Owl Rock is a 6,547-foot (1,996 m) elevation sandstone summit located south of Monument Valley, in northeast Arizona. It is situated 7 miles (11 km) north of Kayenta on Navajo Nation land, and can be seen from Highway 163 perched on the east edge of Tyende Mesa, where it towers 1,000 feet (300 meters) above the surrounding terrain. Its nearest higher neighbor is Agathla Peak, 1.4 miles (2.3 km) to the east-northeast, on the opposite side of this highway. Precipitation runoff from this feature drains into El Capitan Wash, which is part of the San Juan River drainage basin. The first ascent of Owl Rock was made in April 1966 by Fred Beckey and Harvey Carter by climbing cracks on the west face, and then bolting up a smooth south nose to the summit. They employed 20 pitons and 14 bolts on this route called Warpath.[4][5] The descriptive name stems from its uncanny resemblance to an owl when viewed from the east. This feature is known as Bee 'Adizí in Navajo language meaning "spindle", and this sacred place is considered to be a spindle left behind by the Holy People. A newer name for it is Tsé Ts'óózí, meaning "Slim Rock".[6]
Owl Rock is a red spire composed of JurassicWingate Sandstone which is a hard, fine-grained rock which is great for rock climbing, in contrast to the towers and buttes in nearby Monument Valley which have a different composition, de Chelly sandstone. Owl Rock stands atop Tyende Mesa which is formed of the TriassicChinle Formation. The Owl Rock Member of the Chinle Formation, composed of cherty limestone and limestone conglomerate beds alternating with claystone, mudstone, and siltstone beds, forms the upper half of the mesa, and it overlays the Petrified Forest Member of the lower half.[7] The Owl Rock Member is best exposed at its type locality near the base of Owl Rock. Here the member crops out and the resistant limestone beds form a series of jutting ledges that serve partly in protecting the underlying strata. The limestone beds are very resistant to erosion, forming thin ledges interrupting the slopes weathered from the dominant siltstone interbeds. The Owl Rock Member ranges in thickness from approximately 120 to 166 feet, and at Owl Rock the member is 166 feet thick.[8]
Climate
Spring and fall are the most favorable seasons to visit Owl Rock. According to the Köppen climate classification system, it is located in a semi-arid climate zone with cold winters and hot summers. Summers average 54 days above 90 °F (32 °C) annually, and highs rarely exceed 100 °F (38 °C). Summer nights are comfortably cool, and temperatures drop quickly after sunset. Winters are cold, but daytime highs are usually above freezing. Winter temperatures below 0 °F (−18 °C) are uncommon, though possible. This desert climate receives less than 10 inches (250 millimeters) of annual rainfall, and snowfall is generally light during the winter.[9]
rock, foot, elevation, sandstone, summit, located, south, monument, valley, northeast, arizona, situated, miles, north, kayenta, navajo, nation, land, seen, from, highway, perched, east, edge, tyende, mesa, where, towers, feet, meters, above, surrounding, terr. Owl Rock is a 6 547 foot 1 996 m elevation sandstone summit located south of Monument Valley in northeast Arizona It is situated 7 miles 11 km north of Kayenta on Navajo Nation land and can be seen from Highway 163 perched on the east edge of Tyende Mesa where it towers 1 000 feet 300 meters above the surrounding terrain Its nearest higher neighbor is Agathla Peak 1 4 miles 2 3 km to the east northeast on the opposite side of this highway Precipitation runoff from this feature drains into El Capitan Wash which is part of the San Juan River drainage basin The first ascent of Owl Rock was made in April 1966 by Fred Beckey and Harvey Carter by climbing cracks on the west face and then bolting up a smooth south nose to the summit They employed 20 pitons and 14 bolts on this route called Warpath 4 5 The descriptive name stems from its uncanny resemblance to an owl when viewed from the east This feature is known as Bee Adizi in Navajo language meaning spindle and this sacred place is considered to be a spindle left behind by the Holy People A newer name for it is Tse Ts oozi meaning Slim Rock 6 Owl RockBee AdiziEast aspectHighest pointElevation6 547 ft 1 996 m 1 Prominence387 ft 118 m 1 Parent peakAgathla Peak 7 099 ft 2 Isolation1 40 mi 2 25 km 2 Coordinates36 49 14 N 110 14 59 W 36 8205552 N 110 2498543 W 36 8205552 110 2498543 Coordinates 36 49 14 N 110 14 59 W 36 8205552 N 110 2498543 W 36 8205552 110 2498543 3 GeographyOwl RockLocation in ArizonaShow map of ArizonaOwl RockOwl Rock the United States Show map of the United StatesLocationNavajo ReservationNavajo County Arizona U S Parent rangeColorado PlateauTopo mapUSGS Agathla PeakGeologyAge of rockJurassic Upper TriassicType of rockWingate SandstoneClimbingFirst ascent1966 Fred Beckey Harvey CarterEasiest routeclass 5 x climbing 2 This Owl Rock is not to be confused with another located in Arches National Park in Utah Contents 1 Geology 2 Climate 3 Gallery 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksGeology EditOwl Rock is a red spire composed of Jurassic Wingate Sandstone which is a hard fine grained rock which is great for rock climbing in contrast to the towers and buttes in nearby Monument Valley which have a different composition de Chelly sandstone Owl Rock stands atop Tyende Mesa which is formed of the Triassic Chinle Formation The Owl Rock Member of the Chinle Formation composed of cherty limestone and limestone conglomerate beds alternating with claystone mudstone and siltstone beds forms the upper half of the mesa and it overlays the Petrified Forest Member of the lower half 7 The Owl Rock Member is best exposed at its type locality near the base of Owl Rock Here the member crops out and the resistant limestone beds form a series of jutting ledges that serve partly in protecting the underlying strata The limestone beds are very resistant to erosion forming thin ledges interrupting the slopes weathered from the dominant siltstone interbeds The Owl Rock Member ranges in thickness from approximately 120 to 166 feet and at Owl Rock the member is 166 feet thick 8 Climate EditSpring and fall are the most favorable seasons to visit Owl Rock According to the Koppen climate classification system it is located in a semi arid climate zone with cold winters and hot summers Summers average 54 days above 90 F 32 C annually and highs rarely exceed 100 F 38 C Summer nights are comfortably cool and temperatures drop quickly after sunset Winters are cold but daytime highs are usually above freezing Winter temperatures below 0 F 18 C are uncommon though possible This desert climate receives less than 10 inches 250 millimeters of annual rainfall and snowfall is generally light during the winter 9 Gallery Edit Profile view from southeast Owl Rock left Highway 163 Agathla Peak from the south Northeast aspect Looking north with Owl Rock on left Looking south with Owl Rock on right See also EditColorado Plateau List of rock formations in the United StatesReferences Edit a b Owl Rock Arizona Peakbagger com Retrieved 2020 09 24 a b c Owl Rock 6 547 AZ listsofjohn com Retrieved 2020 09 24 Owl Rock Geographic Names Information System United States Geological Survey United States Department of the Interior Retrieved 2020 09 24 Arizona Owl Rock Americanalpineclub org First Ascent Timeline deserttowersbook com Stephen C Jett and Editha L Watson Sacred Places of the Navajo The upper part of the Upper Triassic Chinle Formation and related rocks southeastern Utah and adjacent areas USGS Owl Rock Member mindat org Climate Summary for Kayenta ArizonaExternal links EditWeather forecast Owl Rock Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Owl Rock amp oldid 1098441623, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
