The Nipple EarthCache
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An Earthcache in McKean County.
Enjoy the wonders that abound!
This "Nipple" hill IS NOT the one at this location. It's located at Breaks State Park in Virginia.......and is a more pronounced version with little obscuring vegetation at the summit.
EARTHCACHE REQUIREMENTS:
- Each cacher in a group MUST send in their answers individually and;
- Answers MUST be sent via EMAIL link.......NOT the message center!
- Answers should be sent in within a day or two of your log. If I delete your log, you should feel free to resend the log AFTER you have sent in your answers.
To get credit for this Earthcache and keep your "found it" log, please complete the following tasks:
(1) VIA EMAIL ONLY…. a. Define the topographic feature called The Nipple. ... b. Why do you think it is not included in the list of features on this listing (scroll down)?
(2) VIA EMAIL ONLY …. Look at "The Nipple" on a topographic map. Notice the contour is completely round as compared to the surrounding peaks. Explain (scientific and/or creative) why YOU believe that this is so.
(3) VIA EMAIL ONLY …. Compare the mountains and hills you observed as you traveled here. How are they different from this feature you observe from the posted coordinates? As you travel around this area, note that this topographic feature is the only one like it in this geographic area. You can safely pull off the road at the posted coordinates to get a nice view of this topographic feature. Also........ PLEASE don't miss seeing the nearby Veterans Memorial!
OPTIONAL STEPS -- Please respect the time and effort involved in creating (but also DOING) this Earthcache by adding the following to your log:
A. POST A PICTURE at or near the listed coords. This picture is your log signature verifying that you actually were at the Earthcache location.
B. RELATE YOUR "JOURNEY OF THE MIND" ... Science explains what we observe. Relate (in your own words) something you found interesting in the reading of this listing. This adds to your learning adventure and your log.
C. RELATE YOUR "JOURNEY OF THE HEART" ... Art and sentiment shares our personal experience of what we see and experience. 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 :)
OPTIONAL HALL OF FAME--
STILL IN PREPARATION - permission and trail route to observe this feature at the peak.
THANK YOU Aaron and Victoria @ pa.gov for your help with this Earthcache.
THANK YOU rainbowtree for creating and allowing us to adopt this Earthcache :)
NIPPLE - The Nipple - Map
The Nipple is a mountain located in Smethport, McKean County, Pennsylvania. The elevation is 2014 feet above sea level. Actual coordinates for this mountain feature are N 41° 48.971 W 078° 24.634. However, it is best observed by pulling off the road and viewing this feature from the posted coordinates. These coordinates take you to a parking area where you can also visit the monument honoring our soldiers.
The Nipple is capped by a weather-resistant sandstone in the upper part of the Catskill Formation (Devonian age). This small, round erosional feature rises above the surrounding countryside. The shape of this hill and other surrounding hills are the product of incised plateaus (deep cuts) and erosional down cutting (deepening the valley) by streams.
"The area surrounding The Nipple belongs to the Appalachian Plateaus province, where the strata (geologic layers) have been slightly disturbed from their original altitude and lie nearly horizontal in most places. Also, topography of this section is affected by open folds with a prominent anticline near Smethport. The softer rocks have been eroded forming valleys, and more resistant rocks stand out as ridges and hills." VICTORIA
"You most likely have Chadakoin Formation and Catskill Formation. If you were able to hike to the top, you would probably see that the peak is made of all red and gray sandstone showing you are still in the Catskill Formation. However, if the rocks at the very top are gray shales and thin gray sandstone that bear crinoids and brachiopod fossils (seashells), then you would be in the Oswayo Formation." AARON
The Devonian Catskill Formation is mostly terrestrial sedimentary rock found in Pennsylvania and New York. The Oswayo Formation is a geologic formation in New York which preserves fossils dating back to the Devonian period. This topographic feature is in PA, which is the reason you will probably see red and gray sandstone. If it occurred in New York, then you would probably see gray shales and sandstone.
MOUNTAIN FEATURES - Features of Mountains, Hills, Cliffs and Mountain Features
brae - brink - brow - cairn - cap - crag - crest - crown - divide - escarpment - face - flank - gap - hillside - hilltop - landslide - ledge - lee - lip - mountainside - mountaintop - mudslide - pass - peak - pinnacle - ridge - scree - shelf - shoulder - side - slide - slope - snowline - summit - treeline - watershed ....... Arete - Cirque - Couloir - Erratics - Glaciers - Headwall - Horn - Icefall - Moraine - Mountain Pass - Ridge - Serac
**NOTE**==>; Missing from this lists of features is "Nipple", a symmetrical breast-shaped hill/mountain.
BREAST-SHAPED HILLS AROUND THE WORLD - Breast-Shaped Hills
"A breast-shaped hill is a mountain in the shape of a human breast. Such anthropomorphic geographic features are to be found in different places of the world and in some cultures they were revered as the attributes of the Mother Goddess."
This feature is found all around the world ...... Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Europe, North and Central America, Oceania, South America.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)