The Emerald Park Bluff
A bluff is a steep cliff overlooking a plain or body of water, It may be composed of beach sand, or soil or a rock formation.
A river, ocean or other body of water can create a bluff when waves erode the river bank or shoreline. This often happens at the bend of a river where water is pushed against the outside bank, causing erosion. On an ocean shoreline, storms may create a high beach ridge. Changing water levels or an uplift in the land can leave a ridge high and dry. The growth of vegetation can protect the formation from erosion.
This particular bluff is called "Big Rock". Big Rock is located on the north bank of the Arkansas River. It is the first major outcrop of rock along the river, 121 miles upstream from the confluence of the Arkansas and Mississippi rivers and about two miles upstream from a smaller outcrop known as the Little Rock, where the capital city of Arkansas developed.
The bluff is composed predominantly of sandstone and shale of the Jackfork Formation (Pennsylvanian period) and marks the transition from the Delta plains to the Ouachita Mountains. The top of the ridge is approximately half a mile wide (northwest to southeast), and the south face extends approximately one mile east-west along the river.
If you venture to the top side of the bluff you can visit Emerald Park. Emerald Park has some great trails and some of the most incredible scenery Arkansas has to offer. If you visit the bluff after a good rain you will likely see 4 or 5 waterfalls.
Since this is an EarthCache, there is no physical cache container located at the site. An EarthCache is a special place that you can visit to learn about a unique feature of our Earth. Visitors to EarthCaches can see how our planet has been shaped by geological processes, how we manage those resources, and how scientists gather evidence to learn about the Earth. Here you will find the answers needed to fulfill the logging requirements for this cache. Email your repsonses to floaten0@yahoo.com
1. What is a Bluff Landform?
2. How are Bluffs Formed?
3. What is this bluff composed of?
4. What man made structure is at ground zero?