| Central California Ranges | |
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From New Idria the road turns north and wanders through a small valley, oriented more nearly east-west than the basins along the San Andreas fault. It's a synclinal valley created by folding the rocks so the center is warped downward. Panoche Valley, to the north, is oriented similarly. They are evidence of a pulse of tectonic deformation that differed from today's stresses, although an alternative theory is that strike-slip motion on the San Andreas fault system can create this kind of deformation.
Between the two valleys, Griswold Creek flows through Griswold Canyon, exposing young sandstones to the same conditions that created tafoni near New Idria. The whole hillside is sculpted in a grotesque and striking scene, a memorable farewell to this trip through the back roads of central California.
All photos (c) 2003 Andrew Alden, licensed to About.com, Inc.
Spectacular tafoni on the walls of Griswold Canyon, on the road to Panoche.
