Please avoid walking in the area under wet conditions as the soil will stick to your footwear like glue and be tracked out, hastening erosion in the area.
The boulders are formed in much the same way as a pearl is formed by an oyster. Originally there was a small fossil, bone, shell or other small hard object embedded within a softer sediment such as sand or clay. Then as groundwater slowly moves through this sediment dissolved minerals in the water are attracted to the hard small object. These minerals slowly accumulate and precipitate out of the water and cement together the sedimentary material surrounding the original hard object.
Over time a dense rock structure is formed, called a concretion. These concretions are harder than the surrounding sediments and resist erosion. Much later, when the softer sandstone or grey shale is eroded away, the harder concretion is left exposed. In the case of the concretions at Red Rock Coulee iron oxide was one of the cementing minerals and this gave the exposed concretions the vibrant red colors.
In order to receive credit for this earth cache message the CO the answer to the following question: Estimate the height and diameter of the largest boulders.
Source: Geological Wonders in Alberta. The Provincial Museum of Alberta. 1998. Reprinted in 2005.
This area is governed by the Province of Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation: Local Contact: Visitor Services Supervisor Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park-Alberta Box 12, Elkwater, Alberta Tel: 403-893-3777 Fax: 403-893-3987.