Rockbridge EarthCache
Hidden : 5/14/2007
Difficulty:
2 out of 5
Terrain:
3 out of 5

Size: Size: not chosen (not chosen)

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Geocache Description:

You are going to visit a natural bridge! The largest one in Ohio. And when you visit this natural bridge, the largest one in Ohio, you are going to have to measure a distance. So come prepared with a tape measure! To measure something having to do with the largest natural bridge in Ohio.

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The posted coordinates are the location of the bridge, and were captured while standing on top of the bridge, pretty much in the middle. The hike in from parking is on a well-marked trail, so you shouldn't get lost. The total hike is more than a mile round trip, and you have to cross a hill, so there is a fairly mild vertical component to your hike. We recommend that you take water with you.

You will need to bring a measuring tape with you during your visit to fulfill the logging requirements. If you have an alternate method of measuring height that you prefer, then be prepared to use that. You want something that can measure to the nearest inch.

Parking is located at N39 33.983', W082 29.958'. To get there, go 1.5 miles southeast of the township of Rockbridge on US-33. There you should find Dalton Road (Township Road 503). Follow Dalton one-half mile until it dead-ends. There you will find parking and this sign.

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Head down the trail and soon you will come upon the natural bridge. Go to the following links for more information about the Nature Preserve and to see a trail map.
Click Here!
Click Here Too!

This natural bridge is the largest in Ohio. It began forming as a rock shelter where a Hocking River tributary and its glacial ancestors cascaded over a cliff of Black Hand sandstone. The roof of the shelter was resistant sandstone, while erosion of the softer shale that lay beneath created the shelter opening.

Then, vertical joints caused sections of the ceiling of the shelter to collapse, creating a gap about twenty feet from the edge of the cliff. The cascading water shifted to this new gap in the ceiling of the shelter. The remaining ceiling rock that was left, to the cliff edge, became the natural bridge. The bridge is over 100 feet long. Its width varies from 4.5 feet to 20 feet. It averages about five feet thick.

The unique environments of places like this, land bridges, waterfalls, rock shelters, gorges, etc., support the growth of special plant life such as mosses, lichen, ferns, and the like. Here, it is no different. You will see plenty of that interesting stuff.

LOGGING REQUIREMENTS: In order to claim this Earthcache as a find, you must perform two tasks.

1 – First is the old standby, "take a photo of yourself at the location and post it with your log" requirement. There is just no better way to show that you actually visited a location than the old-fashioned pic. Your photo should be composed so that we can see the bridge in the photo.

2 – This is where the tape measure comes in. On the southeast part of the bridge, you will find a way to walk down under the bridge. A barrier formed from rope and posts guides you down as it simultaneously tells you where you are not supposed to go. Once you are under the bridge, the rope/post barrier forms a corner, which appears as shown in the image below. At that corner post, you are to measure the vertical distance from the ground you are standing on, at the location of the corner post, straight up to the rock underside of the bridge above head. Then you must email us your measurement. The answer you send us should be in feet and inches. We will allow a tolerance of plus or minus six inches from our measurement. So measure carefully. If you are careful, your result should be right on, because this distance is not going to change.

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Logs not accompanied by email within a reasonable amount of time will be deleted per Earthcache rules. We don't like doing that. So please be careful to get done what you need to get done.

If you're a fan of Black Hand Sandstone formations and/or slumps, then A Tight Squeeze at Cantwell Cliffs is your cup of tea. Tis another Earthcache only four to five miles away on the other side of US-33, and you already have the required tape measure on hand!

References:
Ohio DNR website
Camp, Mark J. 2006 Roadside Geology of Ohio. Missoula, Montana: Mountain Press Publishing Company

Additional Hints (No hints available.)



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