6th Grade Enchanted Rock Field Trip

Last week the 6th grade classes hit the road to see history and geology up close. Forty boys, 26 dads, and a handful of teachers began their adventures at the National Museum of the Pacific War in Fredericksburg, one of the best WWII museums in the country. They then set up camp at Inks Lake State Park, where they hunkered down to prepare for below-freezing temperatures.  Most slept in cabins, but there were a few brave souls who survived the night in a tent.  

The next day was spent hiking and rock climbing at Enchanted Rock. They learned about things like metamorphism and the formation of Rodinia, and how to shimmy up a 2-inch crack in a near-vertical granite wall. Some of the boys explored the caves inside Enchanted Rock. 

The following day they hiked past the Devil’s Waterhole and along a stream bed to see one of the nurseries of Enchanted Rock - where magma formed and gathered to feed into the huge batholith.  Finally, they shared a wonderful feast at Cooper’s BBQ in Llano (highly recommended). This was the best WA camping trip ever!
 
Special thanks to Dr. Joel Saylor, UH geology professor, who lead the geology portion of our expedition and who provided a large part of the funds for the trip. Many thanks to the families that provided and/or cooked our expedition meals: Belton, Chincuanco, Cannon, Coffman, DeJarnette, Directo, Figueroa, Garcia, Gomez, Jinks, Long, Sellers, Whittaker. Special thanks also to the Hedricks, who provided the hand lenses the boys used for mineral identification.