Crack-in-the-Ground Photo Gallery
Crack-in-the-Ground is located in Christmas Valley which is in south-west eastern Oregon. It is south east of Bend. These pictures are in the order in which I walked through.
Crack-in-the-Ground is a 2 mile long fissure in the ground that is up to 70 feet deep and up to 10-15 feet wide. "Open cracks or fissures in the earth's surface are not uncommon; they occur fairly often as the result of earthquakes or volcanic activity, but they usually become filled with rock rubble or lava and disappear in a very short time. A large fissure that stays open for hundreds of years is, therefore, a rare feature," (http://www.macservices.com/southernoregon/sights/lore.html#crack).
"...studies indicate the Crack was formed up to 20,000 years ago along a fault line. Lava from the nearby Four Craters caused a weakness in an ancient lava flow. As the lava spewed out, it created a void and an area of weakness that left the surface unsupported, forcing the east side of the fault line to drop. In turn the land on the higher dise was stretched, which created the tear, or Crack," (Lee Juillerat. Spring 2000. Oregon Outside.).
"Hot gases sculpted the subsurface rock. In some areas the basalt seems worked by water while in other sections the rock is pocked with odd-formed vesicles, small air pockets that formed as the volcanic rock solidified," (Lee Juillerat. Spring 2000. Oregon Outside.).
As you can see from these pictures, there are some tight squeezes through the Crack, and often you have to climb over boulders to go through. I recommend long pants because there are nasty plants called stinging nettles along parts of the path.
To those of you interested in going to the Crack, the drive from the town of Christmas Valley is along an 8-mile, often washboard, dirt road. If you don't have a truck, plan on at least a 15 minute drive each way.
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