A local resident said this land is so flat he once sat on his
front porch and watched his dog run away for three days!
At this site you will experience the physiographic region know
as the Tipton Till Plain characterized by flat to slightly rolling
terrain. The panoramic views toward the southwest to northeast are
typical of Indiana’s Central Plain. The area offers unobstructed
horizons, so satellite reception is excellent.
This location illustrates how the planet on which we live was
shaped by glacier activity during the Ice Age. The events that
formed what appears to be a somewhat simple and monotonous
landscape are actually quite complex.
The Laurentide ice sheet covered Canada and much of the Midwest
during the Pleistocene Epoch. At its maximum extent it spread as
far south as latitude 37° N and covered an area of more than 5
million square miles. In some areas its thickness reached
8,000–10,000 feet or more. About 17,000 years ago the low sloping
southern lobe of the Laurentide ice sheet located in this region
experienced a series of climate related surges.
The Tipton Till Plain is the result of repeated glacial scour
and infilling of deep bedrock valleys. Glacial till and outwash
were deposited as the ice advanced and retreated from the area more
than eight times. The sediments left behind consist of boulders,
cobbles, sand, silt and clay gouged and scraped from the landscapes
across which the ice moved. The rich soils found in this region
today are attributed, in part, to the deposited sediments carried
by the glacier from as far away as Canada.
In compliance with the new GSA EarthCaching guidelines to log
your find you must complete a special task during your visit. While
at this site rub a small sample of the deposited soil between your
fingers and thumb and determine its texture by the degree to which
the following characteristic properties are observed.
Sand, silt, and clay are names that describe the size of
individual soil particles.
Sand - The largest particles and feels "gritty".
Silt - Medium sized particles and feels soft, silky or
"floury".
Clay - The smallest sized particles, feels "sticky" when wet and
forms extremely hard clods or lumps when dry.
Send this collected data to me via email. Do not include this
information in your log.
As mentioned satellite reception is excellent at this location.
While you are there take a bit of time to allow you GPS receiver to
"settle" setting in its optimal position on the wooden post. Record
the coordinates received and later enter them as a waypoint during
your log along any comments about the accuracy, number of
satellites, etc. The similarities (or differences) in the
coordinates contained in the logs will be interesting to compare.
You are encouraged to post a photo of your GPS receiver prominently
displayed on the wooden post located at the coordinates
provided.
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST FOR THE LOCAL AREA
