Chisos Mountains -- Big Bend National Park TX
N 29° 17.834 W 103° 22.554
13R E 657743 N 3242011
A sign along the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive explains the volcanic origins of the Chisos Mountains
Waymark Code: WMTZJV
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 01/28/2017
Views: 4
This sign near a fascinating magma dome feature explains the volcanic origins of Big Bend National Park's Chisos Mountains as follows:
"CHISOS MOUNTIANS
Volcanic Heart of the Big Bend
The mountain mass rising out of the desert was once molten rock. Study the shapes of the peaks to make sense of the geologic battleground, this jumble of corruptions and underground flows.
Angular blocks like Casa Grande our stratified layers of lava and ash - remnants of flows from nearby volcanoes. Rounded features like Ward Mountain were subterranean domes of magma that became prominent as erosion scraped away thousands of feet of overlying sedimentary layers.
[photo]
Lava at Kilauea, Hawaii. lava like this flowed across Big Bend at temperatures of about 1800*F.
[Inset photo]
Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive commemorates Big Bend’s first superintendent, Ross Maxwell, who published classic studies of the area’s geology."
Waymark is confirmed to be publicly accessible: yes
Access fee (In local currency): 25.00
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.