I love this little park. It is so peaceful and full of history.
Songs have been written about this river, families gather here and
time can be recorded.
Park at N35 49.287 W079 47.968
Walk along the path to N35 49.323 W079 48.044. Stand here to
view Worm Rock.
The Deep River had has a rich history. Factories built empires.
Towns grew. Cities and farms got water and all because this river
has a constant flow.
At times, this river had flooded the entire valley. Millions of
gallons of water per minute have passed the spot you are now
standing. As the water covered the rocks, it wore them down.
The rock you are looking at in the river has facinated me. One
side, worn smooth and breaking in layers. The other side, holes
like worms have crawled through the rock. This is your target.
As the water flowed, it carried loose rocks, gravel and sand and
wore down the upstream side. Occasionally, a rock would get caught
in one of the cracks and roll around with the current, like a rock
in a rock tumber. The loose rock would get smaller and smaller
until it would wash away and get replaced by another rock. The
holes in worm rock would get bigger and bigger as each new rock
would replace the one that was washed away.
Once the Randleman Dam was built, the seasonal flooding stopped.
Now, Worm Rock sits for all to wonder, how the holes were
created.
To get credit for visiting Worm Rock, send an email with the
following information:
1) What side (N, S, E, W or variation of these) are the 'worm
holes?'
2) How big are the worm holes? Give your best estimate.
3) Estimate the water speed. You can do that by pacing out 100
feet along the bank, go to the beginning spot, drop a leaf, time
how long takes to travel the 100 feet. Then, divide the 100 feet by
the time it took.
4) I know it is optional, but it would be nice if you posted a
picture of your group at the park. I like to see who visited.
Hope you have fun.