The Meandering River EarthCache
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We’ve all seen how rivers wander through the landscape, but have you ever wondered why?
This Earthcache will bring you to Poland Woods to show you a perfect example of a meandering river. You will learn why a river seems to take the path of more resistance as it flows.
Since this Earthcache will bring you to a floodplain please don’t attempt to go there after heavy rains or after a large snow melt. The river will undoubtedly be over its banks and can be hazardous. Also this is a Dawn to Dusk Only Cache!
I chose Poland Woods for this Earthcache because of the scale of Yellow Creek. Standing on its banks, you can easily see more than one meander, and an overview of how a meandering river is formed.
I highly recommend using bug spray in the warm weather months.
Make sure you look at the Additional Waymarks for parking and coordinates for the suspension bridge.
As we all know, water seeks its own level. If this is a truth, then why does a river meander? As a river flows down a steep grade, its path is mainly guided by the valley it follows, but when that same river flows to a fairly flat area, or floodplain, it starts to follow in a path of least resistance. Obstacles in the rivers path may cause it to deviate its course. For example, maybe a tree falls into the river causing the river to move around the tree just a little bit. This sideways movement starts a chain of events that eventually becomes a meander. Since the path has now become an arch, the water is then guided by centrifugal forces. As the water flows around the outside of the bend, it picks up speed, which in turn increases kinetic energy, and its ability to hold sediment. This gives the water on the outside of the bank the ability to erode its bank. The water that flows around the inside of the bend slows, causing it to lose kinetic energy, and therefore its ability to carry sediment. This causes the river to drop some of its sediment on the inside of the bank.
This action continues and over time the bend becomes more pronounced. The outside of the bend develops a steep bank from heavy erosion; where as the inside of the curve is shallower and less defined due to the water loosing its sediment.
Now as the water meanders through the outside of the bend and builds energy, it will exit the bend, and cross over the slower moving waters running into the bank on the opposite side. This starts eroding the bank on the other side of the river down stream of the first bend. Over time, this will cause the bank to deflect. Like the above example, this deflection becomes a bend and over time a meander. This process will continue down the floodplain.
Other effects can cause variations in the meandering river. Some being one side of a bank is softer and easier to erode than the other, large rocks in the rivers path, etc. . . .
The size of Yellow Creek will give you the ability to overview more than one meander at a time, giving you a better perspective on the process.
Once you get to the above coordinates, you will see a perfect example of a rivers meander.
To log this Earthcache, I would love to see a picture of yourself at the coordinates, but that is purely optional.
You will, however, need to e-mail me the answers to the following questions.
1 ~ In feet per minute, estimate the rivers speed at the inside of the bend.
2 ~ In feet per minute, estimate the rivers speed at the outside of the rivers bend.
This can simply be done by timing a leaf flowing at the inside and outside of the bends. I'm not looking for exact measurements, but the differences in the inside and outside of the bend.
Have fun with my first Earthcache, and as with all my caches I want you to enjoy yourself, so please be safe. If you have any questions please send me an e-mail and I'll be glad to help.
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Treasures
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