}

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

The Superstition Mountains


The Superstition Mountain range is primarily part of Tonto National Forest east of Phoenix, AZ. The northernmost section makes up Lost Dutchman State Park.

Weaver's Needle at Sunrise

Weaver's Needle is a volcanic plug. A volcanic plug is a volcanic landform created when magma hardens within a vent on an active volcano. Formations like Weaver's Needle occur when the outer layers of rock erode at a different rate than the magma column in the vent, leaving the magma column exposed.

Weaver's Needle

Weaver's Needle from the Black Mesa Trail.

Jacob's Crosscut

From Jacob's Crosscut Trail, Lost Dutchman State Park. The entire park is a sea of flowers.

Water's Path

Siphon Draw is a scramble/hike up onto Flatiron Mountain to some amazing views of Phoenix.

Check out more of my photographs of the Superstitions here on our Flickr page.

Read about the legend of the Lost Dutchman Mine.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

You really have some very choice pick's of Superstition Mountain and surrounding areas. and the trail up to Flat Iron and the backside>Peralta Trail... I wish I would have taken picks like this but sure is good to be able to appreciate the view from these awesome perspective's you have shared...

Thanks,
Jay B Schuman

Eric said...

Thanks, Jay. I'm glad you enjoyed the photos!

Anonymous said...

Weaver's Needle is not a volcanic plug, although it sure looks like one. It's actually composed of three distinct layers:
Top portion: Volcanic debris deposits
Middle portion: Geronimo formation
Bottom: Dacite lava deposits

Weaver's Needle is just an erosional feature, much like the spires and columns we see in Monument Valley.