Day 94

Closer shot of the lumps

June 29th, 2010



12 Comments

  1. mari says:

    Flat to lumps to mountains, cool way to see the progression unfold…slowly. would have missed it in the car. thanks matt.

  2. Yes upon closer look here I don’t think these are ancient Indian burial mounds. I’ve seen some in southern Ohio when I was down there camping and exploring. These look like what you said, lumps. Lumps of mountain rock of what’s to come.

  3. Jeff says:

    I was thinking burial mounds too. Better not to explore. What is sacred is sacred – what is natural should not be touched these days.

  4. Candice in Alabama says:

    The terrain changes in similar fashion traveling WEST in the SOUTH. After you FINALLY make it past TEXAS (and this is by car), into NEW MEXICO, you start seeing hilly lumps, just not so green – then come the red MESAS!

    • Candice in Alabama says:

      The brown and green “lump” makes me think of the LARGE “lump” we passed in Tucumcari, NM.

  5. Saun in Ohio says:

    um, Lets see maybe Indian mounds :)

  6. Brian says:

    From http://history.nd.gov/historicsites/pulver/index.html

    Conical mounds in North Dakota generally range in height from two to twenty-five feet, and in diameter from ten to sixty feet. The two mounds at the Pulver Mounds site are approximately forty-five feet in diameter and are three to five feet high. These burial grounds or cemeteries are sacred to many American Indians. In the state of North Dakota, mounds are classified as unmarked burial sites and are protected by law from disturbance.

    I learn something new everyday from your travels! Thx

  7. Kirsten says:

    Start asking about the Buttes…I think you’ll hit the town of Sentenial Butte on your journey.

  8. Matt in WY says:

    These are just buttes. You’ll probably see a lot of these in Western ND and Far Eastern MT. Some of them get pretty large. Most are made of scoria (red rock) that may have formed when the hydocarbons (coal, lignite) in the ground burned under pressure. Thus the ground here became harder than the surrounding ground and has not eroded. The theory I’ve heard is many of these formed from lightning strikes.

  9. Sandi Shirey says:

    Matt–another voice from Ashland–the library this time. A geologist friend says they are buttes and are caused by water surging under the glacier and washing the surrounding soil out from a more solid core. We’re really proud of you!

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