Kamiak Steptoe EarthCache
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A moderate hike 3.5 miles long with about a 700ft elevation gain.
Kamiak Butte is a kipuka as well as a Steptoe. A kipuka is an area of land ranging from several square feet to several square miles where existing rock of either volcanic or nonvolcanic origin has been completely surrounded, but not covered, by later lava flows. Surface features of this type are common in Hawaii, where the term kipuka (“opening”) originated. A kipuka that protrudes above the surrounding lava field is classified as a steptoe; it results from the branching of a lava stream around a topographic rise. This kind of kipuka can be easily distinguished from the adjacent lava flow because it has older vegetation growing on it. A kipuka that is lower than the surrounding lava field forms as a result of irregular lava flow or the union of lava flows from two distinct streams. Kamiak Butte projects like an island above a surrounding lava field. This landform, is a type of kipuka, called a Steptoe is named after Steptoe Butte, a quartzite protrusion above the Columbia Plateau lava flows.
Kamiak Butte's rock formations are drastically different from the basalt hills all around this area. When you get to the cache site you will need to determine how far the visibility is, what the temperature is, which way the wind is coming from, if Moscow or Pullman is visible from the cache site and guess the different type of rock that is at the top of the butte vs. the surrounding basin.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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