Dutch Creek Hoodoos - Fairmont, British Columbia
Posted by: T0SHEA
N 50° 18.676 W 115° 53.920
11U E 578417 N 5573819
These Hoodoos at Dutch Creek are along Kootenay Hwy./95 Hwy. There is a bridge at this location and a small pullout. A pedestrian walkway is on the north side of the bridge.
Waymark Code: WMVJEF
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 04/25/2017
Views: 7
The Dutch Creek Hoodoos according to the Ktunaxa Creation Story are the ribs of a huge sea monster. The hoodoos are a spectacular sight as you travel long the highway. A well known landmark and enjoyed by passersby through the East Kootenays.
Hoodoos are a specific type of formation that is caused when sediment erodes at different rates due to different types of sediment. The softer sedimentary rock lies underneath a harder rock, and it causes the sedimentary rock to be partially protected. The exposed limestone at the top hardened and this created the top-rock for these hoodoos, but this also means that they change a lot. This change is very slow and not noticeable in the short period. The alternating hardening along with the wind and rain is what creates the strange structure of the hoodoos.
The hoodoos are part of a terrace of glacial deposits and these cliffs were the result of the erosion of the terrace by Dutch Creek flood waters that separated the terrace at this point.