daredevils? — went over Palouse Falls in a kayak, 185 feet, straight down, and lived to tell about it. Yet as remarkable as his stunt seems, it pales to insignificance when compared to the scale and the grandeur of the landscape in which it took place. That is what truly overwhelms everyone who beholds this virtuoso example of what erosion, and time, can create. Unless, of course, you happen to be a railfan. Then your attention soon
gravitates to the Union Pacific Ayer Subdivision. For the past hundred years this unlikely, partially subterranean track has clung to the cliffs along the canyon’s west rim. The question, though, is how long before the next train?
Basalt Paradise
Beneath the surface of much of eastern Washington is layer upon layer of basalt, in some areas as much as 8,000 feet thick, although such a presence
should not be terribly surprising, since basalt, an extrusive, igneous material formed from rapidly cooling lava, is one of planet Earth’s most common rocks. For that matter, basalt is native to a number of other planets and moons elsewhere in the solar system. Basalt’s basic color is dark gray or black, but it quickly turns a rusty shade of brown when exposed to the air. It makes a decent building material but is not used very often, even though basalt houses and barns last for centuries and the thick walls provide excellent insulation against the fierce eastern Washington summer heat. Rockclimbers are not terribly fond of basalt, since it tends to be fractured and crumbly, but it is resistant to seawater, as well as to many
LEFT: Caught in the short gap between Tunnel 11 and 12, a northbound Union Pacific train rolls through the canyons at milepost 276 on September 14, 2011. BELOW: On September 13, 2014, a southbound train with a mix of UP and CP power approaches Tunnel 14. Most of the basalt rocks in the area are covered with lichen and moss.
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