Michigan has many HIGH & LOW places, but the highest point
in altitude is Mt. Arvon, in the Upper Peninsula, at 1979 feet
above sea level. This cache is to introduce you to Michigan's
lowest point in altitude.
Taking a look at the lowest point in Michigan we need to look at
how this came to be. During the geomorphic age (nearly a billion
years ago) created mountains covering the regions now known as
northern Wisconsin and Minnesota, and the Laurentian Mountains were
formed in eastern Canada. Over time these mountains eroded, while
occasional volcanic activity continued. Molten magma below the
highlands of what is now Lake Superior spewed out to its sides,
causing the highlands to sink and form a mammoth rock basin that
would one day hold Lake Superior. Eventually the fracture
stabilized and, over time, the rock tilted down from northwest to
southeast. This is the primary reason that the Great Lakes basin
came to be.
The region went from fire to ice with the arrival of the glaciers,
which advanced and retreated several times over the last 5 million
years. During the periods of glaciations, giant sheets of ice
flowed across the land, leveling mountains and carving out massive
valleys. Where they encountered more resistant bedrock in the
north, only the overlying layers were removed. To the south, the
softer sandstones and shale’s were more affected.
Without the immense weight of the glaciers-thousands of feet thick
in places- the land began to rebound. Even today, virtually all of
the land in the Great Lakes basin continues to rise. Southern parts
of the basin are rising slightly, less than 3 inches per century.
The northeastern corner of the Lake Superior basin, however, is
rebounding in excess of 21 inches per century. This action is
reason that this area is and will continue to be the lowest
position in Michigan.
To log this cache, please submit a photo of your team and the
town's namesake in the backround.
Questions:
1. What is the primary river that feeds Lake Erie?
2. The water level here happens to be nearly 30 foot lower than
what lake?
3. Why might your reading differ from the official reading of
572?
Please EMAIL the answers to these questions to the owner of this
cache. Please do not post them.