Balanced Rock has often been called the Eighth Wonder of the
World. However that may be, it has certainly been one of the
world's most photographed rocks. Favorite photographs have included
those of someone trying to push the rock over or of someone posed
in front of the rock, sitting astride a burro or horse.Old-time
tour drivers often told unsuspecting touists that Balanced Rock
rotated on its axis once a year; should they come back the
following year they would see an entirely different face of the
rock. Area children, for their part, often placed empty coke
bottles under the bottom of the rock before a windstorm. On their
return, they would find the bottle shattered to pieces. This
practice came to an end at mid-century after a group of college
students attempted to topple the rock, and the city park department
was forced to add a stabilizing layer of cement around the base of
the rock.
Balanced Rock did not become a part of the Garden of the Gods Park
until the early 1930's. Before that it was private property. During
the 1890's a youngster of fourteen named Curt Goerke began taking
photographs of visitors to the rock for a quarter of a dollar each.
Soon he was making so much money that his father Paul quit his job,
learning photography, and bought Balanced Rock and nearby Mushroom
Park for $400. By the first decade of the twentieth century, the
pair were taking pictures of tourists - often seating them atop the
four burros kept nearby. The wet plates were developed in the
Goerke Photography Shop attached to nearby Steamboat Rock. As
business improved, stairs were cut into Steamboat Rock, and a
telescope installed on the top.
Geologists claim that the story of the Garden of the Gods began
nearly 300 million years ago, when sediment from the Ancestral
Rockies was carried eastward and spread out into great alluvial
fans. This sediment was then reddened by ferric iron and long
covered by a shallow inland sea. Some sixty million years ago -
when the modern Rocky Mountains began their upward thrust - the
horizontal sedimentary rocks were elevated and tilted skyward. The
forces of wind and rain then gradually stripped away the softer
layers, sculptering balanced rock into the form we see today.
To get credit for this find post a picture of yourself (face
included) with GPS in hand at Balanced Rock and answer the folowing
questions. Logs with no photos will be deleted without
notice.
1. What type of stone is Balanced Rock?
2. Estimate the height of balanced rock
3. As you leave on the road next to Balanced Rock, going towards
Maintou, are you going uphill or downhill?
PLEASE READ! BEING A OWNER OF ANY CACHE TYPE CAN BE A JOURNEY IN
ITSELF WITH THE VISITORS WHO LOG THE CACHES, BE IT A GOOD
EXPERIENCE OR BAD.IF YOU LOG THE EC IN ANY LANGUAGE OTHER THAN
ENGLISH, I AM ASKING FOR YOU TO TRANSLATE THE LANGUAGE TO ME
THROUGH EMAIL BEFORE POSTING. IF YOU USE ACRONYMS ONLY KNOWN TO
YOURSELF, AGAIN I AM ASKING FOR A DEFINITION BEFORE POSTING.
FAILURE TO FOLLOW THE POSTED LOGGING REQUIREMENTS WILL RESULT IN A
LOG DELETION.
DO NOT LOG UNTIL YOU HAVE A PICTURE TO POST
| Cav Scout has earned GSA's highest
level |
 |
Do not log this
EC unless you have answered the questions and have a picture ready
to post! Logs with no photo of the actual cacher (human face
included) logging the find or failure to answer questions or
negative comments will result in a log deletion without notice.
Exceptions will be considered if you contact me first (I realize
sometimes we forget our cameras or the batteries die). You must
post a photo at the time of logging your find. If your picture is
not ready then wait until you have a photo.
Sources of
information for the EarthCache quoted from the Garden of The Gods
website. I have used sources available to me by using google search
to get information for this earth cache. I am by no means a
geologist.. I use books, internet, and ask questions about geology
just like 99.9 percent of the geocachers who create these great
Earth Caches. I enjoy Earth Caches and want people to get out and
see what I see every time I go and explore this great place we live
in.