Little Huson Caves EarthCache
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From the parking area, follow the trail down to the caves.
On the road to Zeballos, some easily accessible caves. The caves which are suitable for inexperienced cavers features sinkholes, canyons, large arches and a swift-flowing river which appears and disappears into the rock formations.
These incredible caves are carved out of the limestone bedrock. Present also are some Atluck River boreholes and unique geological formations.
Nestled in the Nimpkish Valley near Port McNeill, offers visitors a chance to view the fascinating Quatsino System - a network of caves that honeycomb Vancouver Island between here and the Strathcona Provincial Park/Gold River region. Little Huson's caves are a good place to begin caving or even to begin considering the possibility.
A short trail leads from the parking lot to a view of several caves through which the Atluck River bores.
A campsite with no facilities and a boat launch are provided nearby.
Best fishing May-June and Sept-Oct for cutthroat and rainbow trout and dolly varden.
Karst topography is a landscape shaped by the dissolution of a layer or layers of soluble bedrock, usually carbonate rock such as limestone or dolomite.
Karst landforms are generally the result of mildly acidic water acting on soluble bedrock such as limestone or dolostone. The carbonic acid that causes these features is formed as rain passes through the atmosphere picking up CO2, which dissolves in the water. Once the rain reaches the ground, it may pass through soil that may provide further CO2 to form a weak carbonic acid solution: H2O + CO2 → H2CO3. Recent studies of sulfates in karst waters suggests sulfuric and hydrosulfuric acids may also play an important role in karst formation.
This mildly acidic water begins to dissolve the surface and any fractures or bedding planes in the limestone bedrock. Over time these fractures enlarge as the bedrock continues to dissolve. Openings in the rock increase in size, and an underground drainage system begins to develop, allowing more water to pass through and accelerating the formation of underground karst features.
The karstification of a landscape may result in a variety of large or small scale features both on the surface and beneath. On exposed surfaces, small features may include flutes, runnels, clints and grikes, collectively called karren or lapiez. Medium-sized surface features may include sinkholes or dolines (closed basins), vertical shafts, foibe (inverted funnel shaped sinkholes), disappearing streams, and reappearing springs. Large-scale features may include limestone pavements, poljes and blind valleys. Mature karst landscapes, where more bedrock has been removed than remains, may result in karst towers or haystack/eggbox landscapes. Beneath the surface, complex underground drainage systems (such as karst aquifers) and extensive caves and cavern systems may form.
Erosion along limestone shores, notably in the tropics, produces karst topography that includes a sharp makatea surface above the normal reach of the sea and undercuts that are mostly the result of biological activity or bioerosion at or a little above mean sea level.
Calcium carbonate dissolved into water may precipitate out where the water discharges some of its dissolved carbon dioxide. Rivers which emerge from springs may produce tufa terraces, consisting of layers of calcite deposited over extended periods of time. In caves, a variety of features collectively called speleothems are formed by deposition of calcium carbonate and other dissolved minerals.
To log this cache, you will first have to fullfill a few requirements first.
1) Post a photo with your cache log of you and/or your caching group next to the park sign at the coordinates above.
2) Follow the trail from the parking area down to the caves and along the way, identify 3 different plant/tree species and email me their common and latin names.
3) Identify 2 formations caused by the erosion of the bedrock from the water.
4) Post a photo of you and/or your caching group at the caves. Choose an area you liked the best.
Additional Hints
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