will flow without a pump. This water is forced up through either man-made holes or natural fissures (cracks).
An aquifer is a layer of permeable material in which water can easily move such as unconsolidated sand, gravel, clay or silt. It can also be composed of soft rock like fractured limestone or sandstone that absorbs water from an inlet path. Large solution openings that are produced when part of the rock is dissolved by ground water are common in carbonate rocks. Carbonate rocks are a class of sedimentary rocks composed primarily of carbonate minerals. The two major types are limestone and dolomite.
These openings store and transmit large quantities of water. Porous stone is crushed between impermeable rocks or clay. This keeps the pressure high, so when the water finds a hole, it overcomes gravity and is forced up and out.
The principal water-yielding aquifers of North America can be grouped into five types: unconsolidated and semi-consolidated sand and gravel aquifers, sandstone aquifers,
carbonate-rock aquifers, aquifers in interbedded sandstone and carbonate rocks, and aquifers in igneous and metamorphic rocks.
This well and others in the area are produced from a Carbonate-Rock aquifer (sometimes referred to as a Silurian-Devonian aquifer). The average thickness of the carbonate rocks that compose most of the Silurian-Devonian aquifer is about 300 to 400 feet; the aquifer also contains some sandstone, shale, and evaporite beds (rock and mineral deposits left over from evaporation process when Michigan was covered by sea water). Water movement is primarily through secondary openings, such as joints, fractures, and bedding-plane openings, many of which have been enlarged by dissolution (the dissolving action of these underground rocks). Under certain conditions this dissolution process is responsible for the formation of sinkholes and caves known as karst features.
Statistics/Trivia:
If all of the flowing wells drilled in Michigan in 2001 were allowed to discharge to the surface without any volume reduction, about 28 million gallons of ground water would be released from artesian aquifers each day. From June 2001 through June 2002, about 450 flowing wells were drilled in Michigan (about 3 percent of the new water wells drilled). The average flow rate from the newly drilled wells, before flow control devices were installed, was 42 gallons per minute (gpm). Forty of the wells had flow rates of 100 gpm or more. A well drilled in Ogemaw County in December 2001, produced a geyser of water 12 feet above the top of the 4-inch casing. The well drilling contractor reported the flow rate to be 1,000 gpm.
"The ideal bottled water should be rich in calcium & magnesium & have a low sodium content." The American Journal of Medicine, Vol. 105, No. 2, pg. 125-130. 1998.
The water in Alanson has some remarkable qualities that are noteworthy. True Artesian Bottling Company trueartesian.com shared the results of their research on the water of Alanson Michigan.
True Artesian tests of the artesian water in Alanson show the following mineral content:
Calcium: 41.6 mg/l
Magnesium: 16 mg/l
Sodium: 3.6 mg/l
Potassium: 0.7 mg/l
pH: 7.8
Fluoride: 0.2 mg/l
Silica: 11.4 mg/l
This flowing artesian well has been a very popular spot for many years. Due to its location and easy accessibility people often stop by to fill their bottles and jugs with this excellent water.
NOTE: To claim a find, e-mail us answers to any two of the following four questions. To email, click on our name below the cache title at the top of the page, then select 'Send Message'.
1). In your best estimate, what is the GPM flow rate of this well? (This can be determined by filling a one-gallon jug/bucket, while timing how many seconds it takes to fill. Then divide 60 by the number of seconds it took to fill 1 gallon to get your Gallons Per Minute {GPM} rate)
2). What elevation does your GPSr show at these coordinates?
3). On the stone base of the well is a plaque. The last line of the plaque gives the water temperature. What is that temperature?
4). There is a large green sign south of the well that reads: ALANSON VILLAGE LIMIT. How far is that sign from the well? Go to that sign. While standing there, perform a "go to" function to the well (the Earthcache coordinates) on your GPSr, this will give you the distance.
6/16/08 - Congratulations to Noah's Peeps on their FTF!