Kestrel's Vista EarthCache
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This EarthCache is located on Woodbury County Conservation Board property associated with the Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center. You will find parking at N 42 32.588 W 096 28.282 Please see the note below about hours available or you may walk from the gate if the center is not open.
During the most recent Ice Age, the Missouri River valley was much wider than it is today to accommodate the flow of the glacial outwash from the melting glaciers of the northern great plains. During periods of time of drying, the silt that had been deposited by the river would be picked up by the prevailing westerly winds and carried across the valley, eventually building up on the east side. After many years the deposits of wind blown soil, or loess (pronounced "luss"), accumulated in areas up to a depth of 200'. The extreme thickness of the loess hills make them a unique geologic feature not only of Iowa but of the world. The only other place with similar build-up of loess is in the Yellow River Valley in China.
The loess hills have a unique "crinkled" topography with narrow ridge crests and steep sloped hills. Originally the ridge tops and hillsides were native prairie. Today there are ridgetop prairies that still remain but much of the hillsides have been encroached by woodland species. The prairie you are visiting is dominated by grasses such as Indian grass, big bluestem and sideouts grama. The types of forbes you may seem blooming depends on the time of the growing season in which you visit.
Hope you can take the time to visit inside the Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center (DPNC). Visit www.woodburyparks.com for more information.
DPNC Hours: Tuesday-Saturday 9am - 5pm
Sunday 1pm - 5pm
Closed on Mondays,
New Years Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve & Christmas Day
To receive credit please accomplish the following tasks and send the answers in an email. Also upload a picture with your log.
1) What is the change in elevation from where you parked to the vista at kestrel point?
2) There are 3 watertowers that can be seen in the distance. From south to north, in which state are each of these located?
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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Treasures
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