Norcross Divided EarthCache
This cache has been locked, but it is available for viewing.
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To get credit for this Earthcache: go
to the posted coordinates, read the description, and answer a
few questions. A compass and/or bucket may be of some help (see
below), but neither is required. As with all Earthcaches there
is no physical container. Located in Best Friend Park off Jimmy
Carter Boulevard. Enter park at N 33° 55.678 W 084° 13.205. Park
is open from sunrise to 11:00 pm.
The Earth’s surface features many natural boundaries. The shoreline
separates the land from the sea. The Tree Line separates wooded
mountainsides from rocky-bare mountaintops. The Dry Line (in Texas)
is a meteorological boundary that separates hot, dry air to the
west from warm, moist air to the east. Closer to home, the Fall
Line (sometimes called the "gnat line") is a change in geography
that occurs in Georgia along a line that runs roughly from
Columbus, to Macon and then to Augusta. The Sweet Tea Line
separates the places where you can get real sweet tea from the
places where they just look at you funny and then point casually at
the sugar packets ...
Some natural boundaries are obvious, others are more subtle. Were
you aware that there is a major geological/hydrological boundary
right here in this part of Georgia? It passes right through
downtown Norcross – and this very park – on its way from Wisconsin,
by way of Pennsylvania and several other Appalachian states, all
the way to the southern tip of the Florida Peninsula.
It’s called the Eastern Continental Divide.
What is the ECD? Well, if you don’t already know, I’m not going to
just tell you – that’s part of your challenge! What I AM
going to do is point you in the right direction so that you can
figure it out for yourself. (Well sure, you can just Google
it, but where’s the fun in that? Besides ... check out question
number five down there. This ain’t no armchair cache!)
Go to the park. Stand at the posted coordinates and look around.
(Don’t stand in the road, silly! The grass will do fine.) See
anything interesting about the landscape? Sure, you’re on high
ground – but that’s not just any high ground. You’re standing
exactly on the Eastern Continental Divide. (Time to level your
compass – did you bring it?) Looking through the trees toward the
south-southeast (about 150°, toward the truck-trailer lot and
beyond) and to the north-northwest (about 330°, toward that smaller
building between the swimming pool and the larger building) you can
see that you’re standing atop a ridgeline that continues out of
sight in both directions. No, it’s nothing dramatic, but it IS a
distinctly obvious ridge in the topography of the landscape. It’s
not a very steep, or sharp, ridge at this point – the ground slopes
down gently in opposite directions from where you are standing –
but if you’re at ground zero you’re right on top. See it?
Along the top of this very ridge runs the line of the Divide.
IMPORTANT: Before attempting the required questions, make sure
you’ve got yourself correctly oriented. Note that the ridge which
makes up the Divide runs perpendicular to the overhead power lines,
NOT parallel. The divide line in this area runs roughly parallel to
Jimmy Carter Boulevard. Looking north it actually curves to the
east a bit and passes right through the intersection of JC Blvd and
Buford Highway. To the south it crosses I-85 near the JC Blvd
bridge. If you still can’t see it, re-read the previous paragraph
while referring to your compass.
What does it mean to be standing on the Eastern Continental Divide?
Well, if you were to dump a bucket of water (or better, unsweetened
tea) onto the ground exactly at the peak of this particular rise –
like maybe onto the road near that speed breaker over there – where
would the water go? As gravity does its thing, and assuming no
evaporation or absorption, where do you suppose that water would
ultimately terminate, many many days from now, if it were to drain
downhill to the east toward Jimmy Carter Boulevard? (Hint:
“Beyond Ocmulgee and Oconee.”) Or, looking down the other side
of the ridge, where do you suppose gravity would eventually deposit
the water if it were to run downhill to the west, in the general
direction of the baseball fields? (Hint: “by way of the
Chattahoochee.”)
Optional: If you like, bring an actual bucket! Fill it with
water. Pour it onto the grass or asphalt near the posted
coordinates. If you can find the exact spot where half the water
goes down one side of the ridge and half goes down the other, then
you will have found the precise location of the Divide. If you
decide to do this, please post a photo with your log! (If you
decide to follow the water all the way to the answers to questions
number 2 and 3 below, send back a postcard!)
Required: To get credit for this find, send me an email with
reasonably correct answers to the following questions:
(1) In basic terms, and in your own words: what, exactly, is
the Eastern Continental Divide? (Hint: The Western Continental
Divide, or “Great Divide,” is a line which runs generally north to
south through the Rocky Mountains and separates the land (or
“watershed”) where water drains toward the Pacific Ocean from the
land where water goes to the Gulf of Mexico.)
(2) What very large body of water is the ultimate
destination for any water which drains to the EAST of the ECD from
where you stand, here at the waypoint?
(3) What very large body of water is the ultimate
destination for any water which drains to the WEST of the ECD from
this waypoint?
(4) A railroad line near here (you’ll hear the train if you
stand here long enough), originally built in the days before the
Civil War, generally followed the route of the Divide because it
provided WHAT obvious engineering advantage? (Hint: The advantage
is not "level terrain." The ECD isn't necessarily level.) ('Nother
hint: The Eastern Continental Divide in Georgia)
(5) Among the following park features visible from the cache
waypoint, which do you think is located closest to the exact line
of the ECD?
A) The main Park Entrance sign
B) The flagpole in front of the gymnasium
C) The slide in the playground
D) The picnic pavilion next to the
playground
Correct answers must be emailed to me, either before or shortly
after logging the cache, in order for you to retain credit for your
find. Just click where it says 'KBI' under the cache title, then
click 'send message.'
Good luck, and have fun!
Online reading:
Eastern Continental Divide (Wikipedia)
The Eastern Continental Divide in Georgia
The Eastern Continental Divide in Georgia GPS
MAPS
Earthcache.org
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)