•6:34 AM
On the next morning, we drove something like an hour to the other side of the Chisos Mountains to go on a guided geology walk through Tuff Canyon. The Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive to get there, was spectacular to say the least!
We underestimated the amount of time it took to get there, so we were a little late for the beginning of the walk. I suppose that the 45 mph speed limit had something to do with the bad planning.
There are a few overlooks above the canyon which helps one to imagine the lava that once flowed through these huge cracks in the earths crust.
There's all kind of interesting geology behind Big Bend. It's mostly volcanic and has of course been under water like the rest of the world.
Here's a nice cool little niche that Daniel found. There are what look like air pockets in the walls. It could also have been washed out sentiment.
Here's a lot of volcanic rock that is supposed to be older than the rest we saw before we got here. Do you see the white lines and spots all in this? My first thought was... boy, the birds like these rocks. I saw the spots first. :-) Well, volcanic rock has a lot of air pockets in it. Our guide compared the molten rock to a carbonated drink that solidifies leaving air pockets all through it. Interesting. So, the white you see is actually sentiment that filled in those holes and crystallized.
This was the end of the guided tour. The layers of rock here are impressive. I gathered that it was volcanic first, then the area was under water, leaving limestone sentiment which is the lighter rock up top. The creek bottom has beautifully smooth and colorful rocks. There are so many different materials. We particularly enjoyed the green and blue colored rocks.
One of the scout families decided to go further to see what else there was to see. Taylor went along with them. As we got to the top of the canyon, which was a long way back and around, the explorers found a way to get up there from where they were... almost straight up! :-) 
That was good for them! Time to get in the car, cool off and head for the Chisos Mountain basin. Stay tuned for more...
We underestimated the amount of time it took to get there, so we were a little late for the beginning of the walk. I suppose that the 45 mph speed limit had something to do with the bad planning.There are a few overlooks above the canyon which helps one to imagine the lava that once flowed through these huge cracks in the earths crust.
There's all kind of interesting geology behind Big Bend. It's mostly volcanic and has of course been under water like the rest of the world.Here's a nice cool little niche that Daniel found. There are what look like air pockets in the walls. It could also have been washed out sentiment.
Here's a lot of volcanic rock that is supposed to be older than the rest we saw before we got here. Do you see the white lines and spots all in this? My first thought was... boy, the birds like these rocks. I saw the spots first. :-) Well, volcanic rock has a lot of air pockets in it. Our guide compared the molten rock to a carbonated drink that solidifies leaving air pockets all through it. Interesting. So, the white you see is actually sentiment that filled in those holes and crystallized.
This was the end of the guided tour. The layers of rock here are impressive. I gathered that it was volcanic first, then the area was under water, leaving limestone sentiment which is the lighter rock up top. The creek bottom has beautifully smooth and colorful rocks. There are so many different materials. We particularly enjoyed the green and blue colored rocks.
One of the scout families decided to go further to see what else there was to see. Taylor went along with them. As we got to the top of the canyon, which was a long way back and around, the explorers found a way to get up there from where they were... almost straight up! :-) 
That was good for them! Time to get in the car, cool off and head for the Chisos Mountain basin. Stay tuned for more...
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