Los Caballos -- Ouachita Fold Belt, US 385 S of Marathon TX
N 30° 04.005 W 103° 16.473
13R E 666316 N 3327436
A highway rest area and historic marker at a fascinating rock formation south of Marathon
Waymark Code: WMV0BV
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 02/01/2017
Views: 3
The state historic marker for Los Caballos, a formation in the Ouachita Structural Belt through this part of Texas, is located in an otherwise nondescript 1960s-vintage rest area along the US 385 south of Marathon.
The marker reads as follows:
"LOS CABALLOS
(in core of Ouachuta Structural Belt)
Highly deformed rocks in the Ouachita Fold Belt, a northeasterly trending range, uplifted about 275 to 290 million years ago. The intricate folding is shown by whitish rock bands--called caballos (the Spanish word for horses)--exposed on both sides of this highway. The Ouachita Fold is comparable in age to the uplift that formed the Appalachians in the eastern part of the United States.
The northwesterly trending Del Norte-Santiago range (southmost extension of the Rocky Mountains) forms the southwestern skyline. The rocks of the range were deposited in a sea that covered the Ouachita Fold Belt after erosion had reduced the highlands and a later submergence lowered the area. Santiago Peak (named for a local man who was killed by Indians and buried beneath the peak) is the high, flat-topped mountain to the southwest. It was once a mass of molten magma that cooled and hardened underneath the earth's surface and was uncovered by later erosion. The Del Norte-Santiago range, uplifted and folded 40 to 60 million years ago, is not half the age of the Ouachita Fold. This is a remarkable fusion of ""old"" and ""young"" mountains--and is unmatched at any other site in North America. (1970)"
Waymark is confirmed to be publicly accessible: yes
Access fee (In local currency): .00
Requires a high clearance vehicle to visit.: no
Requires 4x4 vehicle to visit.: no
Public Transport available: no
Website reference: [Web Link]
Parking Coordinates: Not Listed
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Visit Instructions:
No specific requirements, just have fun visiting the waymark.