As an Earthcache, there is no container to discover. Instead, you discover something interesting about the geology of this area.
HOLLOW FALLS LIMESTONE
A boardwalk at the Hollow follows the creek a short distance to a lovely small waterfall. The falls are part of the tributary of Middle Creek Caney in Chautauqua County.
To the east of the waterfall is a rock ledge. Please refer to this ledge when answering the questions.
In Kansas, sediment in sedimentary rocks was first deposited along shorelines or the floors of seas, deltas, or swamps that covered parts of the state off and on for millions of years – up until about 65 million years ago.
Limestone is composed mainly of the mineral calcite, which is a calcium carbonate. Most limestone layers formed from marine sediment deposited on sea floors, although some formed in freshwater lakes and rivers and even on dry land. Sources for the calcite in limestone include seashells. When shelled animals that use calcium carbonate in water to build their shells die, the remains of their shells accumulate on a sea or lake floor. Under the right conditions, large amounts of shell debris eventually gets buried under other sediment and compressed into rock. Many limestone layers also contain fossils of such animals as corals, brachiopods, clams, bryozoans, and crinoids.
Honeycomb weathering, is named because of the resemblance to the air sacs of the lung. This phenomenon is characterized by extensive networks of small cavities that form honeycomb patterns on rock surfaces. These cavities often consist of many shallow depressions, but when well developed they may form deep chambers separated by thin septa of relatively unweathered rock. Individual cavities are typically several centimeters in width and depth, the shape often being controlled by bedding planes, foliation, or other structural features of the rock in which they occur. In many localities the holes occur in association with a hardened surface layer formed when dissolution of iron oxide minerals has been followed by precipitation of ferric hydroxides near the outcrop surface. The thickness of this hardened layer may range from a few millimeters to several centimeters.
To receive credit for this find, please e-mail your answers to the following questions. Do not log your find, until your answers have been submitted. A group answer will be accepted provided all group members are listed.
Requirements:
- Do you see any fossils? If so, please describe what you see.
- Do you see any erosion?
- Describe the Honeycomb weathering?
- Is the grain of this limestone coarse or fine?
- Please take a photo of yourself (or your GPS) in front of the waterfall to verify that you visited this site.
Permission granted by City of Sedan. 111 E Cherokee, Sedan, KS Phone: 620-725-3193
Park is maintained by the Hollow Park Committee. Chairman is Sue Allen. Contact City of Sedan for further information.