Deception Pass Earthcache

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N/S ? ??.??? W/E ??? ??.???  [] In Washington, United States

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Located in Deception Pass State Park—Washington State’s most popular state park receiving over two million visitors per year.

History
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In 1792, a British expedition to the Pacific Northwest led by Joseph Whidbey sailed out into our little corner of the world. During their voyage of discovery, they sailed through a narrow waterway in the northern region of the Puget Sound. This area, which was originally chartered by Spanish explorers in 1790, was thought to only be a narrow bay. Further exploration by the British concluded the narrow channel was actually a strait between the mainland and Whidbey Island (which was named after Joseph Whidbey). This misconception resulted in the naming of the passage as “Deception Pass”. Today, we can still see what these European explorers saw when they first laid eyes on this dramatic landscape--rugged cliffs, old-growth forests, and beguiling bluish-green waters.


Formation
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Now imagine yourself standing here 12,000 years ago during the last major ice age. In this particular area, glacial ice was nearly a mile thick and extended as far south as where Olympia is today. Known as the Vashon Ice Sheet, this glacier moved from the north into lower latitudes and helped shape the landscape of the entire Puget Sound region. As the ice sheet moved over what is now Deception Pass, it carved out a deep groove (wedge) along a fault line—a fracture in the rock—that runs through the pass. This area of weakness in the rock is why the wedge is located here. As the climate began to get warmer and the ice receded northward, the wedge became exposed, filled in with water, and became the waterway that we see today.


Tidal Currents
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Although Deception Pass may be famous for its natural beauty, it is also well known for its powerful and sometimes deadly currents. Capable of reaching speeds between 8-12 knots, the tidal current that runs through the pass forces nearly two million gallons of water flow through the pass per second. That’s more than 50 times the average flow of all the rivers emptying into Puget Sound. These torrents are created by the changes in tidal flow through the narrow channel. Gravitational attraction from the sun and moon are what cause a rising tide (flood tide = landward) and a falling tide (ebb tide = seaward). The transition between flood and ebb tide is known as slack tide. It is during this time that there is no tidal current and the waters are relatively calm. With two flood tides and two ebb tides throughout the day, the pass experiences four slack tides every 24 tidal hours. There are three tidal patterns which involve daily ebb and flood tides. These patterns vary depending on location, each occurring during a 24-hour period.

• A diurnal pattern consists of one flood tide and one ebb tide.
• A semidiurnal pattern consists of two flood tides and two ebb tides, with each high and low tide reaching about the same height as each other.
• The type of pattern that Deception Pass undergoes is known as a semidiurnal mixed tide, in which the high tides regularly reach different heights and the low tides drop regularly to different levels.

• Sending Answers via E-Mail
  1. For the first part of logging this EarthCache, the posted coordinates will bring you to a kiosk in the parking lot near the bridge (Whidbey Island side). How deep is the pass in fathoms?
     
  2. Now, walk out onto the bridge and estimate how wide in feet the channel is from Whidbey Island to Fidalgo Island.
     

• Post in Your Log
  3. A picture of you or your group anywhere on the bridge.
     
  4. Observe the current flowing nearly 200 feet below where you are standing. Is the tide a flood, ebb, or slack tide? Post your answer and the time of day you made this estimate.

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deception_Pass
   
2. http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=20020729&slug=deception29m
3. http://www.parks.wa.gov/parkpage.asp?selectedpark=deception+pass
4. http://www.marinemet.com/marinemet_html/wwr249.gif
5. An Introduction to the World's Ocean's by Keith A. Syerdrup & Virginia Armbrust

The geocache may be placed on Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission managed property only by written permission from the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission. The following items shall not be placed in the geocache: Food items; illegal substances; medications; personal hygiene products, pornographic materials; inappropriate, offensive, or hazardous materials or weapons of any type. Log books are required for each cache and are to be provided by the owner of the cache. It is the visitor’s responsibility to orient themselves with policies and rules pertaining to State Parks areas. Report any incident, problem, or violation to State Parks staff.

Additional Hints ( Decrypt ) 

Decryption Key
A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z
(letter above equals below,
and vice versa)

Fgnegf jvgu n "O" raqf jvgu "evqtr". :) Vg'f ovt naq terra! (Decrypted Hints)

Find...

• ...other caches hidden or found by this user
• ...hotels near Anacortes

Logged Visits ( 207 total. Visit the Gallery (216 images) )

206

1

Cache Logs

October 31 by tite lines (2856 found) The last time we were here it was so foggy you couldn't see the water below. This time the wind was blowing so hard it was difficult to stay on the walkway. This is an amazing view from the bridge we were so happy to have clear skies, I don't think we would ever tire from coming here. TFTEC!! We were there around 10:00am and believe the tide was a flood. Other answers will be sent to owner. [view this log] Windy day in Deception Pass

October 31 by 2Lashes (2695 found) We have been on this bridge numerous times but this had to be the windiest ever, literally scary! We would say it was flood tide at 10:00 am., other answers sent via e-mail. Thanks for the EC in such a scenic and special place. :-) :-) [view this log] Deception Pass 10-31-09

October 24 by AGST (541 found) Out for the day with glynes on a geocaching loop from Everett around to Whidbey Island via La Conner and Anacortes. Answers to the first two questions have been sent...... We were on the bridge at 3.40 and it was an ebb tide at that time. TFTC [view this log] AGST at Deception Pass

October 24 by glynes (233 found) A gorgeous day, and a personal and team record-breaking 18-cache-blitz with AGST. What better way to celebrate our 9th anniversary? A rare stop at this beautiful spot without cold and wind! It was 3:35PM, and an Ebb Tide, as evidenced by bubbles left on the surface from kids on the far shore throwing in big rocks. Email with other info on the way. Thanks for bringing us back to this spectacular place! [This entry was edited by glynes on Saturday, October 24, 2009 at 11:03:45 PM.] [view this log] Glynes Bridges the Pass AGST at Deception Pass

October 24 by GeogGuy (7 found) It was a beautiful fall day to introduce my friends to Geocaching. This was their first 'find' with two more to follow today. We enjoyed watching baby seals playing with the ducks and kyakers padding the outgoing tide around noon. The 37 fathom deep channel under the bridge appears to be 500 feet wide. My two Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Windsor and Covington, kept the Muggles busy while we enjoyed our first Earth Cache! [This entry was edited by GeogGuy on Saturday, October 24, 2009 at 11:04:15 PM.] [This entry was edited by GeogGuy on Saturday, October 24, 2009 at 11:05:38 PM.] [This entry was edited by GeogGuy on Saturday, October 24, 2009 at 11:07:03 PM.] [view this log] IMG_4392

Current time: 11/22/2009 7:23:36 AM
Last Updated: 11/7/2009 9:08:25 PM
Rendered: From Database
Coordinates are in the WGS84 datum