Windy Point

Windy Point The location 'Windy Point' was built by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, using a large number of prisoners over a period of 18 years, and is a popular place for outdoor weddings.

Rock climber safety (no kicking rocks down!)

Manzanita

• Distinctive red bark, small red fruits (manzanita means "little apple" in Spanish), while bell-like hanging flowers
• Related closely to blueberry and rhododendron (Ericaceae family)
• Several species on the mountain, that also hybridize
• Flowers are pollinated by native bees: they must buzz at just the right frequency to release the pollen
• Some other insects chew holes in side of flowers to "rob" the nectar without getting any pollen
• Bears eat fruits (human edible too - but chalky) and berries often seen in scat

Juniper

• Cypress family
• Gymnosperm (does not flower, makes 'naked' seed)
• Berries used for gin
• Aromatic leaves (resinous defense compounds)

Pinyon pine

• needles in bundles of two
• Pine family (gymnosperm)
• seeds edible and were common food source for people; still eaten heavily by jays and rodents

Beargrass (nolina)

• Agave family
• Leaf fibers used for basket-weaving

'Banana yucca

• Asparagaceae family
• Fruits edible but not very good
• Different family from agaves

Hoodoo formation

• Hoodoos are a spire of rock that has an easily eroded column and a more resistant cap. Sometimes they look like mushrooms. They are kind of eerie, so they're called "hoodoos" and also have other names, from "fairy chimneys" to "goblins."
• Word origin: late 19th cent. (originally US): apparently an alteration of voodoo, an ancient African magical tradition. It originally denoted a person who practiced voodoo, hence a hidden cause of bad luck
• Hoodoos form as a function of weathering and erosion in desert climates. Water from streams, runoff, and intense thunderstorms wear down the rock, especially along joints and cracks in the formation. Wind is the fine sculptor that does a lot of the smoothing and finishing.
• In October of 2013 two Boy Scout leaders toppled over a hoodoo in Goblin Valley State Park in Utah, claiming they were afraid it would fall and hurt someone, and posted a video of it on YouTube. The rock was deposited 170 ma and the hoodoo was formed over the past 20 ma. Though they could have faced 5 years in jail, the men received a year of probation and a fine, and were removed as Boy Scout leaders.

Catalina gneiss - Contains small red garnets - Metamorphic rock formed under pressure - Banded layers (gray and white) indicate segregation of mineral types and flow of rock during formation