Devil's Racetrack Virtual Cache
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(virtual)
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You must drive approximately 27 miles on washboard roads to see the moving rocks. This takes a while so plan to take most of your day for this one. When we went there, mostly trucks were on the road. However, we did see a few rental cars out there so it can be done! Make sure you stop at 'Teakettle Junction' cache along the way. It is also a nice spot.
Here is a puzzle for you. How do these rocks move?
The Devil’s racetrack is a playa. A playa is a very shallow lake that forms when water runs off the surrounding mountains into a basin. This water carries fine mud and silt into the basin. The sediments settle evenly across the bottom of the lake. With nowhere for the water to flow, it evaporates leaving only the dried mud. These playas are some of the flattest natural landforms in the world.
Rocks of varying sizes break off from the surrounding mountains and roll onto the playa. When the playa is wet, the rocks slide across the shallow surface leaving tracks in the mud. Boulders weighing up to 320 kg (705 pounds) have been found to move across this “racetrack”. Some have been measured to move up to 880 meters (2890 feet)! When you visit this place, it will be obvious to you that the rocks have moved. However, nobody has ever seen them move.
If you have taken the time to drive all the way out here, drive a little farther to the south end of the racetrack. This is where you can see the rocks and their tracks. PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE THE ROCKS! They are meaningless when they are not here to move! Remember, it is illegal to remove ANYTHING from any national park.
To log this cache, please post or email a picture of yourself or team member with your GPS. You must take the picture with the Grand Stand in the background or near some of the rocks with their tracks. If you do not have a camera, send us the EXACT wording on the sign that tells how playas are formed. We would also like you to give us your theory on how the rocks move.
Happy caching!
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Treasures
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