Show Me Your Basalt........

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survival

Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
Topic Author's Original Post - May 26, 2009 - 01:59pm PT
Having done a lot of climbing in Oregon during my early years, I couldn't help but be amazed by how many awesome forms Basalt columns took.

Here's just a sampler.
Post up with your coolest Basalt shots, climbers included or not!!



Haggis

Trad climber
Scotland
May 26, 2009 - 02:18pm PT
awesome, bottom left looks like "Ardtun" on Mull in scotland with bent collums being caused by a fallen tree in the lava pool.



this is Skye with climbers on Rock Island line


not my image but this is kilt rock just south of the above image. Not technically true basalt (too low SiO2) but cool anyway
wildone

climber
GHOST TOWN
May 26, 2009 - 04:15pm PT
If you dig basalt, check out my buddy's blog. He's posted here previously, and he's got some great photos. He recently posted a thread on Armenia, but the majority of his blog is central Oregon.
http://basaltblog.blogspot.com/
Here's Will on Armenian basalt.
wildone

climber
GHOST TOWN
May 26, 2009 - 04:22pm PT
BOO-YAH, bee-yotches!
Put this in your basalt bong and smoke it.

(photo credit, Will Nazarian)
Mighty Hiker

Social climber
Vancouver, B.C.
May 26, 2009 - 04:24pm PT
There are many fine photos of bassets at http://www.geocities.com/bassetclub/thewalk.html For over 40 years, until 2008, the Basset Hound Club of BC held a basset hound walk in Vancouver's Stanley Park in early May, which was a great success. They don't seem to have held the walk this year, but their site still has many pictures of bassets.

Oh wait, you said Basalt, not Basset. My bad.
survival

Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
Topic Author's Reply - May 26, 2009 - 04:29pm PT
Nice Haggis!

wildone, your images aren't coming through for me....anyone else?
wildone

climber
GHOST TOWN
May 26, 2009 - 04:31pm PT
Son of a bitch! they don't work for me now either.
just go to his blog...
Ghost

climber
A long way from where I started
May 26, 2009 - 04:35pm PT
Haggis

Trad climber
Scotland
May 26, 2009 - 04:40pm PT
One thing that is interesting in the small group of images here is the difference in the eroded thremochemical banding exhibited. this is the horizontal feature which looks like rythmic waves on the surface of the collum.

I wonder if their wavelenght could be used as a proxy for cooling rate.
Chinchen

climber
Living on the road
May 26, 2009 - 04:54pm PT
Yea cool! Will is a good guy. I used to work with him at Metolius. Say hi for me. I miss the basalt in oregon!
Jason
wildone

climber
GHOST TOWN
May 26, 2009 - 04:57pm PT
Haggis, I wonder if you should stick with sheep guts!
Wavelenhgt? Wavelgenth? Wavelehngt? What are you trying to say?
Haggis

Trad climber
Scotland
May 26, 2009 - 05:03pm PT
sorry its late here,

If you look carefully at the images you will see a low amplitude wave function running along the columns which has been emphasised by erosion and appears as horizontal bands. this is probably low level factional crystallisation in the magma column resulting in "softer minerals" forming in bands.

the question was is the wavelength a proxy for the cooling rate of the column?


phillygoat

climber
portland,
May 26, 2009 - 05:47pm PT




ydpl8s

Trad climber
Santa Monica, California
May 26, 2009 - 06:07pm PT
Here's some non-columner junk from the Cascades

3-Finger Jack, Oregon

Summit block of 3-Finger Jack - 3rd classing in Adidas? - summer 1978
survival

Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
Topic Author's Reply - May 26, 2009 - 06:45pm PT
ydpl8s,

HA! That looks about exactly what my bros and I looked like on Three Fingered Jack in 76-77!!

Wow, same time frame and everything! Not exactly the basalt I was thinking of......
couchmaster

climber
May 26, 2009 - 06:52pm PT









As a counterpoint to Bruces magnificent pics up there:-) LOL
Mighty Hiker

Social climber
Vancouver, B.C.
May 26, 2009 - 07:37pm PT
Dogs, wolves, whatever - same difference, eh? We'll man up, maybe bring a few bassets.
GOclimb

Trad climber
Boston, MA
May 26, 2009 - 07:40pm PT

GO
steelmnkey

climber
Vision man...ya gotta have vision...
May 26, 2009 - 08:48pm PT
survival

Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
Topic Author's Reply - May 26, 2009 - 10:42pm PT
Nice shots guys!

Steelmonkey, where is that cool pile?
Bazo

Boulder climber
Ky
May 27, 2009 - 06:34am PT
Not my photos (if anyone objects, let me know ), but a nice display from my old stomping grounds the Port Hills/Banks Peninsula (New Zealand)...

Rapaki Rock


Castle Rock ( Tobin Sorenson did a few firsts here along with the UK's John Allen { of gritstone fame } )


The Tors


Mt Bradley


And farther inland, Mt Somers


steelmnkey

climber
Vision man...ya gotta have vision...
May 27, 2009 - 11:18am PT
My shot is the Sine Wall at Paradise Forks.
Posted previously in the AZ appreciation thread.
Some pretty cool routes on there... always liked Tangent and Sine Language. Also the first route ever done at the Forks, I believe, Born Under A Bad Sine.
Eric McAuliffe

Trad climber
Alpine County, CA
May 27, 2009 - 01:13pm PT
survival

Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
Topic Author's Reply - May 27, 2009 - 02:08pm PT
Whoa!!.........................
fgw

Trad climber
portland, or
May 27, 2009 - 07:53pm PT
the long view (hyperlinked from Dave Jensen's website):


the close up:
paganmonkeyboy

climber
mars...it's near nevada...
May 27, 2009 - 08:11pm PT
oooooh basalt...that's not what i thought it said when i skimmed over it...;)
Largo

Sport climber
Venice, Ca
May 27, 2009 - 09:13pm PT
Holy sh#t, Eric. Now those are splitters!

JL
FlyMolo

Trad climber
Lemoore Ca
May 27, 2009 - 09:27pm PT
your rope looks a little worn there just above the accender...
cintune

climber
the Moon and Antarctica
May 27, 2009 - 10:52pm PT
Iconic.

A page with really nice pics of Fingal's Cave, Staffa at: http://www.catswhiskerstours.com/2007_10_01_archive.html

Have a nice little Pa. bouldering crag nearby (39.87109/-77.45189) made of columnar spotted metarhyolite, which is fairly rare, no good pics though.
climbingreen

climber
Where I Am
May 27, 2009 - 11:02pm PT
steelmnkey

climber
Vision man...ya gotta have vision...
May 27, 2009 - 11:38pm PT
Maybe not basalt...I don't recall...still cool columns...





survival

Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
Topic Author's Reply - May 28, 2009 - 12:42am PT
I was wondering if someone would put D.T. up!
mark miller

Social climber
Reno
May 28, 2009 - 12:53am PT
I think all climbers should be thrilled that the powers that be claimed Devils Post pile as an off limits area. It leaves alot more basaltic (Better )areas for us to climb on; Twin crags, Truckee river canyon and Shakespeare (Glenbrooke rock on US50, very near cave, don't tell anyone.....) which coincidentally looks very similar to the House's of the Holy album cover on the back side.
Dudeman

Trad climber
California/Idaho/Beyond
May 28, 2009 - 02:40am PT
Basalt: a common extrusive volcanic rock.
Dierkes lake, Twin Falls, Idaho
Bridgeview Crag, Snake River Canyon, Twin Falls, Idaho
Dierkes Lake, Twin Falls, Idaho
Black Cliffs, Boise, Idaho
Dierkes Lake, Twin Falls, Idaho
Connor Columns, Albion, Idaho
Dierkes Lake, Twin Falls, Idaho
Connor Columns, Albion, Idaho
Dierkes Lake, Twin Falls, Idaho

GOclimb

Trad climber
Boston, MA
May 28, 2009 - 04:22pm PT
Eric McAuliffe - That's gorgeous! By the color on the rock, I'd guess CA. Where exactly?

And Dudeman - I guess I didn't know there was so much cool cool stuff in Idaho!

GO
Jaybro

Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
May 28, 2009 - 05:21pm PT
Deto is phonolytic porphyry, it's basaltic.
steelmnkey

climber
Vision man...ya gotta have vision...
May 28, 2009 - 06:38pm PT
"Deto is phonolytic porphyry, it's basaltic."


Yeah... close enough. :-)
Eric McAuliffe

Trad climber
Alpine County, CA
May 28, 2009 - 06:42pm PT
My pic was of the postpile...sppppppplllllliiiiittteerrrrrrrr!!!!!



E
Todd Gordon

Trad climber
Joshua Tree, Cal
May 28, 2009 - 11:31pm PT
Choss Gee

Trad climber
Wyoming/Utah
May 28, 2009 - 11:46pm PT
why does it break and shape so nicely like that?
Todd Gordon

Trad climber
Joshua Tree, Cal
May 28, 2009 - 11:49pm PT

Skinner Butte, Oregon..
survival

Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
Topic Author's Reply - May 29, 2009 - 12:17am PT
Todd,
Is that the columns in Eugene??
Todd Gordon

Trad climber
Joshua Tree, Cal
May 29, 2009 - 01:30am PT
Todd Gordon

Trad climber
Joshua Tree, Cal
May 29, 2009 - 01:34am PT
healyje

Trad climber
Portland, Oregon
May 29, 2009 - 01:37am PT


Todd Gordon

Trad climber
Joshua Tree, Cal
May 29, 2009 - 01:41am PT
Todd Gordon

Trad climber
Joshua Tree, Cal
May 29, 2009 - 01:42am PT
survival

Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
Topic Author's Reply - May 29, 2009 - 12:04pm PT
Nice pics guys!!
Todd, I 'knew' that was Skinner after not being there for 30 yrs!!
Roughster

Sport climber
Vacaville, CA
May 29, 2009 - 01:48pm PT
NorCal Basalt that pretty much no one knows about...and no it is not in the Motherlode or anywhere near Sonora/Sierras.

Pennsylenvy

Social climber
A dingy corner in your refrigerator
Jun 2, 2009 - 01:29am PT
Great topic!

Sunday had a great day on basalt

Dave Bloom having his slice ....

A well kept belay...and a photo op



(it helps if your belaying a really good climber like Dave)
Reilly

Mountain climber
Monrovia, CA
Jun 2, 2009 - 02:24am PT
I was under the impression that this 'pillow lava' on Mt Constance (Olympic NP) was a close relative.


Tork

climber
Yosemite
Jun 2, 2009 - 10:06am PT
Hey Todd, was that last one Frenchman's ? Don't think I would have graduated at the UofI without those cracks.
Todd Gordon

Trad climber
Joshua Tree, Cal
Jun 2, 2009 - 10:14am PT
Tork;....Red M & M's........Vantage, Wa. Climber;..Tom Michael,
Tork

climber
Yosemite
Jun 2, 2009 - 10:31am PT
Ya Todd, thats what I thought. Right next to Stems and Seeds. What year? There were no bolts on that one when I was last there, would have been a fun lead.

A friend, Karl B, did a lot of firsts out there. He told me they were able to trundle entire columns in that area.
bachar

Gym climber
Mammoth Lakes, CA
Jun 2, 2009 - 02:20pm PT
Mexi-basalt.... delicious






Yo, is there bouldering at Dierkes Lake?

Where's the Boneyard?
Todd Gordon

Trad climber
Joshua Tree, Cal
Jun 2, 2009 - 11:03pm PT
Red M & M's is a gear lead that was rap bolted...the bolts were removed...and now it is back to being a gear lead....
Sir loin of leisure...

Trad climber
X
Jun 2, 2009 - 11:25pm PT
boise IDAHO
Sir loin of leisure...

Trad climber
X
Jun 2, 2009 - 11:26pm PT
more boise
rick d

climber
tucson, az
Jun 2, 2009 - 11:34pm PT
Choss Gee

cracks in basalt form perpendicular to cooling surface, hence the cool columns.
Captain...or Skully

Social climber
North of the Owyhees
Jun 2, 2009 - 11:35pm PT
Hey! There's my Toe!!!
Indianclimber

Trad climber
Lost Wages
Jul 7, 2009 - 02:05pm PT
Giants causeway 360
http://agiantcause.nationaltrust.org.uk/360tour
survival

Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
Topic Author's Reply - Jul 7, 2009 - 03:09pm PT
Wow!! That thing is seriously cool to look at.
Fun to play with ALL the tools.
healyje

Trad climber
Portland, Oregon
Jul 7, 2009 - 03:34pm PT
Mungeclimber

Trad climber
sorry, just posting out loud.
Jul 7, 2009 - 05:16pm PT
Mungeclimber

Trad climber
sorry, just posting out loud.
Jul 7, 2009 - 05:17pm PT



MisterE

Trad climber
One Step Beyond!
Jul 7, 2009 - 05:19pm PT
Getting ready to climb the wide, Lower Gorge, Smith Rock:

and one of my favorite climbs there, Master Looney:


Frenchman Coulee/Vantage, Washington:


The Feathers area:


and Sunshine Wall area:


SteveW

Trad climber
The state of confusion
Jul 8, 2009 - 06:03pm PT
Golden, CO

Chiloe

Trad climber
Lee, NH
Jul 8, 2009 - 06:08pm PT
Also Golden,

survival

Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
Topic Author's Reply - Jul 8, 2009 - 06:15pm PT
Nice stuff you guys!
That Feathers area shot is amazing.
Captain...or Skully

Social climber
way, WAY out there....(OMG)
Jul 8, 2009 - 06:18pm PT
How's an old guy like Chiloe get Betty's to climb with him?
WooHoo!(j/k, there, Chiloe).....Rock on!
RocaLibre

Trad climber
Mexico City, Mx
Jul 8, 2009 - 06:31pm PT
Mexico City, sweet 10b two pitch climb


Aculco, Mexico, 5.8


Mexico City, University crags, 10c finger crack
Chiloe

Trad climber
Lee, NH
Jul 9, 2009 - 09:15am PT
Skully:
How's an old guy like Chiloe get Betty's to climb with him?

That was no Betty, that was my daughter! :-)

Climbing more basalt below, belayed by my niece:

survival

Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
Topic Author's Reply - Jul 9, 2009 - 11:06am PT
"That was no Betty, that was my daughter! :-) "

Larry, BWA HA HA Haaa!!
Eric McAuliffe

Trad climber
Alpine County, CA
Mar 17, 2010 - 09:00pm PT
Basalt Bump........







E
Reilly

Mountain climber
Monrovia, CA
Mar 18, 2010 - 12:07pm PT
Sorry, eKat, but us mumblers have always just called
it Columbia River columnar climbing cliffs...
This is of some minor histerical note in that it was
a roadside rest stop on the way back to Seattle from
a City of the Rocks trip. This was also the day that
St Helens blew for the second time which made the drive
all the more interesting. And thirdly, since you are
a major skinny skeezer this stud is none other than
Bela Bodnar! What, no bells? For shame! Uh, yeah, he
kinda knew how to light up the skinny tracks. Try
NCAA champeen (U of Wy) and thrasher of Bill Koch and Tim Caldwell
on a couple of occassions! He was on the '76 Oly team with
them but fell prey to the Commie food poisoning plot and
only just managed to finish the 30K when he shoulda been
right up there with Koch. Life takes us on a strange path, eh?
He's now a very successful realtor back in his hometown of
Anchorage. Oh, and he did like his Carharts.

Studly

Trad climber
WA
Mar 18, 2010 - 01:13pm PT
vlani

Trad climber
mountain view, ca
Jun 24, 2010 - 12:38am PT
Fritz

Trad climber
Hagerman, ID
Jun 24, 2010 - 12:58am PT
My doppelgangers: Herman, Bruhelda, Franz, & Katz, are mostly pieces of basalt columns from our property.

Much of our “Ranchette” has chunks of basalt laying around.

We are about 300 vertical feet above the Snake River. I think our property was a giant eddy when the Lake Bonneville Flood rearranged the local topography.

Our basalt outcrops are awash in river gravel. They mined gold near here in the 1800’s. Could that be my “fall-back” plan?

Jaybro

Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
Jun 24, 2010 - 01:07am PT
buh SALT
Lasti

Trad climber
Budapest
Jun 24, 2010 - 10:09am PT
Great pics all.

Hungary is practically void of any crack-climbing whatsoever apart from this place, where the BAHsalt is sweeeeeet. Sadly there is a complete ban of climbing on the thing and a "ranger station" right at its foot.

Lasti
survival

Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
Topic Author's Reply - Jun 24, 2010 - 10:25am PT
Why off limits?

Thanks for posting Lasti. Stick around.
Bob D'A

Trad climber
Boulder, CO
Jun 24, 2010 - 11:32am PT
Panama...

Tony Bird

climber
Northridge, CA
Jun 24, 2010 - 11:40am PT
which california grotto is that? the one down here is rhyolite.

btw, basalt is lava which cools in the open air. granite cools deep. the slower it cools, the bigger the crystals. rhyolite is midway between, usually hardening in the throat of the volcano or a similar situation. two-bit geology here, let a real expert weigh in. and yea, the devil's tower isn't basalt--would like to hear a treatise on that.

kathi, jaybro has it right, accent on second syllable. is that what you meant?

this thread needs a pic of the glacial polish on top of the devil's postpile, looks like a tile floor up there.
tom woods

Gym climber
Bishop, CA
Jun 24, 2010 - 12:25pm PT
Bob D- those pics are cool. The sides of basalt are interesting to climb for sure.

I haven't done much, but when I was in college I used boulder at the Putah Creek Boulders outside Winters, CA. The columns are tipped on their sides, so you climb the hexagonal ends of the columns and their sides.

Pretty tricky stuff.
Thorgon

Big Wall climber
Sedro Woolley, WA
Jun 24, 2010 - 01:59pm PT
Bah-salt-bump....

Thor

chill

climber
between the flat part and the blue wobbly thing
Jun 24, 2010 - 03:50pm PT
A few from my southern Idaho days:
Tony Bird

climber
Northridge, CA
Jun 24, 2010 - 04:32pm PT
columnar basalt exists pretty close to, if not alongside, batholithic granite up and down owens valley/east sierra. shouldn't the geology police have sorted that out a few millions years ago?

superheated water melts rocks? wow--way past 100 degrees C. tell me more. always thought the sierra batholith was fused subsumed ocean crust.
Jaybro

Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
Jun 24, 2010 - 04:39pm PT
Rhymes with assault.
RDB

Social climber
way out there
Jun 25, 2010 - 01:15am PT
Since Todd mentioned it here is another part of the story behind red MM's.

Todd sez: "Red M & M's is a gear lead that was rap bolted...the bolts were removed...and now it is back to being a gear lead.... "

Fulton sez:
"This route was originally put up by Max Dufford. (on pre placed pro) I'd done it on TR and on lead and agreed it was firmly a 12. I told him he should've bolted it and he agreed but didn't think it was worth the effort. I told him I'd bolt it he didn't have a problem with that and he didn't. I then went out there, equipped with a power drill and a bag of bolts to do the dirty. I TR'd it to make sure where the best possible place would be to sink as it turned out the nine bolts then preceded to go to work. Unfortunately it was a borrowed drill and it quit after 1 and 1/2 holes. I couldn't leave it like that so I finished it off by hand. That's right, I hand drilled 7 1/2, 3 inch deep holes and it took a little more than 6 hours standing in aiders the whole time. Man that basalt is hard stuff. My friends there thought I was nuts but I told Max I'd do it and I did. Oddly enough the pro I placed to steady myself had a regular bad habit of ripping out reaffirming my belief that this was a case were maybe bolts were needed. Some guys from Wennachee came by as I was finishing up and seeing as I was too tired to lead it they did and had big smiles on their faces afterwards. Unfortunately it later got chopped by someone who never climbed the route but felt if he did he didn't want to be tempted by the bolts. Considering all that's been bolted out there I was a bit perplexed as to why someone gave a crap about this route but as with anything, when you put something out there you make yourself open for criticism. Nowadays I hear of people leading the route by again pre-placing all the pro needed which I'll bet is more than 9 clips. Oddly enough, I was part of the first climbers out there when I put up routes with the crew on the Middle Eastern and Sunshine walls. Ah those where the days, virgin cracks, no crowds and lotsa guns."

All that sounds about right. I introduced Karl B, Max, Koopsen and Fulton to Vantage. Fulton did many new lines at Vantage he was never credited for in the mid '80s. Lots of dumbshit stuff done at Vantage. Chopping Red MM's bolts was one of them imo. Max and Yoder can argue about who actually freed it between '86 and '96. But my money would be on Max.

Studly

Trad climber
WA
Jun 25, 2010 - 01:44am PT
Mungeclimber

Trad climber
sorry, just posting out loud.
Jun 25, 2010 - 02:17am PT
nature

climber
Tucson, AZ
Jun 25, 2010 - 02:25am PT
hmm.... this to me:


from vlani's post looks like Owen's River Gorge.

I've heard it called basalt on a number of occasions due to the columnar jointing.

But it's not basalt - not even close.

As we all know the Bishop Tuff erupted from the Long Valley Caldera collapse around 768K YPB. It's an air fall ash - a tephra. It's almost all Silica. Basalt is relatively low in silica - lots of Fe and Mg which makes it darker.

Of course I could be wrong on where the picture is from and thus the rest of my post is just me being a geologic as#@&%e ;-)

Interesting note about the Bishop Tuff. It's the oldest known rock that is paleomagnetically normal - so the Bruhnes-Matuyama paleo mag reversal happened the day before the eruption. The ash in the Sherwin Creek till helps date that glacial event.
justthemaid

climber
Jim Henson's Basement
Jun 25, 2010 - 09:25am PT
I thought that pic looked like Owens River too Nature. could be a similar feature elsewhere I suppose. Thanks for the geologic factoids. DMT has a good post a page or so back too as well.

tom woods

Gym climber
Bishop, CA
Jun 25, 2010 - 10:09am PT
Paleomagnetically normal? Como?

Also - that does look like the gorge. I've never climbed at that area. That should change.

There's more of that columned tuff out there on the table lands. I climbed a place with a few climbs up to 60 feet where you can belay out of your car.

It's good for an evening for sure.
Tony Bird

climber
Northridge, CA
Jun 25, 2010 - 11:43am PT
thanks for sorting it out, dingus. trying to dig out my rock book here, but it'll probably take all weekend. will try to find a devil's postpile glacier polish pic too--thought it might be that one by munge up there, but as i recall it was even flatter.

was looking at houses around sonora a few weeks ago. anything to get closer to what life should be about.
nature

climber
Tucson, AZ
Jun 25, 2010 - 11:47am PT
tom - do you understand what I meant by the Bruhnes-Matuyama event (the last time the magnetic polarity of the earth switched)?

Either way....

up until about 780K YBP if you had a compass the "north" needle would point towards the south pole. So you can take a rock that has gone partially or totally into melt mode (then crystalized) and look at the orientation of the iron molecules. They will point towards the magnetic "north" of the planet (which would be south when the polarity is reversed). Assuming the rock hasn't been rotated, moved, etc. since emplacement/deposition, and assuming you can determine a date of said rock (not difficult) you can then talk about the polarity of the earth at the time those rocks solidified.

The Bishop Tuff is very well studied ash deposit. With all the volcanics, tectonics, and glacial events in and around the Eastern Sierra this ash is incredibly helpful in using relative dating techniques.

See Bierman, Gillespie, Burke (and many many more) if the Quaternary Stratigraphy of the Eastern Sierra interests you.
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Jun 25, 2010 - 11:56am PT
Custer found a good one right before he died.These are probably basaltic as well.
nature

climber
Tucson, AZ
Jun 25, 2010 - 11:58am PT
DMT - mono/Inyo is more rhyo-dacite eruption, no? (I'd have to check my notes).

I don't let this one bug me but everyone calls the intrusive rocks in the Sierra granite. The correct general term would be granitic. Only about 10% of the rocks in the Sierra classify out as Granite - the other 90% generally coming in as Granodiorite (and don't make me pull out my ternary diagram to show the distinct difference ;-)
BooDawg

Social climber
Paradise Island
Jun 25, 2010 - 12:41pm PT
Speaking of oceanic crust and its source in the earth's mantle, here are some pictures of REALLY young basalts...


When lava is flowing, sometimes it crusts over on top, and when the source of lava is blocked "upstream," lava tubes form. These may be exposed by collapse or for other reasons.

Sometimes the Hawaiians used lava tubes for refuges in times of war, stocking them with food. Sometimes they used them for their petroglyphs as well.
tom woods

Gym climber
Bishop, CA
Jun 25, 2010 - 12:51pm PT
Way cool.

Thanks for the further explanation Nature. It's time to get reading.
Mungeclimber

Trad climber
sorry, just posting out loud.
Jun 25, 2010 - 01:21pm PT
not to self, don't ride in Jeep with Dingus, due to stolen Pele rocks.

;)
ydpl8s

Trad climber
Santa Monica, California
Jun 25, 2010 - 01:28pm PT
I spent a summer in Volcanoes Park doing geophysical surveying for geothermal, tromping miles and miles over that stuff with a backpack and our equipment. I can tell you for sure that it is ILLEGAL to remove that stuff from the park. That being said, I brought home some of Pele's hair and tears that I have sitting right here on my desk.
Lasti

Trad climber
Budapest
Jun 25, 2010 - 03:19pm PT

Survival,

A bit OT but what the heck.

I reckon the restriction on our little basalt crack-haven has something to do with loose rock or the national park thinking climbers aren't the haute couture in cliff accessories (tourons might think we are ugly?).

Sadly we have serious access issues here in Hungary, way disproportionate over-restrictive policies towards climbers. Not far from this basalt cliff there is a nice set (just a few) of Fontainebleauesque sandstone boulders that could be the highpoint of any boulderer's Eastern European trip. Off-limits of course, because climbers devastate the landscape. Never mind the throngs of tourists passing through, 'petroglyphing' and littering there daily. Of course right now prominent Hungarian climbers are more interested in pointing fingers and fixing the blame of how we got to this juncture than in trying to mediate between the climbing community and authorities. It is a truly sordid state of affairs, especially taking into account the relative paucity of climbable rock in the county in the first place.

Lasti
vlani

Trad climber
mountain view, ca
Jun 25, 2010 - 11:23pm PT
Yes my pic is from the Owens, upper gorge I think is is called in the guide. There is a climb at that formation, don't rememmber the name. There are more formations like that, but I think this one is the largest fan in there.

Don't know much about the geology :)
Jaybro

Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
Jun 25, 2010 - 11:51pm PT
I have made the White jeep pilgramege, and almost no one was killed...


I believe Missouri Buttes are a Phonolyte porphyry, like the tower, but mebbe not.
nature

climber
Tucson, AZ
Jun 26, 2010 - 12:08am PT
vlani - cool! I love the gorge. And to me it's easy to see why it might be thought of as bahsalt (where's my sheep?). It makes me happy that I can recognize the climbing area with such a non-descript photo.

the one thing I note in ORG is that the columns are sorta rose-flower shaped. they are not the typical columnar columns. Also, what is even more interesting is the columns forum on the surface of the formation rather than interior. I hypothesize it's due to degassing within the tepha deposit. who know? It's fun to arm wave over though!
Tony Bird

climber
Northridge, CA
Jun 26, 2010 - 02:13pm PT
ah, dingus, nature, i knew there was a debate in here somewhere. c'mon, don't be lazy, pull out the reference.

what a woman ... what a hotspot.

italians, always tuned in towards the tourist buck, do a variation of this on mt. stromboli. they grab wads of the molten stuff and shape it into little statuettes with tongs and pliers. they sell quite well.
Tony Bird

climber
Northridge, CA
Jun 26, 2010 - 02:16pm PT
ah, dingus, nature, i knew there was a debate in here somewhere. c'mon, don't be lazy, pull out the reference.

what a woman up there--what a hotspot!

italians, always tuned in on the tourist buck, do a variation of this on mt. stromboli. they grab wads of the molten stuff and shape it into little statuettes with tongs and pliers. they sell quite well.
nature

climber
Tucson, AZ
Jun 26, 2010 - 03:09pm PT
debate?


reference?


what do you need references for? I'm happy to provide any/all.


and what's the debate? I love this stuff but right now I don't see anyone offering a difference of opinion on anything.


(I should have a M.S. in Geology from Humboldt State - did everything but finish writing my thesis - which was done in Owens Valley)
BooDawg

Social climber
Paradise Island
Jun 27, 2010 - 06:27am PT
Yes, DMT; I DO know that many native Hawaiians and others as well believe it's bad luck and, more importantly disrespectful, to take lava from Pele's realm.

Somewhat older than the basalts on Hawaii Island are those that erupted near Toroweap Valley in western Grand Canyon and flowed down into the Canyon many times, damming the river and creating a series of lakes that were each eroded away between eruptions. Today the most exciting rapid on the Grand Canyon is Lava Falls where the river is still removing the remnants of the last eruption. These eruptions are all less than a million years old.

The Cardenas Lavas and the basaltic sill at Hance Rapid both have radiometric ages of about 1.09 billion years.

Acer

Big Wall climber
AZ
Jul 14, 2010 - 02:35am PT
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