Finster Lake EarthCache
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Beginning nearly two million years ago when the Ice Age started, there were at least five cycles of glacial advance and retreat that shaped the landscape of northern Indiana. The topography of Noble County in the northeastern part of the state was sculpted by the Saginaw and Erie Lobes of the continental glacier of the Wisconsinan age as the melting ice masses deposited melt-out debris. Concentrations of outwash (sand and gravel) and till (sand, silt, clay, and boulders) remained in the area forming the landscape that remains today.
During the final stages of the Erie Lobe meltdown, huge ice blocks calving from the retreating edge of the glacier sometimes tumbled forward into the mounds of sediment left by the receding glacier. Some of these blocks were partially or completely buried by additional sediment. As the ice blocks melted, the sediment cap sank to fill the void, and a kettle lake was formed. The hills of sediment surrounding the lake are called kames.
To view one such kettle lake and bordering kame, follow the coordinates to the trailhead of the self-guided nature trail #8 at Chain-O’-Lakes State Park and walk along the trail which circles Finster Lake, one of eleven kettle lakes in the park. The trail makes a 0.5 mile loop and provides good views of the lake. Please stay on the trail.
As of July 2017, the park entrance fee is $7 per car for Indiana vehicles. Out-of-state vehicles are charged $9. See www.in.gov/dnr for current prices.
Parking coordinates are N 41.20.277 and W 085.21.886.
To log this earthcache you must perform these tasks:
1. Take elevation readings at a low part of the trail and from the top of the
kame.
2. Estimate the elevation difference by subtracting the lower reading from
the reading taken from the top of the kame.
3. Email your answer to A Kid at Heart.
PLEASE DO NOT POST EITHER YOUR READINGS OR YOUR ANSWER IN THE LOG. THANK YOU.
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