Geo 730: October 21, Day 659: Full Punchbowl

I've mentioned Devils Punchbowl quite a number of times, but shown a photo of it only once before in this series. That one was at a low-ish tide, though clearly not unusually low. At negative tides, the interior is easily accessible on foot, and it looks as if in that photo, there's water in the right portal, where one would enter. But here we see it at high-ish tide, and in relatively calm conditions. Even calm, you wouldn't want to get stuck in here; the water is extremely cold. I don't clearly recall the weather on this day, but it was cool and quite gusty. I know I didn't enjoy being exposed to the wind, and I had to hold my cap down frequently. It would not be fun, in fact, quite hazardous, to get soaked in this water, then if you made it to shore safely, trying to trudge out in the chilly breeze. Hypothermia is a serious concern year-round on the Pacific Northwest coast.

The grass in the foreground is growing on marine terrace deposits, but those are not visible in the photo. The rock is Astoria Formation. The red on the far wall is from lichen, not the natural rock color.

Photo unmodified. July 15, 2014. FlashEarth Location.