GC1ZE8N Dry Creek Rock Garden - Blue Mesa Reservoir Area
Type: Traditional | Size: Regular | Difficulty: | Terrain:
By: Flutiste @ | Hide Date: 10/03/2009 | Status: Available
Country: United States | State: Colorado
Coordinates: N38° 28.822 W107° 08.570 | Last updated: 08/30/2019 | Fav points: 0
                   

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The Dry Creek/Rainbow Lake Road off of HWY 50 is a rough dirt car-road. The side-roads off of this road need 4WD. You can get fairly close to the cache via a side-road, otherwise you’ll have a 1/3 mile hike uphill. The terrain is rocky and sage-covered. There is no trail, only faint game trails. Depending on which route you take, you may wind up at a State Land fence – that’s OK – it’s public land, and it’s OK to drive and hike through it. Elevation at the cache is 7887’.

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This cache is in an area of geological interest, and offers a nice view of the reservoir. The cache is in a field of boulders that have tumbled down from the spectacular cliff above. The cliff is composed of black and red "welded tuff" layers, which are solidified hot ash flows from various volcanic calderas (now extinct) in the San Juan volcanic field about 40 - 50 miles to the south (near Silverton). These hot ash flows, known as “nuee ardentes” (fiery clouds), are formed from incandescent clouds of material that has been vaporized beyond the molten state. A nuee ardente is belched out of a volcano, and then flows down the side and beyond at speeds up to 100 mph, consuming everything in its path.


The black boulders in the field are especially interesting, because they contain spherical concretions which are weathering out and falling to the ground. The concretions were formed from gas bubbles in the ash flow as it cooled and solidified, and give the boulders a “pimply” look. Some of the boulders have completely weathered into piles of fine, black, glassy gravel.

This cache is one of several caches around Blue Mesa Reservoir. The cache is in a clear plastic box with a red rim.

***Hunting Season Advisory***
Hunting seasons in Colorado are in September and October. If you venture out during hunting season, be sure to wear some blaze orange and be noisy.

06/07/2019 By Fishslayer007
Found 6-2-19 and signed sheet. Previous find approx. 1year ago. Cache in pretty good condition, a few trinkets inside.

05/28/2018 By Davis'Rule
Woo! This one took me a while due to service but I FOUND IT! STL. TFTC!

07/03/2016 By AZ4X4s
Thanks, flutiste. Went for a short outing and got a couple caches above the Blue Mesa Recreational Ranch. Then went west on the highway and got a couple more and back home before the afternoon thundershowers arrived.

06/07/2016 By Wolfypac
TFTC

11/01/2015 By jeff3200
This is another cashe I found a month and a half ago that I forgot to log on the site. Everything was in great shape and the view was outstanding. We just parked down on the main dirt road and walked up. It's not so bad.

08/17/2015 By donk97
We saw this cache had a TB that needed to be rescued. Walked up the jeep trail then followed a game trail from there that led us right to the cache. TFTC