Geo 365: Feb. 22, Day 53: Pluvial Shorelines

I've previously mentioned pluvial shorelines on Tuesday and Wednesday. In both those cases, I think I'm probably seeing shorelines, but they're subtle enough that I'm not quite certain. In this case, there is no doubt about what I'm seeing. Throughout southeastern Oregon, these sorts of features are ubiquitous in the basins, to the point that they become blase. I've found that for me personally, I tend to run through a cycle of "Oh yeah, more shorelines. Yawn." to "But imagine this whole valley filled with water to that high mark. Fish. Megafauna. Toward the end, Native Americans."

And my skin prickles, and my hair stands on end.

Photo unmodified. August 20, 2011. Since this was shot on the fly, I'm not exactly certain where it was taken, but this area generally has many good examples.