This is not your typical geocache, it is an Earthcache, you will not find a "cache container" rather, an Earthcache is designed to bring you to a geological feature. See http://www.earthcache.org/ for further details.
The coordinates above will bring you to an area where you can see the beautiful Cumberland Falls. However, in order to log this EarthCache as a “find”, you must learn a bit more about the river, the falls and the interesting features that make this spot unique.
CUMBERLAND FALLS
Cumberland Falls is sometimes called the Niagara of the South.
On average the falls, which flow over a resistant sandstone bed, are 68 feet (21 m) high and 125 feet (38 m) wide, with a water flow of 3,600 cubic feet per second (100 m³/s). Under a full moon on clear nights, an elusive lunar rainbow or moonbow is sometimes formed by the mist emanating from the falls. The site is promoted as the only one in the world to feature this phenomenon. Actually, almost any waterfall can produce a moonbow under ideal conditions; however, many comparable sites have too much light for this feature to be visible.
CUMBERLAND RIVER
The Cumberland River is 687 miles (1,106 km) long. It starts in Harlan County in eastern Kentucky on the Cumberland Plateau, flows through southeastern Kentucky before crossing into northern Tennessee, and then curves back up into western Kentucky before draining into the Ohio River at Smithland, Kentucky.
In 1748, Dr. Thomas Walker led a party of hunters across the Appalachian Mountains from Virginia. Walker, a Virginian, was an explorer and surveyor of renown. He gave the name "Cumberland" to the lofty range of mountains his party crossed, in honor of Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland who, he said, was as crooked as the river. Dams at various locations of the Cumberland River have created large reservoirs for recreation such as Lake Barkley in western Kentucky and Lake Cumberland (the deepest lake in the Tennessee and Cumberland river valleys) in southern Kentucky. Cordell Hull and Old Hickory Lake to the east of Nashville and Cheatham Lake to the west. Laurel Lake, on the Laurel River in southern Kentucky, the Dale Hollow Reservoir on the Obey River in northeast middle Tennessee, and Percy Priest Lake on the Stones River in Nashville are each created by dams just upstream from their respective confluence with the Cumberland River.
DANIEL BOONE NATIONAL FOREST
The DANIEL BOONE NATIONAL FOREST, which is adjacent to the Cumberland Falls State Park, runs from the northern to the southern part of the state. It is located in the eastern Kentucky mountains. The land is generally rugged and characterized by steep slopes, narrow valleys, and cliffs. In the southern end of the forest, slopes are not as steep, and ridge tops are generally more flat. Top attractions of this forest are cliffs, sandstone arches, and canyon-like hollows and valleys. Like the Big South Fork NRA, the forest's neighbor to the south, the area reminds many of southwest canyon country — with enough rainfall, however, to sustain a mixed hardwood forest.
CUMBERLAND FALLS STATE PARK Cumberland Falls has 17 miles of hiking trails that wind through the park to scenic areas. The Moonbow Trail connects with many backpacking trails in the Daniel Boone National Forest.
LOGGING THE CACHE
In order to log this cache, you must do the following things:
1.Take a picture of yourself with the waterfall in the background and with your GPS visible in the photo, so we know that you were here. Post this picture with your log.
2. Was the waterfall always at this location?
3. What type of rock makes up the lip of the falls?
4. Is the flow (discharge) of water constant year round?
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