Pumpkin Patch Earthcache EarthCache
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The Pumpkin Patch is a protected area of Ocotillo Wells SRVA. It is fenced to protect the remaining “pumpkins” from disappearing and the area from being ridden into causing damage to this sensitive area. These pumpkin–size features are called “concretions” to be more exact, they are a sedimentary rock called sandstone.
The word "concretion" is derived from the Latin "con"-- meaning "together" -- and "cresco" -- meaning "to grow." These rocks have a variety of origins that require geologist to bring information from a variety of disciplines, including biology, chemistry, soil science, meteorology and geology itself, just to understand them. The origins of different types of concretions (calcite, barite or gypsum) can begin in very different ways. Sandston concretions are typically formed from fine sand sedimenet in wet, calcium carbonate environments. They appear in nodular patches, concentrated along bedding planes, protruding from weathered cliffsides, randomly distributed over mudhills or perched on soft pedestals. Being more firmly cemented than the enclosing sandstone, concretions weather out in myriad shapes that have been fancifully described as cannonballs, pumpkins, dinosaur limbs or bric-a-brac. All of the sandstone is Diablo sandstone of ancestral Colorado River delta origin. To reach this area from the south use Shell Reef Expressway to East Bank to Pumpkin Patch Trail a 4X4 is required to reach the area. This can also be reach for the north by taking Cross Over Trail from S-22 to Tule Wash.
Updated 11/9/2021. They have placed new signs at The Pumpkin Patch so I have revised the question to match the new signs.
This cache was developed with the permission of OWSVRA and you will use their interpretive panels to answer the questions below. Logging requirements: Send me a note with:
1. The text "GC23XAT Pumpkin Patch – OWSRVA" on the first line
2. The number of people in your group, one email for the group is okay as long as you list all geocachers by caching name.
3. Send me a email with the fifth item listed on the interpretive panel entitled "Enjoy a stroll in this desert garden" A seed could be a _________? Make sure you use the right sign.
The following sources were used to generate this cache: • Lecture notes from Paleontology Society certification training • Ocotillo Wells Giants of the Desert Collectable Trading Cards #34 and Ocotillo Wells SRVA Park Map.
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Treasures
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