Enchanted Rock

I recently visited Enchanted Rock, a huge granite dome that rises 425 feet above the surrounding countryside. The Tonkawa Indians believed it was enchanted because it creeks and groans as the minerals expand as they heat during the day and contract as they cool at night. It has even been called crying rock.

The rock is an exfoliation dome of PreCambrian granite, that was exposed as softer rock was eroded away. It formed as magma slowly hardened underground and formed a batholith. As the rock was exposed to the air, and weather, the granite weathered in layers which then fell away...leaving the dome-shaped formation that we call an exfoliation dome. Enchanted Rock is one of the largest in North America.

In the picture above, people who have climbed to the top appear as small dots.

Why climb a mountain?

Look, a mountain there.

I don't climb mountain.

Mountain climbs me.

Mountain is myself.

I climb on myself.

There is no mountain

nor myself.

Something

moves up and down

in the air.

Nanao Sakaki

The fascinating details make me think of Henry David Thoreau's words:

The finest workers in stone are not copper or steel tools,

but the gentle touches of air and

water working at their leisure

with a liberal allowance of time.

Water fills depressions in the rock, creating tiny areas for algae and insects and other small creatures.

As the rock decays into soil, plants grab a site to live...and help break down the rock.

This place inspires me because of its natural beauty...but also because of its history and its mystery.