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Nested Rock
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Nested Rock

by Dennis Plank

Gallery: Weekly ChallengePosted December 13, 201564 views4 comments
I happened to read the upcoming Challenges shortly before we went on a fall trip to the Olympic Peninsula.  While I was poking around the streambed of the Elwha river below where the upper dam used to be, I ran across this set of rocks and immediately thought of the challenge.  This kind of formation is caused by an eddy that makes the smaller rock vibrate or rotate on the larger and wear it away.  It also happens on much larger scales and you can find large kettles, particularly downstream of waterfalls.

5D3, 28-70 f2.8 L @ 70mm, hand held, f/8, 1/100, iso 1600, aperture priority, pattern metering, -1/3 EV.  Processed in LR5 & CS6.  Cropped mostly from the left with just a touch vertically.  Taken October 15th at 11:04 am.

This should be an interesting challenge, there are so many, many ways that water creates shapes.

Comments

4 comments
Comment posted by Paul Breitkreuz on December 14, 2015 at 9:24 AM
WOW, that is an amazing find, Dennis. Your research on the phenomenon & explanation is a big help. I would have seen this as almost a Native American grinding spot with the grinding tool left in place. Excellent scene.....laugh
Registered on February 25, 2006, 525 Posts, 8448 Comments
Comment posted by Mark Seaver on December 14, 2015 at 9:34 AM
This is a neat find, Dennis.  It's special in that the smaller rock still pretty well fills the hole that it's starting to create.  I see the large versions of this all the time in the Mather Gorge area of the Potomac below Great Falls, some of them are big enough to climb into.  You're capture shows off the two rocks very well including a nice selection of the environment.
Registered on January 23, 2011, 1103 Posts, 17270 Comments
Comment posted by David Schoen on December 14, 2015 at 4:04 PM
Fascinating story to go with the image.  I like the shadows of the tress and leaves on the big rock.
Registered on November 6, 2006, 1213 Posts, 4587 Comments
Comment posted by Albert Darmo on December 14, 2015 at 6:41 PM
Hi  Denniscrying  I  find  all  aspects of nature  marvelous   to  behold,   its amazing  to see  a set of rocks  that have been grinding away for thousands of  years...  thank  for sharing this very cool image. cool


Albert Darmo
Canada
Registered on November 25, 2008, 1386 Posts, 11978 Comments