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IATCC - Chequamegon IWLP EarthCache

Hidden : 7/20/2014
Difficulty:
2.5 out of 5
Terrain:
2.5 out of 5

Size: Size:   other (other)

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Geocache Description:

This site is located on an undeveloped section of the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest.   Access to the “trailhead” is via gravel fire roads and may have rough sections.  Parking is alongside the road on Sawyer Avenue.  Pets are allowed, but must be kept on a leash at all times.  Walking from the trailhead to the ice-walled-lake-plain and back to the trailhead is approximately 2 miles.    Map #21.


Mickelson, David M.. GEOLOGY OF THE ICE AGE NATIONAL SCENIC TRAIL.. ©2011 by the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System, Reprinted by permission of the University of Wisconsin Press.

An ice-walled lake plain forms when the glacier acts as a container to hold water dammed in a complex of debris-covered ice.  The lake sediment accumulates with fine-grained sediment carried to the more central, deeper parts of the lake.  Course sediment of sand and gravel accumulated around the edge of the lake as it slides off the surrounding ice.  The lake sediment stands as a relatively flat-topped hill that is higher than the surrounding area when the ice walls containing the lake have completely melted away.

Many ice-walled lake plains have a dish-shaped surface with the course material deposited near the ice wall forming a rim ridge around the lake plain.  They are commonly roughly circular areas of a mile or more across.

IATCC is the cache designation to highlight a series of EarthCaches along the Ice Age National Scenic Trail grouped into a special category called "ColdCache."

The Ice Age Trail is one of eleven National Scenic Trails designated by the National Park Service.  This unique trail is entirely within the state of Wisconsin and follows along the terminal moraine of the most recent glacier which retreated about 10,000 years ago.  

This project is supported by the Ice Age Trail Alliance (IATA).  The goal is to bring more visitors to the trail and promote public awareness, appreciation, and understanding of Wisconsin’s glacial landscape. 

The IATA has created an awards program to encourage visits to the trail and ColdCache sites.  This awards program is separate from, and in addition to, any other Geo- or EarthCache awards program.

A current list of approved ColdCache sites can be found on the “IATCC Bookmark List”.  More information on the Ice Age Trail Atlas, the Companion Guide, the ColdCache Project and Awards Program can be found on the “ColdCache Webpage”  

 

A ColdCache Placement Authorization Form has been submitted to Tim Vetter of the Chequamegon National Forest.   Please print out a paper copy of the notification form, fill in all required information, then submit it to the land manager. The DNR Notification form and land manager information can be obtained at: www.wi-geocaching.com/hiding

Resources

Geology of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail; by David M. Mickelson, Louis J. Mahler Jr., and Susan L. Simpson

Roadside Geology of Wisconsin; by Robert H. Dott, Jr and John W. Attig Wikipedia

To claim this find:

1.  Considering that some ice-walled-lake-plains are a mile or more across, would you describe this one as small, medium, or large?

2.  How much of an elevation change is there from the Ice Age Trail to the top of the ice-walled-lake-plain?

3.  Does this ice-walled-lake-plain have a rim at the location you climbed up to it?

4.  How might an ice-walled-lake-plain be used by native populations or settlers?

Additional Hints (No hints available.)