Wallace Creek EarthCache
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A high clearance vehicle is recommended for some of the roads within the Carrizo Plain National Monument. From the parking area for Wallace Creek, there is a short hike .3 miles along a gradual uphill path to the viewing area for the creek offset.
Wallace Creek is an Offset Creek along the San Andreas Fault, located within the Carrizo Plain National Monument. Carrizo Plain is a closed depression bordered on the west by the Caliente Range and on the east by the Temblor Range. The monument can be reached from the north on Highway 58 and from the south via Highways 33 or 166.
The parking area for the trail entrance is on Elkhorn Road at the edge of the Temblor Range. The coordinates for the parking area are 35 15.046 119 49.620. From the parking lot, hike up .3 miles along a gradual uphill path to the posted cache coordinates, at the base of the scarp from which Wallace Creek exits onto the Carrizo Plain.
To preserve the fragile environment, please stay on the trail!
Wallace Creek offset is on the base of a scarp. Scarp is short for escarpment and is essentially a cliff formed by a fault. The fault cut across the stream channel and as earthquakes made the fault shift, the streambed developed an offset. Water carved a channel along the fault and connected the original stream segment.
Logging Requirement: Send me an e-mail with the length of the offset and the average slip rate per year . Also describe the vegetation along the creek offset.
Have fun observing this feature. Many more features can be seen in the area, as described in the references below. The first , third, and fourth are specific to the Carrizo Plain and the second includes day trips throughout the length of the San Andreas Fault.
We recommend stopping in at the Goodwin Eduction Center on Soda Lake Road ((805) 475-2131). They have great displays of local plants, animals, birds (a condor!), and geology of the area. All of the following references and more are available there.
Hidinger, Judith. Carrizo Plain Natural Area: Two Self-Guided Geologic Auto Tours, U.S. Government Printing Office: 1998-685-729
Lynch, David K. Field Guide to the San Andreas Fault. Thule Scientific, CA, USA www.thulescientific.com, 2006.
Pritchart, Eileen. A Self Guided Tour of the San Andreas Fault: The Geological Marvels of the Carrizo Plain National Monument
Wallace Creek Interpretive Trail; A geologic guide to the San Andreas Fault at Wallace Creek (brochure available at the trailhead or from the Bureau of Land Management, 3801 Pegasus Drive, Bakersfield, CA 93308).
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)