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Record of the Past EarthCache

Hidden : 8/5/2015
Difficulty:
2 out of 5
Terrain:
3 out of 5

Size: Size:   other (other)

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Geocache Description:

The cutbank across the river from GZ records the geological history of Red Deer. You will have to hike in or you can ride in on a mountain bike (like I did) either from the Big Chief Park or from the Heritage Ranch. You can ride in on a horse along nice local horse trails from the Heritage Ranch also.


About 18,000 years ago Red Deer lay beneath 500-600 metres of Laurentide glacier. As the glacier moved and melted clay, silt, gravel and sand was deposited. The Red Deer area emerged from the melting glacier around 13,500 years ago. Glacial Lake Red Deer formed in a lowland and persisted long enough to accumulate clays, silts and sands on its bed as well as sands and gravels around the shores and deltas.  It drained away 500 years later.  Then Red Deer river eroded the valley and continues to do so to present day.  At GZ there is an informative plaque that will help you answer the questions below.  You must email me your answers in order to log this cache.

1. The lowest quarter of the cutbank sands and grains compacted, hardened and cemented together to a form type of rock called Paskapoo _______________.

2. About half way up the cutbank, the base of the darker band shows the surface along which the glacier travelled. The material above it was left by the melted glacier which consists of a mixture of sand, caly and rock - which is called glacial  _____________.

3. The layer of clay and silts near the top of cutbank were deposited  in __________  __________ Red Deer which formed when the retreating glacier blocked river drainage.

Additional Hints (No hints available.)