Camp Christopher Natural Bridge - Summit County, Ohio
N 41° 11.421 W 081° 40.594
17T E 443263 N 4560108
This small natural bridge is found near the western edge of CYO Camp Christopher in Bath Twp, Summit County, Ohio. 5-foot span with 20-foot clearance.
Waymark Code: WM8QJF
Location: Ohio, United States
Date Posted: 05/03/2010
Views: 29
From the book “Rainbows of Rock, Tables of Stone – The Natural Arches and Pillars of Ohio” by Timothy A. Snyder © 2009:
"Camp Christopher Natural Bridge takes its name from the Catholic Youth Organization’s Camp Christopher (named after Christopher Columbus) where it is found. …it formed in a wall left between a pit in the Sharon Formation and a line of ledges." The pit is 23 feet deep. “Its other dimensions [are] 60 feet long and 20 feet wide… The conglomerate here appears to be … resistant to erosion through its entire exposed depth. The walls of this pit are straight-sided with very little undercutting and the enlarged vertical crevice which forms the opening of the natural bridge exhibits no marked widening in any part.
"This bridge was formed as a result of erosion by an intermittent stream falling into the pit. The stream, the opening of the natural bridge and the valley beyond it are all in a line. A groove across the top of the lintel most likely represents the original course of the stream to the edge of the cliff. Eventually it was detoured through crevices down into the enlarging pit and out through the vertical crevice in the face of the cliff which was then enlarged to form the arch opening. This widening extends to within 1 foot of the top of the lintel. The means by which the pit formed are not clear. Undercutting and collapse may have played a part… The uncertainty is due in part to a pile of glacial erratics dumped into the pit down which the stream now drops as a cascade. The boulders were no doubt brought to the pit and dumped into by farmers clearing the surrounding fields. Perhaps they felt that the pit was useless and dangerous, and therefore a good place to dispose of their boulders.
"The surroundings of Camp Christopher Natural Bridge retain their primeval, forested aspect… The short, steep-sided gorge leading from the arch opening is especially impressive, shaded as it is with Eastern Hemlock and other northern-type trees."
Photo of the Arch by itself?: yes
Type of Arch: Water Eroded
Type of Material:
Sharon conglomerate sandstone
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