Victoria Glades Earth cache
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The Victoria glades are part of a large complex of glades. starting just east of the Big River near Morse Mill and extending eastward, beyond Hillsboro and Desoto, to Festus, then south into Ste. Genevieve County.
The Victoria Glades Area is composed of 239 acres within this large band. This large complex of glades occurs in a band 2 to 5 miles wide. These glades are principally on Jefferson City-Cotter dolomite of Ordivician age.
The Jefferson County glades are commonly found on south and southwest-facing slopes with forested ridges and are characterized by thin soil and bedrock at or near the surface. Water saturates the ground in winter and spring, but soils become droughty in summer and fall. Grasses and broad-leaved, flowering plants are plentiful. Little bluestem, Indian grass, side oats gramma, big bluestem, and prairie dropseed are common grasses. Scores of non-grass species provide food for wildlife and add beautiful color to the glades during seasonal peaks. Small pockets of dry upland forest dominated by blackjack oak are also established here. Other trees and shrubs found on the glades include eastern red cedar, gum bumelia, post oak, flowering dogwood, Indian cherry, and fragrant sumac. Forest vegetation surrounds the open glade areas and many kinds of snakes and lizards as well as larger animals, such as deer and turkey, live in this area.
These glades have been only lightly disturbed by human activity, which has preserved the natural beauty of the location. The plants and animals here are similar to what was here at the time of settlement. The glades are dominated by little bluestem, Indian grass, big bluestem and prairie dropseed. Other plants although not as dominant as the grasses, provide good wildlife food and add beautiful color to the glades during seasonal peaks of blooming including the Fremont's leather flower which occurs only in this part of Missouri The small intermittent streams, which drain the glades add diversity to the area. For such a small area, remarkable examples exist of stream ledges, waterfalls, overhangs, and pools. You will find all types of wild life in the area, various snakes, lizards, scorpions, and beetles, call this area home. Larger animals such as squirrels, turkey, and white tail deer are also plentiful in the area. However Hunting is only permitted with a shotgun and Deer must have at least 4 points on one side of the rack, and can only be harvested with a Bow and arrow
You could easily spent half a day here taking in all the beauty and taking pictures, there is plenty of reason to compete the rest of the trail after the cache requirements have been met. However please do not take any live wildlife or rocks home with you. Instead take pictures that will last a lifetime. Nuts, berries, mushrooms and wild greens may be harvested for personal use but removing any other vegetation is prohibited. Digging of roots is prohibited at Victoria Glades!!
Please be courteous when visiting this earth cache. Remember it is a designated natural area, and for it to stay preserved so that other visitors can enjoy it you must respect it for what it is and follow the #1 principal of Earth Caches "Leave no Trace". Be sure to follow all of the posted rules of the area. THIS IS AN EARTH CACHE AND THEIR IS NO PHYSICAL CONTAINER ONSITE!!!
To log this cache as a find you must take a picture of yourself and your GPS at the coordinates listed below, and answer the following questions. E-mail me the answers and post the pictures in your log. Any answers or spoilers posted in the log will cause the log to be deleted. ANY LOG WITHOUT PICTURES IN THE LISTED AREAS WILL BE DELETED!! I will not accept pictures of a hand or just a GPS. I understand that sometimes we cache alone, but at least take a picture of yourself with the feature in the back ground.
Pictures
1. Trail Up the Hill (oak trees trail sign) (N 38 12.061 W 090 32.661)
2. Up-hill view of main glade (N 38 11.985 W 090 32.653)
3. GPS rocks on main trail (N 38 11.941 w 090 32.887)
Questions
1. How many different types of rock glades are there in Missouri? What are they
2. What type of rock glade is Victoria Glades?
3. Which direction do the dolomite rock glades face?
4. What is the difference in elevation from the Parking lot(N 38 12.178 W 090 32.578) and the top of the hill by the first waypoint( N 38 12.061 W 090 32.661)
Directions
From the junction of Highway BB and Highway 21 in Hillsboro,
turn east onto Main Street.
After several hundred yards, the road ends. Turn to the right onto
Vreeland Rd., which becomes Victoria-Hillsboro Rd. Victoria Glade
is approximately 2.3 miles from the intersection of Main & Vreeland
on Victoria-Hillsboro Road.
Turn left into a small Missouri Department of Conservation/TNC parking area. (N 38 12.178 W 090 32.578)
I would like to thank Paul Whitsell from The Missouri Department of Conservation for allowing me to place this Earth Cache.
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)