Alexandra Ellis
Exam 1
September 23rd, 2015
Mesa Verde National Park
Mesa Verde National Park, established in 1906 by President Roosevelt, is a part of the Colorado Plateau and lies in the Southwestern corner of Colorado. The park covers about eighty-one square miles and the entire Mesa Verde area which contains the park, is about five hundred and twenty square miles. (nationalparkguru.com) The park was established as a “national park” to protect archaeological sites made from the ancestral Anasazi (Puebloan) people who built cliff dwellings within alcoves in the walls of the canyons. The park is the biggest preserved area for archaeological sites in the United States. Mesa Verde has many different geological
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features that make the park significant. Some of the features which make the park unique would be the layers of sedimentary rocks, fifteen canyons that run throughout the park and alcoves which were caused by weathering of the sandstone in the canyon walls. There are different types of sedimentary rock layers in Mesa Verde National Park.
The most abundant rock types would be: sandstones, shales, siltstones and mudstones. Although the Mesa might look flat, it is a cuesta that slopes to the south. Dakota Sandstone is the primary rock bed that lays under the park. This particular rock forms the escarpment of Mesa Verde. (Harris et al. 96). Mancos Shale is another layer of rock on top of the Sandstone. Sandstone rimrock is the top and youngest layer of the park. The textbook states, “Because the mancos has a high clay content, it expands when wet and causes slumping and sliding so that the road has to be repaired frequently”. (Harris et al. 96) The mancos consist of fine-grained sandstones, shales and mudstones. The main group of rock units would be the late cretaceous Mesaverde Group. This group of sedimentary layers consists of the Point Lookout Sandstone, the Cliff House Sandstone and Menefee. These formations consist mainly of sandstones, shales, silts and muds. Loess covers the top of Mesa Verde National Park which makes the area very …show more content…
fertile. Mesa Verde National Park is also known for its fifteen narrow canyons. The Mancos River which drains the cuesta has created a long valley along the eastern and southern edge of the park. Streams and weathering during the Tertiary period have caused erosion to the abundant layers of sedimentary rock. Because of the erosion, it has created fifteen narrow canyons. The canyons contain ephemeral streams which drain into the Mancos River. (Cerrara, gec.cr.usgs.gov) During a period when the climate was humid and wet, the canyon walls would become damp and thus would collapse, creating the famous sandstone alcoves. The alcoves were home to many Indians and the homes are preserved to this day. Mesa Verde National Park consists of many alcoves.
Because the park shifts south at an angle, the conditions are ideal for alcove formation. These alcoves were once used as cliff dwellings by the Anasazi Indians. Alcoves are formed in the Cliff House Sandstone formations in the canyons. This formation in particular is the youngest bedrock of the Mesa Verde. The formation is about 400 feet in thickness and forms the bold, orange cliffs in the canyons. (Harris et al. 99) The canyons consist of porous sandstone formations and shale formations. When wet, the sandstone holds water and the walls to turn into a cement. Over time the cement dries, the sandstone freezes and expands in the winter thus causing the sandstone to chip out hollow areas in the canyon walls. Because the Shale formation is not permeable like the sandstone, it keeps water pooled in a certain area and this determines how shallow or deep the alcoves are formed. This is also how the springs are formed in the area. The process of alcove formation has slowed down over time. The wetness of the Cliff House formations and humid climate around canyon walls is what allowed the alcoves to be produced
faster. Mesa Verde National Park contains many significant geological features. According to scienceviews.com, The first formation of the park was deposited about one hundred to seventy-five million years ago. (scienceviews.com) During the Cretaceous era, the sea then deposited layers of sediments which accumulated over time and this is how the formations started. With weathering and layering of different types of rock beds, the canyons and alcoves were formed. Mesa Verde National Park is well known for the cliff dwellings which reside in the alcoves. If the park was not protected, it is likely that these features would wither away.
The Don Valley Brickwork consists of many different layers of geological deposits, allowing us to observe and have a better understanding of how the sediments we see today are formed. The most bottom layer in the Brickworks are from the Georgian Bay Formation, and consists of grey- shale bedrocks. Fossils are often found in this layer and it is estimated that this deposit of sediments is around 445 million years old. Above the bedrocks is a thin layer of grey clay sand and gavels left behind by the Illinoian Glacier. This layer is called the York Till and occurred around 135,000 years ago. The next layer consists of a sandy deposit called the Don Formation, which is formed by the Sangamonian Interglacial Stage. Many plant and animal fossils are found in this layer due to warmer climate around 120,000 years ago. Above it lies the Scarborough Formation, which consist of clay and sand. This sediment likely occurred 115 - 106,000 years ago. The next layer above is the Poetry Road Formation, and consist of sand and gravel. This layer is likely formed during the early Wisconsin glacial substage around 106- 75,000 years ago. Higher is the Sunnybrook Drift which was formed 60 – 75,000 years ago. And on the surface, is the Halton Till, which was left behind by the final push of the Wisconsin Glacier.
...e morphed it into the quartzite that is seen surrounding the butte (4). Rocks that undergo this process are called metamorphic rock, which is the same as the rock seen years ago by dinosaurs and other extinct creatures. The quartzite rocks were formerly seafloor sediment that was forced upwards, and then surrounded by lava basalt flows. Once erupted through fissures and floods through out most of the area, lava flow eventually created enough basalt to form a thickness of about 1.8 kilometers (1). All of this basalt flow eventually led to the covering of most mountains, leaving the buttes uncovered. The igneous lava flows and loess is reasons that the Palouse consists of such sprawling hills, and rich soil for farming (2). In result of the lava flows, the Precambrian rock Quartzite was formed. And lastly covered by the glacial loess, which were carried by the wind.
Canyonlands National Park, immense amounts of wilderness and rock, is located at the heart of the Colorado Plateau (Canyonlands National Park-Geology). Millions of years have formed specific features to the rock and surrounding wilderness that make it so special. Throughout the park, you will find that the sedimentary rock has formed many features such as hundreds of colorful canyons, mesas, buttes, fins, arches, and spires. The Green and Colorado rivers have played a major role in the formation of many of these features. These rivers cut through the park forming two massive canyons. This further splits the park into three distinct zones. “Island in the Sky” sits to the north while “The Maze” sits off to the west and “The Needles” to the east (Canyonlands National Park Information Guide). “Island in the Sky” serves as Canyonlands’ observation tower; it allows tourists to see overwhelming vistas of the rest of the land. “The Maze,” as hinted at by the name has been described as a “30 square mile puzzle in sandstone” (NPS: Nature & Science» Geology Resources Division). This section of the park often ranks as one of the most remote and inaccessible areas of the United States. Lastly, “The Needles” is known for its diversity in rock features. Throughout this land, features such as sculptured rock spires, arches, canyons, grabens, and potholes can be seen. The varying names hint at the diversity of the land as a whole. As said by The National Park Service’s Geology Resources Division, “Traces of the Anasazi can be found in almost every canyon in the Needles. Many of their stone and mud dwellings and storehouses are remarkably well-preserved. Tower Ruins, built high on a cliff ledge in a side canyon of Horse Canyon, is an outstanding ex...
National Park Services, U.S. Department of Interior. Nps.gov, 27 Dec. 2004. Web. The Web. The Web.
The geology, its history, and the presence of past civilizations contribute to much of the significance of Mesa Verde National Park. The interconnectedness of these aspects should also be noted. If not for the weathering processes and changes in sea level this formation would not exist. Without it, the ancient people would not have been able to reside within Mesa Verde. This National Park now serves as a tool to help conserve the remains of these past civilizations as well as to help educate today’s society on the significance behind this astonishing geologic
... of the Tuscan area used the Saguaro cactus for framework in the walls of their homes. The Saguaro ribs were used to collect the fruit that grew high up on the plant. The Hohokam people used the sweet fruits from the cacti for wine in ceremonies, jellies, and candies. They used the leftover seeds for chicken feed. Humans built houses in the Tuscan area, and it caused the Saguaro desert a large amount of it’s habitat. Now that us humans don’t have as much land to destroy, this national park is becoming safer by the day.
The Navajo Nation has four-sacred mountains- these mountains are Mount Blanca (Dawn or White Shell Mountain) of the East, Mount Taylor (Blue Bead or Turquoise Mountain) of the South, San Francisco Peaks (Abalone Shell Mountain) of the West, and Mount Hesperus (Big Mountain Sheep) of the North. The Navajo Nation Flag consist a drawing of the sacred mountains with a rainbow over these mountains. The rainbow is a symbol of Navajo Sovereignty.
Imagine a scenic, wild landscape with animals that roam freely, cascading waterfalls, and mountains that seem to scrape the pale blue sky. This is what one thinks when first hearing the name Yosemite National Park. Unfortunately, the reality is completely opposite. Yosemite is now under a federally regulated Class 1 area under the Clean Air Act, which is equivalent to the pollution of Los Angeles (“National Parks Service”). It is a sad comparison to the past John Muir, who first documented Yosemite Valley, to today’s reality. The condition of Yosemite National Park should be introduced to the American public in order to protect its historic beauty and significance, eliminate current pollution, and prevent future repercussions.
Zig-zag, back and forth, down, down, down, Jonathon, Dad, and I went into a mysterious new world. Now that I have gone into this hot, dry canyon surrounded by monstrous hoodoos, I have seen what it is really like to leave the small town of Seymour, and emerge into the greatness of this world. I have now seen several other National Parks on one of the most renowned places on earth for mysterious creations, the Colorado Plateau. Of all the beautiful places on it, even the Grand Canyon, I have found my favorite one. Bryce Canyon National Park. I thought it was amazing, because it was the most diverse to anything I have ever seen before. We hiked down into it and I felt like I was surrounded by skyscrapers. We trekked around a little, but we didn’t
The Little Missouri River eroding the mountain range is the reason that the park is as it looks today. The park is believed to be <60 million years old. Over 60 million years ago volcanos all over the west were erupting and spitting out amounts of ash. The rivers near the volcanos were gathering. The rivers began to dry out, leveeing the ash behind. The ash was being dried in layers and turned into sandstone, siltstone and mudstone while the ash layers became bentonite clay. This Bentonite clay is dangerous because it gets people stuck, like quick sand it is located throughout the park. It can pull the car tires un...
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