According to the Roadside Geology of Montana book by David Alt and Donald W. Hyndman, much of our current landscape is formed in one way or another by the effects of ice. "Our high mountain peaks owe their jagged form to glacial sculpture, and the lower valleys in those mountains, as well as large expanses of nearby low areas, contain deep deposits of glacial sediments."
"Like any carving tool, glaciers make a distinctive cut. Glaciers straighten mountains valleys and deeply gouge them into something approximating a semi-circular profile. The heads of those valleys end in deep hollows, called cirques, that look from a distance as though some mystical giant wielding an ice cream scoop had gouged a helping of rock out of the top of the peak.
Where several glaciers gouge their cirques into the top of a mountain, they reduce the peak to a gnarled pinnacle of rock called a horn. Heavy ice age glaciation converted the higher craggy horn peaks, each one dropping off into cirques that lead downward into deeply gouged valleys. Many of those glaciated valleys are so straight that you can stand in their lower reaches and look directly at the distant peaks that spawned the glacier. River valleys never provide such long views."
In order to claim this cache, you will need to email to cache owner with the answers to the following questions.
1. What Range is Trapper Peak apart of and how long is that Range?
2. Look at Trapper Peak and then turn east(across Hwy 93) and look at the Sapphire Mountains. Compare and contrast the two ranges.
3. Which range looks older? Explain your answer.
I would like to thank geowareUSA2 for his help and guidance with getting this published!!
As of July 20, 2023 the Informational sign is back for now. It was missing for awhile as the wooden poles had rotted.