Greyrock Mountain - CCC Trail Building EarthCache
Greyrock Mountain - CCC Trail Building
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This EarthCache is located along the Greyrock Mountain Trail, which leads from the Cache la Poudre River to the top of Greyrock Mountain. Parking for the trailhead is in a paved parking area on the south side of the highway. Canopy coverage is fairly dense along the trail, and you may have some problems with the coordinates to this site.
Greyrock Mountain Trail was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s. The CCC was a program instituted by President Roosevelt from 1933 – 1942 to keep young men employed during the Great Depression. The CCC worked in many National Parks and National Forests during this time, building bridges, trails, and roads. The work was so skilled that many of these construction projects continue to be used to this day.
Just east of the first crossing of the creek which the trail follows on its way up to the saddle, note the portion of the trail where the walkway has been constructed of native rock. At this location, the men of the CCC utilized the nearby eroded rock blocks on the hillside to build this portion of trail. This rock is the dark gneiss and salt-and-pepper schist eroding down from above. Most of these blocks of rock forming the elevated trail have been eroded down the hillside and were shaped by the workers during construction of the trail. Other uses for this native rock along the trail include drainage systems and erosion barriers.
Take a close look at the rock utilized at this site. Find an area of the rock not covered by lichen and measure the average crystal size for the rock.
To receive credit for this Earthcache, send me an email with the answer to the following question:
1.) What is the average size of the crystals in the rock at this site?
Please consider posting photos of yourself, or the local geology, when you log this EarthCache. Photos can be an additional rewarding part of your journey, but posting them is not a requirement for logging this EarthCache, and is strictly optional.
The above information was compiled from the following sources:
2007. Chronic H., and F. Williams. Roadside Geology of Colorado, 2nd Ed.
2004. Hopkins, R.L., and L.B. Hopkins. Hiking Colorado’s Geology
U.S. Forest Service sign at trailhead.
Thanks to the Roosevelt National Forest for allowing placement of this EarthCache!
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