Sheepeater Cliff

Last updated
Sheepeater Cliff
Sheepeater Cliff, Yellowstone, June 21, 2010.jpg
Columnar basalt at Sheepeater Cliff
Coordinates: 44°53′28″N110°43′47″W / 44.891087°N 110.729635°W / 44.891087; -110.729635
Location Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA
Age 500,000+ years
Etymology Named after a band of Eastern Shoshone known as Tukuaduka ("sheep eaters")

The Sheepeater Cliffs are a series of exposed cliffs made up of columnar basalt in Yellowstone National Park in the United States. The lava was deposited about 500,000 years ago during one of the periodic basaltic floods in Yellowstone Caldera, and later exposed by the Gardner River. The cliffs are noted as a textbook example of a basaltic flow with well defined joints and hexagonal columns. They were named after a band of Eastern Shoshone known as Tukuaduka (sheep eaters). Many of the exposed cliffs are located along a steep inaccessible canyon cut by the Gardner near Bunsen Peak, but some of the cliffs located just off the Grand Loop Road can be reached by car.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellowstone National Park</span> National park in the western United States

Yellowstone National Park is a national park located in the western United States, largely in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U.S. Congress with the Yellowstone National Park Protection Act and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872. Yellowstone was the first national park in the U.S. and is also widely held to be the first national park in the world. The park is known for its wildlife and its many geothermal features, especially the Old Faithful geyser, one of its most popular. While it represents many types of biomes, the subalpine forest is the most abundant. It is part of the South Central Rockies forests ecoregion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gardiner, Montana</span> Unincorporated community in Park County, Montana, United States

Gardiner is a census-designated place (CDP) in Park County, Montana, United States, along the 45th parallel. As of the 2020 census, the population of the community and nearby areas was 833.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Devils Postpile National Monument</span> National monument in California, United States

Devils Postpile National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located near Mammoth Mountain in Eastern California. The monument protects Devils Postpile, an unusual rock formation of columnar basalt, "all closely and perfectly fitted together like a vast mosaic." The monument encompasses 798 acres (323 ha) and includes two main attractions: the Devils Postpile formation and Rainbow Falls, a waterfall on the Middle Fork of the San Joaquin River. In addition, the John Muir Trail and Pacific Crest Trail merge into one trail as they pass through the monument. Excluding a small developed area containing the monument headquarters, visitor center and a campground, the National Monument lies within the borders of the Ansel Adams Wilderness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sleeping Giant (Connecticut)</span>

Sleeping Giant, , is a rugged traprock mountain with a high point of 739 feet (225 m), located eight miles (13 km) north of New Haven, Connecticut. A prominent landscape feature visible for miles, the Sleeping Giant receives its name from its anthropomorphic resemblance to a slumbering human figure as seen from either the north or south. The Giant is known for its expansive clifftop vistas, rugged topography, and microclimate ecosystems. Most of the Giant is located within Sleeping Giant State Park. The mountain is a popular recreation site: over 30 miles (48 km) of hiking trails traverse it including 5 miles (8 km) of the 23-mile (37 km) Quinnipiac Trail. Quinnipiac University is located at Mount Carmel's foot in Hamden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snake River Plain</span> Geologic feature in Idaho, US

The Snake River Plain is a geologic feature located primarily within the U.S. state of Idaho. It stretches about 400 miles (640 km) westward from northwest of the state of Wyoming to the Idaho-Oregon border. The plain is a wide, flat bow-shaped depression and covers about a quarter of Idaho. Three major volcanic buttes dot the plain east of Arco, the largest being Big Southern Butte.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellowstone hotspot</span> Volcanic hotspot in the United States

The Yellowstone hotspot is a volcanic hotspot in the United States responsible for large scale volcanism in Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Wyoming, formed as the North American tectonic plate moved over it. It formed the eastern Snake River Plain through a succession of caldera-forming eruptions. The resulting calderas include the Island Park Caldera, Henry's Fork Caldera, and the Bruneau-Jarbidge caldera. The hotspot currently lies under the Yellowstone Caldera. The hotspot's most recent caldera-forming supereruption, known as the Lava Creek Eruption, took place 640,000 years ago and created the Lava Creek Tuff, and the most recent Yellowstone Caldera. The Yellowstone hotspot is one of a few volcanic hotspots underlying the North American tectonic plate; another example is the Anahim hotspot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hanging Hills</span> Hill range in Connecticut, US

The Hanging Hills of south central Connecticut, United States are a range of mountainous trap rock ridges overlooking the city of Meriden and the Quinnipiac River Valley 900 feet (274 m) below. They are a subrange of the narrow, linear Metacomet Ridge that extends from Long Island Sound near New Haven, Connecticut, north through the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts to the Vermont border. The range is also a subrange of the Appalachian Mountains. A popular outdoor recreation resource, the range is known for its microclimate ecosystems, rare plant communities, and expansive views from cliffs that rise abruptly over 700 feet (213 m) above the surrounding landscape. The Hanging Hills encompass the 1,800-acre (7.3 km2) Hubbard Park, designed with the help of landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted. The 51 mile (80k) Metacomet Trail traverses the range.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roosevelt Arch</span> Triumphal arch at the north entrance to Yellowstone National Park

The Roosevelt Arch is a rusticated triumphal arch at the north entrance to Yellowstone National Park in Gardiner, Montana, United States. Constructed under the supervision of the US Army at Fort Yellowstone, its cornerstone was laid down by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1903. The top of the arch is inscribed with a quote from the Organic Act of 1872, the legislation which created Yellowstone, which reads: "For the Benefit and Enjoyment of the People".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Talcott Mountain</span> Mountain in Connecticut, USA

Talcott Mountain of central Connecticut, with a high point of 950 feet (290 m), is a 13-mile (21 km) long trap rock mountain ridge located 6 miles (10 km) west of the city of Hartford. The ridge, a prominent landscape feature, forms a continuous line of exposed western cliffs visible across the Farmington River valley from Farmington to Simsbury. Talcott Mountain is part of the narrow, linear Metacomet Ridge that extends from Long Island Sound near New Haven, Connecticut, north through the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts to the Vermont border.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Obsidian Cliff</span> United States historic place

Obsidian Cliff, also known as 48YE433, was an important source of lithic materials for prehistoric peoples in Yellowstone National Park near Mammoth Hot Springs, Wyoming, United States. The cliff was named by Philetus Norris, the second park superintendent in 1878. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Holmes</span>

Mount Holmes is a prominent mountain peak in Yellowstone National Park. It is the tallest mountain in the Wyoming portion of the Gallatin Range. Mount Holmes is located in the northwestern part of the park and marks the southern terminus of the Gallatin Range. It is the source of Indian Creek, a tributary of the Gardner River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grand Loop Road</span> United States historic place

The Grand Loop Road is a historic district which encompasses the primary road system in Yellowstone National Park. Much of the 140-mile (230 km) system was originally planned by Captain Hiram M. Chittenden of the US Army Corps of Engineers in the early days of the park, when it was under military administration. The Grand Loop Road provides access to the major features of the park, including the Upper, Midway and Lower geyser basins, Mammoth Hot Springs, Tower Fall, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and Yellowstone Lake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Entrance Road Historic District</span> Historic district in Montana, United States

The North Entrance Road Historic District comprises Yellowstone National Park's North Entrance Road from Gardiner, Montana to the park headquarters at Mammoth Hot Springs, Wyoming, a distance of a little over five miles (8 km). The North Entrance Road was the first major road in the park, necessary to join the U.S. Army station at Fort Yellowstone to the Northern Pacific Railroad station at Gardiner. The road includes the Roosevelt Arch at the northern boundary of the park and winds through rolling terrain before crossing the Gardner River and joining the Grand Loop Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gardner River</span> River in the United States of America

The Gardner River is a tributary of the Yellowstone River, approximately 25 miles (40 km) long, in northwestern Wyoming and south central Montana in the United States. The entire river is located within Yellowstone National Park. It rises on the slope of Joseph Peak, Gallatin Range in the northwestern part of the park, and winds southeast through Gardner's Hole, a broad subalpine basin which is a popular trout fishing location. The Gardner falls within the Native Trout Conservation Area and anglers are allowed to take an unlimited number of brown and rainbow trout. Mountain whitefish and Yellowstone cutthroat trout must be released. Angling on the Gardner is governed by Yellowstone National Park fishing regulations. After merging with Panther Creek, Indian Creek and Obsidian Creek, it then turns north and flows through a steep canyon where it cuts through a basaltic flow from approximately 500,000 years ago known as Sheepeater Cliffs. Below Sheepeater, Glen Creek out of Golden Gate Canyon and Lava Creek out of Lava Creek Canyon join the Gardner near Mammoth Hot Springs. The river crosses the 45th parallel in Gardner Canyon and is also home to a popular hot spring known as The Boiling River. The river continues north through Gardner Canyon and empties into the Yellowstone near Gardiner, Montana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of Yellowstone National Park</span>

The following articles relate to the history, geography, geology, flora, fauna, structures and recreation in Yellowstone National Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Golden Gate Canyon</span> Canyon in Yellowstone National Park

Golden Gate Canyon is in the northwestern region of Yellowstone National Park in the U.S. state of Wyoming. Glen Creek flows north through the canyon en route to the Gardner River descending from 7,400 feet (2,300 m) at Kingman Pass to just under 6,000 feet (1,800 m) in less than 3 miles (4.8 km). The northern portion of the Grand Loop Road traverses the canyon, connecting Mammoth Hot Springs with park features to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Czech Rock</span>

The Czech Rock is a north summit ridge which is a part of České středohoří in the Liberec Region. It is the most interested touristic part of this 4 kilometres long ridge protruding above the valley of the Šporka stream and it is 629 metres high. This peak is situated 1 km from Prácheň where people usually visit a well-known rock called Panská skála. The west side is not too strong but it falls to the northeast of the valley by steep cliffs formed by columnar basalt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Overhanging Cliff</span>

Overhanging Cliff is a cliff of vertical basalt that overhangs the Grand Loop Road just north of Tower Fall on the north rim of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone in Yellowstone National Park. The point was most likely named by a member of the Cook–Folsom–Peterson Expedition, David Folsum in 1869. It is the only place in the US in which the Contour lines cross

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Osprey Falls</span> Waterfall in WY, US

Osprey Falls is a waterfall on the Gardner River in northwestern Yellowstone National Park in the United States. Osprey Falls has a drop of approximately 150 feet (46 m). The falls are located within Sheepeater Canyon and are reachable via the Osprey Falls trail.

References