Paddling the Ouachita Geo-Float Trail

Today is gorgeous!  We knew it was going to be, so we planned a paddle somewhere around Lake Ouachita.  Luckily, we have lake access right below our campsite, so, after a hearty breakfast and a Ruby Walk, we hefted the kayaks and walked them down the steep hill to the water's edge:

 

 

The geology of Lake Ouachita is quite complex.   It is the largest lake completely in Arkansas.  It has over 690 miles of shoreline.  It is completely surrounded by the Ouachita National Forest.  The shorelines show the complex structures of the geological formations of the Ouachita Mountains.  Two hundred fifty to 300 million years ago, the earth's surface was bent, twisted, and deformed in ways that still baffle professional geologists, although the area has been studied intensively by geologists.  As we started our paddle, we were immediately struck by the unique rock formations along the shoreline:

We decided that, for today's paddle, we would follow the route recommended by the Geo-Float Trail, which was the first water-based interpretive trail included in the National Trails System. The Geo-Float Trail was a project of the US Army Corps of Engineers, the Arkansas Geological Commission, and the US Geological Survey.  Lake Ouachita Geo-Float Trail guides boaters around Lake Ouachita, highlighting and describing many geological formations unique to the area.  The trail is a 16 mile trip with twelve exploration areas.  We were only able to do four of the stops because we could not paddle the entire route.

Our first stop was Station "B", which is located at Point 50 on the lakeshore:

 

 

Below, Kathy locates the buoy marking Station B:

 

 

According to the Geo-Float Guide, This conglomeration of boulders, pebbles, cobblestones and sedimentary rocks known as the "Submarine Slide" is the result of a giant underwater mudslide created by an ancient earthquake. As the rocks and stones slid down the continental shelf, they mixed with mud, silt and sand, and eventually the whole concoction was compressed into stone.

 

 

As we finished examining Submarine Slide, we noticed a small cave carved into the rock at lake level, and we paddled over to look at it.  It contained its own little ecosystem, a veritable hanging garden, inside:

 

 

Next, it was on to Station C, which is known as Zebra Rock.  We found the buoy --

 

 

-- and then Zebra Rock itself, which is part of one of the richest quartz-crystal districts in the world, known as Arkansas diamonds. The milky-white quartz “gash veins” pop out against the dark sandstone cliff:

 

 

We had to paddle across the main channel to the marina to get to Station D --

 

 

-- which is an example of a recumbent fold.   It is a wavelike pattern of rock caused by the collision of continental plates in this cliff face. It is an impressive type of geologic folding, where the layers of sandstone were compressed and bent over one another into an S curve.

 

 

We had to paddle a way down a long peninsula before we spotted Station E, tucked back in a little cove and not visible until we were almost on it:

 

 

According to the guide, this area was worn into long ridges, each composed of unique rock.  Some ridges' rock were harder than others and did not erode as much as others.  Looking across Lake Ouachita, we could see actual mountain peaks, whereas the ridge on our side of the lake was worn into one gentle line:

 

 

By this time, we had paddled nearly three miles and it was time for lunch.  While most of the shoreline of the lake was rough stone carved into steep shore, we found one gentle beach composed of small pieces of shaley pebbles, and we put in there:

 

 

As we munched our lunch, a dark butterfly with cobalt blue and orange highlights landed on David's kayak.  We considered it an omen of a brilliant day on a calm lake:

 

 

Here is what our beach looked like -- a riot of color that reminded us of a Jackson Pollock painting:

 

 

Our beach was on a beautiful point that boasted several picturesque trees.  This was the prettiest:

 

 

We settled back into our kayaks and started paddling home, hugging the shoreline to see what other rocky marvels we might find.  It wasn't long before we found this beautiful formation right at the edge of the water:

 

 

While Kathy rockhounded, David looked for more rock photos, including this abstract expression of the geology of Lake Ouachita:

 

 

As we paddled out at the beginning of the day, Kathy noticed one bit of shoreline with some uniquely colorful rocks.  As we returned to it, she prospected for some samples to bring home, while David looked for more examples to photograph, such as this one:

There was much more to see, study, photograph and understand than we had time on this one 6-mile paddle.  Luckily, we have a few more days here, and we hope to get out again to extend our knowledge of Lake Ouachita and its unusual geology.