Prairie Pothole Earthcache EarthCache
Prairie Pothole Earthcache
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Upon arrival at the posted coordinates, you'll find a great view of a local area prairie pothole. It's one of only three accessible to the public in the Houston area. Parking is nearby. The hours of the park are from 6am - 11pm.
A pothole is simply a depression holding freshwater. If the depression is large, with a border that is not clearly defined, it is common to instead describe the area as a marsh. Prairie potholes and marshes occur on the prairie, which extends from just west of Beaumont to the Rio Grande, so quite an extensive region. It is thought that 30% of the prairies in this area were initially wetlands, as potholes or marshes, before humans leveled them out for agriculture or subdivision development. They are currently a dwindling resource used as a rest stop by migratory birds and provide multiple habitat types within a small area. Additionally, wetlands serve to absorb floodwaters and filter pollutants.
Prairie potholes are also common across other areas of the country. The Dakotas and parts of Canada are known as the Prairie Pothole Region containing shallow wetlands left behind 10,000 years ago as the result of glacier activity. The creation of the potholes in the Houston area wasn't quite so glamorous. This prairie pothole resides on the Beaumont Geological Formation, which was laid down a couple million years ago when this part of North America rose up out of the Gulf. The formation of wetlands in this region is complex and somewhat unique to each pothole or marsh, usually thought to originate when an ancient river or bayou was modified by wind over time about 15,000 to 30,000 years ago. This chance modification of the land is unrepeatable and an irreplaceable geological legacy.
To log this Earthcache, become a GPSr Geologist!
Use the power of your GPSr to estimate the area of this pothole in square feet by walking around the perimeter trail. The entrance is just to the right of the boardwalk ramp and it goes all the way around. Please be sure to stay on the trail. Note that the trail, itself, is the high water mark (and sometimes underwater) for the pothole in the wettest seasons. Complete the following steps to estimate your area.
1. The prairie pothole is approximately circular, so the distance you walk is a good estimate of the circumference. Measure this circumference by taking a reading from your GPSr odometer before starting the trail and again when you finish the circuit, being sure to return to where you started. The difference between the two readings is the Circumference used in the next step. You may have to reset your odometer so that hundredths are displayed (or change the units to something shorter than a mile).
2. Convert the circumference into an area using the following formula: Area = Circumference squared divided by 12.56.
3. You are welcome to log your find, but MUST email your area estimate to my geocaching email, do not post it here! If I do not receive this email within a week of your log, I WILL DELETE your find.
Bonus: For an extra smiley, calculate the area an additional way. Mark a waypoint at the trail entrance and then set the GPSr to "goto" that waypoint. Monitor the distance to the waypoint as you walk the trail. The maximum value that this distance gets up to is the diameter of the pothole. Use standard mathematical formulas to convert the diameter into an area.
If you'd like to learn more about the geology in this area, check out the following references:
Pine Brook Wetlands
Texas Coastal Wetlands
Wikipaedia: Prairie Pothole Region
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