Cattaraugus County
Enjoy the wonders that abound within these Enchanted Mountains.
EARTHCACHE REQUIREMENTS
Each cacher must send his/her own answers BEFORE logging a find. Enjoy the journey (learning adventure) as well as the destination (smiley earned). Remember to take only pictures and leave only footprints. To get credit for this Earthcache, complete the following tasks:
Linlyco Lake area was affected by glaciers and Little Rock City area was left unglaciated. There is a thick soil cover at Dobbins making it difficult to tell if the area is made of glacial till or if it was left unglaciated. As you travel the many valleys on your route, notice the changing topography. V-shaped valleys indicate areas that were left unglaciated. U-shaped valleys indicate areas of glacier activity.
1. MESSAGE …. a. What was the last glaciation in this area called? ... b. When (geologic period) did it occur?
2. MESSAGE …. Travel the path the glacier took in this region. Describe the changing topography as you travel Linlyco Lake (posted coordinates) to Dobbins Memorial State Forest (stage 2) to Rock City State Forest (stage 3).
3. LOG …. Post a picture at or near the posted coords. This picture is your log signature verifying that you were at the earthcache.
OPTIONAL - Please respect the time and effort involved in finding and creating this earthcache by adding A and B to your log.
A. JOURNEY OF THE MIND ... Science explains what we observe. Relate (in your own words) something you found interesting in the reading. This adds to your learning adventure and your log.
B. JOURNEY OF THE HEART ... Art shares our personal experience of what we see. Share something special you found on site, and why it is special to you ... prose / story / poem / picture. This is a memorable addition to your log and will make other hearts smile.
GLACIAL MOVEMENT
Glacial movement is like a wide river of ice. These ice sheets bulldoze the gravels, silts and clays up in front as it scoures its way through the valleys. At the terminal of the advance, this “pile” of material, also known as a “moraine”, is left in place, blocking the valley and creating a dam of ice and debris. As the ice retreats, this dam holds back the meltwater, resulting in shallow lakes.
GLACIAL TIMELINE
Earth has experienced five ice ages. Within ice ages, there are alternate colder glacial periods and warmer interglacial periods. The last glacial advance in this area, known as the Wisconsin Glaciation, occurred approximately 85,000 to 11,000 years ago.
V-SHAPED and U-SHAPED VALLEYS
V-shaped valleys are formed by the process of erosion due to running water. They indicate areas that were left unglaciated. U-shaped valleys (glacial trough) indicate areas of glacial activity. Glaciated valleys are formed when a glacier travels across and down a slope, carving the valley by the action of scouring. Scouring is glacial erosion where the surface material is removed and the rock fragments carried by the glacier abrade, scratch, and polish the bedrock. U-shaped valleys generally began as V-shaped valleys.
CATTARAUGUS COUNTY
Cattaraugus County is the only county in New York that includes both glaciated and unglaciated landscapes. "Within its borders are parts of three physiographic regions, ranging from the heavily glaciated Lake Erie Plain in the northwest through the glaciated southern New York Uplands to the unglaciated Allegheny Plateau in the south." Tesmer p 10
RESOURCE
Geology of Cattaraugus County New York by Irving H. Tesmer - Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences Bulletin 1973