Category: location spotlight

Location Spotlight: Black Mountain Cascades

landscape, location spotlight

This post features one of my favorite places to visit and photograph in my beloved St. Francois Mountains. Black Mountain and these cascades that tumble down more than 400 vertical feet in a series of steps lie southwest of Fredericktown and can be found literally alongside Highway E.  The waters run under a drainage pipe in the road and travel another few yards before dumping into the St. Francois River. I was first turned on to this place by a fantastic landscape photographer of the Missouri Ozarks named Mark Karpinski.  I highly suggest looking him up and buying a bunch of his photographs for your walls.  His images are the best I’ve seen of this region.

“Rivers or Veins”

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera,  EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 12mm, ISO 200,  f/13, 0.5 sec

As I mentioned in previous posts, this “winter” brought out possibilities for photography that I would normally be taking advantage of in the warmer months.  These images were taken in early February following a couple of rainy days.  These cascades run out completely in dry times, so you must carefully plan a visit following rainy periods.

“Roll of Ancient Thunder”

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera,  EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 10mm, ISO 160,  f/13, 0.4 sec

Before you make plans for a visit, listen to warning.  There are no trails here – it is just bush-whacking up the slopes.  Sometimes you will need to go up leaf-littered hills and sometimes you must climb hand and foot over rocks and the cascades.  There are all sorts of risks here.  The rocks are extremely slippery.  I highly suggest the use of felt-bottomed shoes or waders and take all precautions against water and your camera equipment.  You will get wet!  In the growing season I have been to few places with as much or worse concentrations of poison ivy.  If you visit in mid to late summer, cover yourself head to toe and then burn your clothes afterwards.  And ticks!  In early February I hadn’t given a thought to ticks.  This day I received a tick bite and found another three on my pants.  I learned my lesson to pay attention to the temperature and not the calendar.

“Crash of Molars”

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera,  EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 20mm, ISO 200,  f/11, 2 sec

I’ve been fortunate enough to have spent some great days on this mountain.  I have visited on 50% chance of rain days and was able to spend a few hours of cloudy, but relatively rain free weather – perfect for this type of photography.  If you are in shape and have the determination to make the hike to the top, the view of the St. Francis River valley below is sure worth it.  Pack a picnic basket!

“Firing Diamonds At Boots”

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera,  EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 16mm, ISO 200,  f/13, 0.6 sec

The titles of the images in this post I stole from the lyrics of a song called “Buried in Teeth” by Mariee Sioux.  I can’s stop listening to this song or Mariee’s music in general lately.  I realize this may be considered IP infringement, but I have trouble with titles and I also wanted to  try and give her some props, so to speak.

“Swallowed Into the Gut of Centuries”

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera,  EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 11mm, ISO 200,  f/16, 0.8 sec

Thanks for visiting the blog.  You can find more of my photos from this location here.  If you decide to make an excursion to this spot or anywhere else into the St. Francois Mountain region, please be careful, enjoy yourself, leave only footprints and take only photographs!

Location Spotlight: Elephant Rocks

"monochrome", landscape, location spotlight

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 28mm, ISO 160,  f/14, 1.3 sec

Today we’re traveling back south to my favorite region for landscape photography, the rugged and beautiful St. Francois Mountains.  This location, known as Elephant Rocks, is located in Iron County and lies about six miles north of Ironton and two miles west of Graniteville.  By the names of these towns can you figure out what the principle economic activities of this area were historically?  The primary features of this location, the elephants, are easy to see in the image below.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 17mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 1/6 sec

So what are these “elephants” and how did they get there?  Well first of all these rocks are composed of a pink-colored, Graniteville Granite, or more affectionately known as “Missouri Red Granite”.  Geologists discern between different types of granite based on mineral grain-size and color.  Missouri Red is actually one of the younger granites of the St. Francois Mountains, coming in at a mere 1.3 billion years.  Missouri Red, collected from quarries surrounding this feature was used as paving stones that covered most of St. Louis near the turn of the 20th century.  It was also used in parts of the Eades Bridge, the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, the Missouri Governors Mansion in Jefferson City and in important buildings across more than a dozen cities in the United States.  It is still quarried today and used mostly for tombstones and counter-tops.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 10mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 1/6 sec

So, if you are reasonably educated in the discipline of geology and you were forced to guess how these boulders managed to be found here your first answer might be to suggest those great marble movers – the glaciers must have moved them here from up near Canada, right?  Sorry, the southern limit of intrusion of those sheets of ice was about where the Missouri River now flows about 150 miles or so to the north.  Hints upon the excepted mechanism of formation can be seen in the image above.

These boulders were formed by a process known as “spheroidal weathering”.  Before you reach for that tube of Preparation H, let me try to explain.  Sometime in the Pre-Cambrian molten rock was forced into the earth’s crust.  As the rock slowly cooled it formed long, nearly vertical joints, or fractures.  As time passed these rocks were covered with younger, sedimentary rocks.  When the Ozark Plateau was forced upward the resulting streams cut their way through this younger rock and eroded much of it away.  Erosional ground waters acted on the corners and edges of these granite joints quicker than on the surfaces and gradually increased these joints.  When the rocks were later exposed to the surface, erosion and weathering acted much quicker in forming the clean and rounded features of the boulders.  Plant life (tree and grass roots, lichen, etc…) also helped to chip away at the surfaces of these future boulders.  Eventually a tor – an exposed mass of bedrock, was left with these elephantine boulders now widely separated.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 10mm, ISO 100,  f/14, Photomatix-HDR blend of 9-images

Above you can see one of the more famous pachyderms who make this site their home, “Dumbo”.  This guy measures at about 27 feet tall, and with the incredible density of this granite (~160 lb per cubic ft) weighs close to 680 tons.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L USM lens @ 19mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 1/6 sec

Not even the people of the “it will never run out” period of western U.S. expansion would destroy something as unique as Elephant Rocks.  Although there has been mining of granite, iron, lead and other minerals throughout this area, Elephant Rocks still looks pretty much as it did 200 years ago.  When a quarry worker reached “master stonecutter” status they would carve their names here upon the boulders and bedrock.  This gives the place an interesting human historical aspect.  Today, this location is protected as a Missouri State Natural Area and a State Park.  There is a very well done ~mile paved “braille trail” that circles through many of the features of the park.  The trail’s meandering allows the blind to feel some of the geologic features and braille signs are posted to explain what the person is experiencing.  I find this to be a fantastic development.  In my opinion our country does nowhere nearly enough to help the blind and these people are often forced into greater dependence and exclusion because our government refuses to take the smallest of steps.  Ever notice how the US paper currency is all the same size?

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 12mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 1/10 sec

The tinajita, or panhole like those pictured above are more evidence of the weathering this exposed porphyry is being subjected to.  The process of seasonal freezing and thawing as water seeps ever deeper into minute cracks forms these shallow depressions that fill with water in wetter times allowing for animals like insects and frogs to have places to breed.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 15mm, ISO 100,  f/16, manual-HDR blend of 2-images

Elephant Rocks.  It comes as no surprise to those who live in the region – everything in the mid-western United States, but particularly the Ozarks is often overlooked in favor of the grand natural spectacles of the Rockies, the Appalachians, the South-West’s deserts and canyons, etc…  Well, Elephant Rocks is one location that should be on the bucket lists of any tourist, any rock-star landscape photographer or nature enthusiast.  It is a location deserving of being voiced-over by a James Earl Jones, Alec Baldwin or Brangelina in the nature documentary of the week.  I hesitate to scream too loudly, however. I have loved the times I’ve been able to spend hours here without seeing another bipedal ape and hope for many more. 

I’ve called this the place of unlimited compositions.  I have been fortunate enough to make a few images I really like and I look forward to many more visits over many more years to come to see what other compositions the place is hiding.

You can view more of the photographs I’ve taken at Elephant Rocks.      

Location Spotlight: Hughes Mountain Natural Area – Devil’s Honeycomb

"monochrome", landscape, location spotlight

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 35mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 0.3 sec

Three miles from the small old mining town of Irondale, along the north-western side of the St. Francois Mountains lies Hughes Mountain and the 1.5 billion year old rock that forms its namesake, the Devil’s Honeycomb.  As the precambrian rhyolite cooled near the surface it formed polygonal columns composed of four to six sides, 8-10″ in diameter and up to three feet exposed above the surface.  These fractures/joints in the rock are analogous to mud drying in the sun.  Looking upon these columns grouped together reminds one of a honeycomb pattern facing the heavens, hence the name – Devil’s Honeycomb.

Technical details: Panasonic DMC FZ50 camera, ISO 100,  f/9, 1/60 sec

In the image above you can see some of the details presented in the rock, the typically pink colored rhyolite is often stained with whites, yellows, greens and tans from the lichen that cover these exposed rocks.  This mountain was named after John Hughes, the first settler of this area who ran a grist mill from a nearby stream in the early 1800’s.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L USM lens @ 40mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 0.25 sec

Only a handful of places on the planet have geological features similar to those shown here, Devil’s Tower National Monument in Wyoming being one such place.  I feel this place has a lunar landscape kind of feel and I tried to capture that in the photo above.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L USM lens @ 20mm, ISO 100,  f/18, 0.25 sec

Walking from the car towards the summit one moves through a typical mixed oak/hickory woodland/forest found in this section of the Ozarks.  As you walk the ~ mile towards the summit the soils gradually become shallow and exposed rock becomes more and more noticeable.  Dry woodland, dominated by blackjack oak, eastern red cedar and black hickory, interspersed with glades become the dominant habitats toward the summit.  When you reach the top you are suddenly aware there is no more soil; the entire summit is a cap of igneous rock formations.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 17mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 0.8 sec

I can’t think of a better spot in the Missouri Ozarks to watch the sunset/rise.  I have hiked up this mountain at least ten times and have yet to get that beautiful, 50%-cloud covered sky that creates that furnace of a sunset that everyone looks for.  I hesitated to publish this post without that image, but who knows when I’ll have that kind of luck.  I do think that these five images show the diversity that the season, weather and time of day can provide your eye and images at this location.  There really is no bad time to make a visit here.

I really look forward to spending time on the summit during a summer thunderstorm, a January snow, a warm-Indian summer autumn day with changing colors, and of course that breathtaking sunset.  I wish you and yours the best in your natural outings wherever they may take you this coming weekend.  Get out there and think about something else beside the daily grind.

 

 

 

 

Location Spotlight: Turner’s Grist Mill & Spring

landscape, location spotlight

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 21mm, ISO 160,  f/16, Photomatix-HDR blend of 6-images


Turner’s Mill Spring lies deep in the Missouri Ozarks in Oregon County near the town of Winona.  The mill building and the whole supporting town of Surprise no longer exist; the ~25 foot tall overshot wheel, gears and concrete flume are the only obvious signs this location was ever inhabited.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 17mm, ISO 200,  f/13, 1.3 sec


The immensity of the wheel and gears lying on the creek floor stirs the imagination into dreaming of what it took to get these materials to this rugged area in the middle of the 19th century.  I believe the area was dramatically cut and major roads (for the time) were installed.  The area now has been taken back by the forest and is a beautiful part of the public land of this area that includes the nearby Irish Wilderness, Ozark National Scenic Riverways, Missouri’s second largest spring – Greer Spring, and much more.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 35mm, ISO 160,  f/16, 3.2 sec

How did the town of Surprise get its unusual name?  It was named because of Mr. Turner’s astonishment that the petition he made for a U.S. Post office in his little dream town was approved.  The spring was used to power the area’s grist mill(s) from about 1850 until 1940.  Following the retirement of the mill the town of Surprise rapidly dispersed and Mother Nature quickly took over.  The image above shows the effluent about 500 feet or so from the exit of the spring’s mouth as it escapes down the side of a rather steep hill.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 27mm, ISO 160,  f/14, 1.6 sec

Here you can see the outlet of the spring as it flows at an average rate of 1.5 million gallons per day from the mouth of a cave.  This cave, which is located at the base of a 460 foot bluff is another reason that this area is a must-visit.  The lighting and other circumstances did not allow me to make any good photographs showing this steep bluff, but I look forward to trying to capture this one day.  If you look closely you can see some of the rock and concrete work that was used to shape the flume as well as the metal gate just inside the cave to keep modern knuckleheads from hurting themselves and the natural delicacies that reside within the cave.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 20mm, ISO 160,  f/14, 1/15 sec

A very quick walk following the creek that this spring creates takes you to this location where it empties into the Eleven Point River.  This river is a favorite of fishermen and float trippers and is an example of one of the prime waterways that can be found in the Missouri Ozarks.  The Turner Mill Recreation Area is a high quality habitat where an abundance of spring wildflowers and wildlife reside.  A day or weekend visit to this location is definitely worth the travel and I cannot wait to pay another visit.

Fountain Bluff Petroglyphs – Part One

"monochrome", location spotlight

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 10mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 0.4 sec

Today we are taking a trip to the eastern Shawnee region of southern Illinois.  A un-glaciated area of tall limestone bluffs, hilltop pine and deciduous forests, riparian forests and woodlands and swamps all created and arranged by the vision of the Father of Waters, our mighty Mississippi River.  Underneath an overhang at the bottom of a particularly beautiful bluff called Fountain Bluff lies an ancient art gallery, in which the aborigines of the Archaic/Woodland/Mississippian cultures carved their art into the tough sandstone.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 24mm, ISO 160,  f/4, 1/25 sec

These petroglyphs lead one to ask all sorts of questions.  I’d say we know very little of the meaning of these images and the people who created them, although it is fun to speculate on the who, why and how these works were made.  Instead of rehashing the information we do know from another source, I will point you to the following location to find out more about this site: http://www.naturealmanac.com/archive/fountain_bluff_sta/fountain_bluff.html

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 24mm, ISO 160,  f/4, 1/25 sec

I find this to be one of the more interesting petroglyphs at this particular location.  From what I’ve read, some experts on this subject matter  think this is a spirit or deity while others believe it is simply an artistic representation of a bird in perched repose.  Whatever the truth, it is a gem of this type of feature in this too-often overlooked region.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 24mm, ISO 160,  f/4, 1/25 sec

This is another of the more famous scenes at this spot.  It looks to be a white-tailed deer and a dog or wolf on either side of a crossed/quartered circle.  I find the quartered circle very interesting.  Reading a bit on the subject of pre-columbian art work, I discovered that petroglyph analysis is a very subjective science.  There are numerous theories as to what exactly the quartered circle represents.  These theories range from representations of stars, the directions of the compass, the earth itself, the earth-wind-fire-water elements, the four seasons, directional markers that depict spiritual locations, and even symbols depicting an early form of Christianity.  It seems to me we have no idea what these symbols represented in these cultures.  What really fascinates me about these forms is that they were found across North America in time and space.  Seemingly unrelated cultures from northern Canada to southern Mexico were known to use the quartered circle in petroglyphs and pictographs.  This may be coincidental, or as the Cahokia Mounds metropolis location shows, the trade routes of the Mississippian culture were quite large.  Cultural icons, along with trade goods were likely exchanged across surprisingly large distances.

Forgive me if I seem to know nothing of what I am discussing.  It’s only because I don’t!

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 28mm, ISO 160,  f/5, 1/30 sec

The petroglyph in the image above might be my favorite.  I am of the opinion, I think, that the face seen on the head of this bird is likely do to the changes in time that this spot has seen.  However, once you see the the face, looking down and to the left of the frame, it is impossible to not wonder if this was a deliberate carving.  If so, this is one intimidating form.

I want to give my unlimited thanks to Taylor Reed, a fantastic landscape photographer from the Shawnee region, for providing me directions to this location.  Please visit Taylor’s web site and consider buying several prints of his to decorate your walls.

I will not respond to email to provide directions to this location from people I do not know.  This site is relatively well known and can be found with enough research.  There are other petroglyph spots along this same bluff that I have not yet found.  It is a gorgeous set of bluffs with other geological features and I can’t wait to get down there again to do some more exploring.

Location Spotlight: Devil’s Shadowbox

"monochrome", landscape, location spotlight

Early European settlers and pioneers of the Missouri Ozarks were said to be tough, rugged and individualistic.  The Ozarks were and still are a difficult place to “make a living”, especially  based on traditional agricultural methods.  I will suggest that these settlers had little imagination when it came to naming the geologic and other natural features of their newly found homeland.  In “The Geologic Wonders and Curiosities of Missouri”, Beveridge lists no fewer than 80 features with Devil in the title.  This includes 25 “Devil’s Backbones” and close to ten “Devil’s Den’s”.  Beveridge makes the interesting comparison of the Missouri Ozarks naming conventions to those of the south-western United States which use Angel in a large number of their names for geological features and rarely use Devil.  This is likely due to the cultural differences between the settlers of the Ozarks, largely Scots-Irish, and the Latin/Spanish influences of the American south-west.  Beveridge accounts for no named surface feature in Missouri with Angel in the monicker.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 24mm, ISO 160,  f/14, 1/3 sec

My goal for this particular winter’s morning was to find a “Devil’s Den Hollow” purported to be found in Warren County in the northern Ozark area.  I believe I was pretty close to finding the location, with several runs of rapids and waterfalls so excellently described in Beveridge’s book, but ultimately gave up because it seemed to be surrounded by private property.  I was able to find this little feature presented in this post.  I am unsure whether it has an existing name of its own, but I am calling it Devil’s Shadowbox to continue our Ozark naming convention.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 65mm, ISO 100,  f/14, 0.8 sec

Devil’s Shadowbox was also on private property but was literally feet from the road.  I decided to beg forgiveness if necessary and spent an hour working the scene.  I didn’t see another person the entire time I was there.  The water level was low enough that I could stroll through the creek with my Gortex-lined hiking boots.  My feet did stay dry but the water had to have been close to the freezing mark and my feet where painful and numb by the end.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 32mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 0.8 sec

This relatively un-flashy feature actually had a few small pieces that came together nicely.  Above you can see a short (4-6″) shelf that crosses the stream.  This shelf lies just downstream from the hole/natural arch.  There may be some potential here depending on what the spring foliage looks like.  Too much water, however may take something away from the geology that is visible under these conditions.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 24mm, ISO 160,  f/14, 1/5 sec

I really do try and respect the rights of the property owners while out on my expeditions.  The problem is finding out who owns the property in question and how to contact them to ask permission.  From what I’ve read, in most circumstances the owners of the property have no problems allowing hikers, photographers and explorer types access to their property.  If you have any familiarity with this feature or have any knowledge concerning Devil’s Den Hollow in Warren County, Missouri please let me know.  I will be forever grateful to find out anything else that would help me find and make a lawful visit to the waterfalls and other features this place promises.

Bill Duncan: ceibatree@gmail.com

Location Spotlight: Piney Creek Nature Preserve – Part Two

"monochrome", landscape, location spotlight

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 12mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 0.6 sec

Ten days following my first visit and hike into Piney Creek Nature Preserve I arose early and left the house during one of the two appreciable snowfalls we’ve had this winter in our region so far (I was very sick on the second snowfall and could not enjoy it).  Prior to the temperature drop we had inches of rain during the previous day and I realized that places such as this should have a significant amount of water flowing through their streams and intermittent waterfalls.  Following a careful drive through the snow, I arrived two hours later almost the exact second the snowfall stopped.  This makes photographing a little easier without worrying about the equipment getting wet, but it would have been nice to hike in the falling white stuff for a while.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 24mm, ISO 200,  f/13, 0.8 sec

The image above was the first waterfall I heard.  To get here required a short bushwhack off trail and down into the ravine.  A hiking pole and crampon/spikes on your boots are definitely helpful in doing this.  The rock in this area was extremely slick, with ice on top of algae/slime.  I was very cautious moving on the rocks to set up this shot, realizing that the rock sloped toward the stream and loosing my footing would prove disastrous. Because of the higher water and treacherous footing the available compositions were somewhat limited.  Considering how poorly I function with too many options, this was not exactly a bad thing!

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 21mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 0.3 sec

This cascade pictured above is a section of a longer series of twists and drops found closer to the back side of the hiking loop.  The water here skips shallowly over rock shelves and narrow chutes and takes occasional breaks in what appear to be quite deep pools.  When I made it to this section of the reserve the cloud cover was almost completely gone and blue skies were above.  The sun that would completely melt this fresh snow by the time I drove home this day was just beginning to peak over the bluff.  I realized that I would soon be faced with high-contrast shadows and harsh glare off the landscape scenery and I needed to grab every capture I could in the limited time available.  Sometimes it is also best to work with a deadline.  😉

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 24mm, ISO 200,  f/14, 1 sec

You can see that the previous one to two day rain brought a lot of soil into the stream.  Because of this, I felt most of the images would be presented best in monochrome.  I did want to present what one of these scenes looks like in color, however.  This one had some greens and reds to provide a little contrast between the browns of the water and rocks and white snow.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 24mm, ISO 160,  f/16, 0.8 sec

This place has a lot more to offer than what I present here.  There were at least two other significant waterfalls that I could see or hear, but the terrain with the snow and ice on precipitous ravine sides caused me to think wisely against trying to get within good photography distance.  Definitely something to try during better weather this spring.  I’ll be looking forward to my next visit to Piney Creek Nature Reserve.  Maybe I’ll even plan on paying a visit to the Popeye museum along the way in the town of Chester.

Location Spotlight: Rock Between Two Soft Places

"monochrome", landscape, location spotlight

The Pinnacles, also known as “Boone County Pinnacles Youth Park” is a Missouri State Designated Natural Area located approximately 12 miles north of Columbia.  The geologic structures know as The Pinnacles formed between two parallel Ozark streams, Silver Fork and Rocky Fork.  These streams running closer and closer to one another have formed this erosional structure (senile ridge) that is approximately 75′ high and 1000′ in length.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 60mm, ISO 160,  f/13, 1/4 sec

The Pinnacles are composed primarily of Burlington Limestone, with a small amount of sandstone to act as a “cement” in some places.  This fact was the inspiration of the title of this post.  These two streams are quite quickly, in a geological perspective, eroding this separation between them.  Limestones are very easily eroded by forces of weather and flowing water.  On this visit I easily found fossil crinoids in the rock, a feature Burlington limestone is known for.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 24mm, ISO 160,  f/18, 1/4 sec

The most recent time I visited here the weather was quite poor.  During one of the sporadic sleet and freezing rain showers I took shelter under one of the windows, or natural arches, that erosion has carved in the rock.  While I was waiting out the weather I was able to take a close look at the composing rock.  The amount of cracks and other signs of erosion was eye-opening.  While I was sitting there, bits and pieces of rock were literally falling off the overhanging arch and landing around me.  It takes little imagination to realize the effects that changing mid-western seasons along with ebbing flows of the streams are having on this feature.  Geologists reckon this rock feature has only a couple thousand years left, so if you plan on visiting, do it soon!

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EFS10-22mm f/3.5-4.5L IS USM lens @ 13mm, ISO 160,  f/16, HDR blend of two images

If you do plan on visiting and bushwhacking your way across the stream and up onto the rocks, take care!  There are numerous spots that one wrong step could potentially be your last.  On top of the risks of being swept away by high water in crossing the stream and falling from the top of one these spires, there is the usual risk associated with the Northern Missouri Ozarks – private property.  Apparently one side of this site is bounded by a stretch of property owned by a particularly cranky old man.  I was warned by a regular visitor to stay clear of that side of the park as he will not hesitate to accost hikers that stray too far.  Unfortunately one of the two shallow spots I have found to cross the stream is located in what seems to be his property.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 28mm, ISO 160,  f/16, 1/2 sec

The eastern red cedar, which is really a juniper, loves limestone.  This species is a long-lived pioneer invader that will be one of the first trees to grow in a disturbed area or any area that other species find undesirable.  Because it will grow in crevices along bluffs and shallow, rocky soils that often lack resources needed to grow quick and large, small trees can often be over 600 years old.  In fact, the oldest documented individual of this species was recorded in Missouri and was found to be 795 years old!  This species is currently taking over much of Missouri’s knob-top glades found throughout the Ozarks.  Cedar is not tolerant of fire and the suppression of natural and man-made fires on modern private land as well as public lands such as the Mark Twain National Forest is allowing cedars to take hold in these habitats where they were historically controlled.  But, this is a subject for another post.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 28mm, ISO 100,  f/16, HDR blend of four images

Just a stone’s throw south of The Pinnacles is a “shelving rock” style of shut-in (not pictured).  This feature was formed by erosional forces of Silver Fork as the creek runs dead-on into limestone bedrock and is forced to make a sharp left turn.  This shelter is 40′ deep, 10′ high and 125′ long.  Although it looks like the shelter is often flooded during high waters, I am sure this was used by pre-Colombian man.

The Pinnacles is another destination for the landscape photographer in the Missouri Ozarks that offers a diversity of photo ops depending on time of day, weather and the season.  It is also a high quality biological habitat even though it is so close to a a major metropolitan area.  With luck and continued proper management this location will continue to be a place visitors can come to appreciate the geologic and natural features that the Missouri Ozarks offers and once offered in much greater abundance.

Much of the information used in this post was found in “Geologic Wonders and Curiosities of Missouri” by Thomas R. Beveredge.  This is a highly prized book in my collection.  I only wish someone would update and revise with GPS coordinates!

 

 

Location Spotlight: Johnson’s Shut-Ins State Park

"monochrome", landscape, location spotlight

Located near Graniteville in Reynolds Co, MO Johnson’s Shut-Ins is one of the largest and pleasingly aesthetic shut-ins found in the state.  This is another spot found in the geologically intriguing St. Francois Mountains of the Missouri Ozarks.  Formed by one of the meandering forks of the Black River, cascades, chutes and potholes have been formed in Taumsauk rhyolite, the ~1.5 billion year old rock that makes up the majority of this spectacular geologic feature.  This rhyolite, which is a cousin to granite, is extremely hard and resistant to wear, so the water acts mostly upon joints or fractures in the rock and carves these areas down smooth to form the Ozark’s recreational fun zone that many people enjoy today.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L USM lens @ 17mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 0.6 sec

Unfortunately, this park was irreversibly changed following the December 2005 disaster when a wall of the Ameren UE hydroelectric reservoir failed and a resulting 1.3 billion gallons of water ravaged the Johnson’s Shut-In SP and surrounding area.  This water rushed down the hillsides in less than 12 minutes.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF70-200mm f/2.8L USM @ 105mm, ISO 100,  f/13, 2 sec

A true example of an anthropogenic induced disaster upon nature, the water scoured everything in its path down the Profit Mountain slopes to clean bedrock.  This resulted in the loss of near pristine habitat that made up several officially designated Natural Areas, but has given geologists an interesting, uninterrupted view of the granites, rhyolites, sandstones and dolomites that are the primary rocks of the St. Francis Mountains.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L USM @ 17mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 1/8 sec

Do a web search to view images immediately following the disaster and you can see it is amazing that the area was able to be cleaned up and facilities rebuilt to the current state that they are about six years later.  There is a boulder field near the current entrance to the State Park.  I was told by a Park official those boulders weigh in the neighborhood of three to 30 tons a piece and that none of them are close to the same place they had been prior to the disaster.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L USM @ 38mm, ISO 100,  f/16, 0.3 sec

I’ve seen some amazing photographs taken before the reservoir collapse contrasting the shut-ins against maple trees in brilliant autumn foliage.  It seems most of the maples around this spot are gone and there hasn’t been a very good autumn show here in the four or so years I’ve been interested in nature photography.  This is a real shame.  However, when I think about these types of disasters, whether man-made or natural I try and put it into a geological or biological perspective.  In these perspectives this type of disaster is a temporary change or setback.  In the equivalent moment of a breath of the earth this type of activity will be erased from the landscape and nothing but the slightest evidence or mere suggestion of this event shall be evident.

Of course, with the continuing onslaught of the human landscape, these events, multiplied over small number of generations are leading to devastating changes to the biosphere and are adding up to what looks to be one of the six largest extinction events in history.  Considering the primary purpose of this reservoir is to provide extra power to the St. Louis Metropolis, it makes me wonder how long civilization will continue to take and take from the commons without giving serious consideration to the important things.

Technical details: Canon EOS 50D camera, EF17-40mm f/4L USM @ 17mm, ISO 100,  f/18, 1/4 sec

Do I have to say this is a location I will be visiting for as long as I’m able?

Location Spotlight: Piney Creek Ravine Nature Preserve – Part One

landscape, location spotlight

In the north-western region of the Shawnee National Forest of Illinois lies one of my latest finds.  Located south-east of Chester, Illinois (birthplace of Popeye the Sailor) Piney Creek Nature Preserve will undoubtedly provide plenty of opportunities for me to spend my time during any season of the year.  This place is special due to the geological and biological wonders it hides amidst the seemingly endless seas of corn and soybeans that pack every flat place Illinois has to offer.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens @ 18mm, ISO 160,  f/14, 1.6 sec

Unlike the tall bluffs and hills of the Shawnee region further to the south, this spot was subjected to recent glacial activity and the ravine was partly created by glacial melt-waters eating away at the sandstone – the primary rock of Southern Illinois.  The vegetation found here is more similar to that seen in the Missouri Ozarks to the West than that of the Shawnee region to the South-east.  This is one of only a few places in Illinois the short-leaf pine can be found naturally.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 32mm, ISO 320,  f/20, 1.3 sec

I have not yet been here during the growing season but it looks and sounds to be a very high-quality natural site.  I’m sure this will be a place for finding spring time ephemerals as well as summer wildflowers; however, the geology is the star of this attraction.  I’ve hiked this ~two-mile trail twice and I’m not even close to understanding the path of the streams and the contours of the canyon walls, or how many waterfalls can be found here.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 28mm, ISO 100,  f/11, 1/4 sec

The hike is wonderful, although caution must be taken.  Hiking up and down the and along the rim of the canyon provides amazing views of this natural amphitheater in winter.  Going bushwhacking to obtain better viewpoints of the geological, biological and archeological (petroglyphs and pictographs from 500-1550 Common Era are located at this preserve) subjects can be risky.  Similar to the nearby “Little Grand Canyon” there are plenty of ways to get yourself seriously injured or killed in this ravine.  Boots equipped with extra traction devices (i.e. crampons) are recommended for hiking in sub-freezing temperatures and felt-bottomed footwear is definitely useful when walking over the biology-covered slick rocks of the stream floor.

Technical details: Canon EOS 7D camera, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens @ 28mm, ISO 100,  f/14, 6 sec

I was fortunate to be able to visit this spot about a week or two later.  This second visit was after a period of rain for about 24 hours followed by a brief-lasting snow.  The extra water and the freshly fallen snow (I arrived just when the snow stopped) made this place look entirely new and different.

Piney Creek Ravine is relatively close (1.5 hour drive) and I definitely look forward to many more trips here and to the other beautiful locations that the Shawnee National Forest in Southern Illinois has to offer.

I just hope nobody figures out how to grow corn in a ravine like this.  😉