This Earthcache is located at
the Vermillion Bayou Nature Area trailhead. This is truly a "drive
by" geocache; you can do this cache in your car if you want
to.
The Vermilion River
(or The Bayou Vermilion) winds its way through the city of
Lafayette on its way to the Gulf of Mexico. During high flood
stages, the river is subject to an unusual phenomenon. When the
river below Pinhook Bridge is unable to carry high flows, the
direction is reversed upstream toward the low marsh areas east of
Lafayette Parish. In effect, the river reverses itself from a
southerly flow and flows north. This reversal is limited to the
reach between Pinhook Bridge and Long Bridge where the left
descending bank borders a low swamp area.
When the stages
downstream of Pinhook Bridge are relatively low, the direction of
flow is in the normal downstream direction. The reverse-flow
phenomenon occurs because of the watershed areas in the City of
Lafayette are highly developed. Rainfall runoff from this urban
area enters the Vermilion River with larger volumes and at a faster
rate than runoff upstream. This raises the water level in the
Vermilion River along the southern areas of the City of Lafayette.
This rise in water levels sometimes exceeds the water level in
reaches upstream of the City of Lafayette, thus causing the
reverse-flow effect. Also when water levels in the Vermilion River
exceed certain stages, water begins to enter the Bayou Tortue Swamp
Area. This swamp has a great capacity to hold water, which also
contributes to the reverse flow effect. The water from the
Vermilion River enters Bayou Tortue Swamp through two Coulees.
Coulee Crow and Bayou Tortue are located upstream of the Surrey
Street bridge on the Vermilion River.
The Vermilion River is 72 mi (116 km)
long. It is formed on the common boundary of Lafayette and St.
Martin parishes by a confluence of small bayous flowing from St.
Landry Parish, and flows generally southward through Lafayette and
Vermilion Parishes, past the cities of Lafayette and Abbeville. At
the port of Intracoastal City, it is crossed by the Gulf
Intracoastal Waterway before flowing into Vermilion Bay, an inlet
of the Gulf of Mexico. The river originates at Bayou Fusilier,
which is fed by Bayou Teche; winds its way through Lafayette
Parish; and drains into the Vermilion Bay below Vermilion
Parish.
The river is a "consequent stream" or a
"tidal river", which means that the Vermilion was formed from the
bottom up. The river was created by Vermilion Bay: tides and other
natural actions in the bay slowly eroded the marshes and other
features of the landscape as the river crept northward. This
process brought the channel that would one day become the Vermilion
River as far north as Lafayette, Louisiana. Much later a
distributary of Bayou Teche made its way south and eventually
linked up with the consequent stream, forming a true north-south
flowing river.
Here are the requirements to
log this Earthcache as a find:
Optional: take a
picture of with you and/or your GPS at the listed
coordinates.
Required: email the
cache owner the answer to the following
questions:
1. Is the river
flowing north or south?
2. What is the
elevation at the listed coordinates?
3. The level of the
Vermillion River can change dramatically. At the Surrey Street
Bridge, which is adjacent to the parking lot, observe the high
water mark. Estimate in feet how far the high water mark is from
the bottom of the Surrey Street Bridge.
To learn more about earthcaches, including how to develop
one of your own click here Earthcache.org. You can also
obtain one or more of the following levels of the Earthcache
Masters Program:
BRONZE (log three or more earthcaches
in at least two or more
states/countries),
SILVER (log six
or more earthcaches in at least three or more states/countries and
develop one
earthcache),
GOLD (log twelve or more earthcaches in at least four or
more states/countries and develop two earthcaches),
or
PLATINUM (log twenty or more
earthcaches in at least five or more states/countries and develop
three
earthcaches).
