The Rock Nature Reserve EarthCache
-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(other)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
The Rock Nature Reserve – an Aboriginal Place.
This area is a Nature Reserve under the control of the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water who have kindly given permission for this listing.
Importance of The Rock Nature Reserve
Captain Charles Sturt in his book “Two Expeditions into the Interior of Southern Australia during the Years 1828, 1829, 1830 and 1831”, mentions that the name Kengal was used by the Wiradjuri people to describe the mountain known today as The Rock. The name of the walking track, Yerong is borrowed from the creek of the same name to the south and is corrupted form the Wiradjuri word “yirrang”or “irang” meaning teeth. Kengal was a place of initiation for young aboriginal men, so has significance to the Wiradjuri people.
Landsystems
The unique geology and geomorphology of The Rock Nature Reserve has resulted in an area of high natural, scenic and recreational values. The reserve is one of a number of small to moderately sized conservation areas on the central and south-western slopes and plains of NSW which sample early to mid Palaeozoic rocks of the Lachlan Fold Belt of Eastern Australia.
The reserve is located in south-western NSW on the boundaries between two major biophysical regions; the Riverine Plains and the Western Slopes of the Eastern Highlands. The resulting geography gives the area a great diversity of landscape and habitat.
The Rock is one of the few remaining outcrops of Devonian age sediments in the region. The bedrock in the area is composed of metamorphosed sedimentary rocks associated with intruded masses of igneous rock. The injection of the igneous rock as molten magma also resulted in the deposition of economic ore bodies. Veins of gold, lead and wolfram have been mined in the region.
The summit of the ridge stands 364m above the surrounding plain and the view from the top of The Rock is spectacular. There is no other formation like this in the District. It also has been known as the "Lion on the Plain".
From the top of The Rock, Galore Hill to the west is often clearly visible and on clear days in spring and winter the snow-capped peaks of Mount Kosciuszko, the Victorian Alps and Bogong Range can be sighted.
Geology, landforms and soils
The ridge of resistant rock which forms The Rock is part of the last hill country of the western slopes. The low gradient, poorly drained alluvial plain with its meandering incised creeks and shallow relict lakes lying west of the reserve is part of the Riverine Plain.
The summit of the ridge stands 364m above the adjacent plain.
Structural control by the underlying bedrock results in the characteristic “hogsback” morphology of The Rock. The west facing slope is steeper than the eastern face and the scarps and cliff lines with a well developed talus slope below only occur on the eastern face.
The bedrock in the area is composed of metamorphosed sedimentary rocks associated with intruded masses of igneous rock. The injection of the igneous rock as molten magma also resulted in the deposition of economic ore bodies. Veins of gold, lead and wolfram have been mined in the region.
The development of deep V-shaped gullies and lightly vegetated slopes have led to the deposition of alluvial fans on the lower slopes and in the bases of gullies. The soil types contained within the nature reserve are Red/Brown and Grey Podsolics, reaching good depth in the gullies. Steeper slopes have very poor soil cover or are of scree formation.
The lower slopes of the reserve have been quarried for gravel, most notably the north-eastern slopes. Quarrying began on The Rock’s lower slopes in 1891 and continued until the1940s. Topsoil was stripped from the area and gravel road base material was quarried.
This area is slowly regenerating but is very fragile as the topsoil has been lost.
Please keep to the trail if you venture further to explore the area. There is much to see.
The listed co-ordinates will take you to a public noticeboard near the carpark. You will find extra information about the area on this noticeboard, but not the answers to the questions.
To claim this EarthCache you must:
1. Fulfil the educational requirements by e-mailing me the answers to these questions. Do not post the answers online and do not log your find until you have received confirmation. Unconfirmed logs will be deleted.
a. What is the main geological significance of the Rock Nature Reserve?
b. The lithology of The Rock and the other Devonian outcrops is primarily what?
c. What purpose was the quarried road base material used for? (Google may help)
and,
2. Post at least one photo of The Rock, AND WITH you and your GPS and indicate in your log the number of people in your group. Any logs without this requirement can be deleted.
FTF - Team Crackers / 2TF - blacklegend17 / 3TF - maccamob
| I have earned GSA's highest level: |
 |
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Tbbtyr vf lbhe sevraq