Welcome to
Mt Tarrengower - EarthCache
A simple EarthCache to highlight the landform that has been formed over the millions of years
I hope you enjoy this EarthCache as you take in the views from here
The land around you is ancient. Hundreds of millions of years ago it was all under the sea. Then a couple of tectonic plates collided deep underground, squeezing everything like a vice. The sea bed was forced upwards and the sea drained away. The great mass of the sea bed, layers of sand and mud, folded and welded together into stone that now forms the solid foundations of central Victoria. Erosion and volcanic activity have also altered the shape of the old sea bed. To the south lie grassy plains: the result of volcanic eruptions and lava flows. To the east, north and west is the old sea bed, now rolling hills of sandstone - box and ironbark country
From here we can be seen many landmarks, each with its own geological story. Not far away, to the south-east, is Mount Franklin, an extinct volcano. The extensive range of Mount Alexander, to the east, is formed from granite. Granite is made from volcanic material which is cooled and hardened deep below the earth's surface.
Here, Mt Tarrengower is made up of 'hornfels' although the slopes are mainly 'granodiorite'.
Hornfels is a metamorphic rock formed by the contact between mudstone / shale, or other clay-rich rock, and a hot igneous body, and represents a heat-altered equivalent of the original rock. This process is termed contact metamorphism.
Granodiorite is a medium- to coarse-grained intermediate to acid igneous rock with essential quartz (>20%), plagioclase (oligocene) and alkali feldspar, with minor mafic minerals, typically hornblende and biotite.
Questions to log this EarthCache
Q1 According to the information board, there is a more precise number. How many millions of years ago was the land here all under the sea?
Q2 Tectonic forces caused what to occur?
Q3 Other than the rocks mentioned, what other type of rock has been 'found' close to here containing what?
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