I have to give a lot of credit for this EC to the CO who had the original EarthCache Here: Nick&Nora2. I have used most of their research along some of my own to create this GZ. Please observe the times that this area is open to view. The picture below will show them.
In this Rest area there is a swamp area known as the Blue Elbow. The Boardwalk will take you on a very nice walk through it. This Sabine River (riverine) wetland is one of the largest remaining blocks of swamp on the Texas coast and is currently comprised of 3,313 acres. Blue Elbow Swamp straddles Interstate 10 between Orange, Texas, and the Texas-Louisiana state border. The area receives the name "Blue Elbow" from a sharp turn in the channel of the Sabine River.
TEXAS WETLANDS
The state of Texas contains 5 distinct types of wetlands as depicted in the map below: playa lakes, springs and riparian wetlands, resacas and depressions, marshes and prairie depressions, and bottomland hardwoods. Texas wetlands can be also be divided broadly into two types: freshwater or coastal wetlands. The Blue Elbow Swamp belongs to the "freshwater" wetland classification. Freshwater wetlands can form wherever shallow water collects on the land.
EAST TEXAS WETLANDS
Bottomland hardwoods (also called forested wetlands) are the dominate wetlands in East Texas and known for the large trees that live in the water. Unlike most of Texas, large amounts of rain fall in East Texas. This rain floods the streams and rivers, spilling water out of its banks. The force of this flooding often reshapes the stream bottoms and floodplains, forming bottomland hardwood wetlands in heavily wooded areas. Floods can cut across stream and river curves, forming new channels for the water to flow through. When this happens, oxbow curves and/or lakes form in the "cut-off loop" of the stream channel. The sharp oxbow turn in the Sabine River resulted in the name of The Blue Elbow Swamp.
GEOLOGY
What makes a piece of land a "wet-land"? Not all wetlands are wet for the same reason. Hydrology (water characteristics) is one of the defining features of a wetland. The soil and plants in wetlands are shaped by the presence of water. Hydrology involves the study of the movement, distribution, and quality of water, including the hydrologic cycle, water resources and environmental watershed sustainability. The amount, flow, composition and source of water helps determine the soil type and vegetation found there. The Blue Elbow Swamp receives its water source from "surface flow". This means that there is an active cycling of water and nutrients from a visible water source. As the Sabine River winds its way to the Gulf of Mexico, it passes through forested lowlands. The combination of river flooding, high rainfalls, and low land gradients (plus poor drainage) creates the perfect wetland or swamp. Technically, a wetland is a land area saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, such that it takes on the characteristics of a distinct ecosystem. What distinguishes wetlands from other land forms or water bodies is the characteristic vegetation that is adapted to its unique soil conditions. The Blue Elbow Swamp is a wetland ecosystem characterized by mineral soils with poor drainage and by plant life dominated by trees. The soil type of the Blue Elbow swamp is hydric (soil which is permanently or seasonally saturated by water).
SOIL INDICATORS
Approximately 2,000 named soils in the United States occur in wetlands. Such soils, called hydric soils, have characteristics that show they developed in conditions where the presence of water has limited soil oxygen for long periods during the growing season. If the Natural Resources Conservation Service has listed the soil in your area as hydric, the area might be a wetland. Hydric soil indicators include:
• Soil consists predominantly of decomposed plant material (peats or mucks).
• Soil has a thick layer of decomposing plant material on the surface.
• Soil has a bluish gray or gray color below the surface, or the major color of the soil at this depth is dark (brownish black or black) and dull.
• Soil is sandy and has a layer of decomposing plant material at the soil surface.
• Soil is sandy and has dark stains or dark streaks of organic material in the upper layer below the soil surface.
Hydrology indicators
Some wetlands are hard to recognize because they are dry during part of the year. Wetland hydrology refers to the presence of water at or above the soil surface for a sufficient period of the year to significantly influence the plant types and soils that occur in the area. Most hydrologic indicators are observed during field inspection. Most do not reveal either the frequency, timing, or duration of flooding or the soils saturation. However, the following indicators provide some evidence of the periodic presence of flooding or soil saturation:
• Standing or flowing water is observed on the area during the growing season.
• Soil is waterlogged during the growing season.
• Water marks are present on trees or other erect objects. Such marks show that water periodically covers the area to the depth shown on the objects.
• Drift lines, which are small piles of debris oriented in the direction of water movement through an area, are present. These often occur along contours and represent the approximate extent of flooding in an area.
• Thin layers of sediments are deposited on leaves or other objects.
BENEFITS OF WETLANDS
Wetlands are part of the foundation of our nation's water resources and are vital to the health of waterways and communities that are downstream. They feed downstream waters, recharge groundwater supplies, and remove pollution. They also trap floodwaters and can be compared to giant sponges or reservoirs. When heavy rains cause flooding, swamps and other wetlands help absorb the excess water and the effects of flooding are lessened.
CACHE LOCATION
SE Texas residents and I-10 travelers are fortunate to be able to visit the Blue Elbow Swamp courtesy of the TxDOT Travel Information Center on I-10 at the Sabine River. The Travel Information Center provides excellent interpretive displays for visitors. A 600 foot boardwalk leads from the Center into the swamp, providing visitors with outstanding views! Please observe the posted rules and hours!
IN ORDER TO LOG THIS CACHE, YOU MUST SEND THE ANSWERS TO THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS TO ME . Logs without those answers and the picture needed will be deleted
Please do not post any answers, encrypted or otherwise, in your log. This will result in your log being deleted. Incorrect answers or logging without sending the correct answers will also result in deletion of log. No exceptions.
1. At GZ, Describe the soil that you see ? After reading the leason,In your opinion, what is it composed of ?
2. What makes the Blue Swamp a geology lesson?
3 .On your walk along the boardwalk, can you see any distinct differences at each informational sign location The signs talk about wild-life in the swamp but my question involves the landscape you see. If so, what are they and why do you think this is?
4. Post a picture of you and/or your group at the last informational sign which is located at the end of the boardwalk in your log. This IS a required task.
Permission for Earthcache granted by: Travel Information Division; TxDOT, Texas Travel Information Center, Orange, TX 77632 on 2 October 2022.